Institute for Internal Controls

The Institute for Internal Controls was established in 2003, by a group of auditing professionals and educators who were concerned with the failure of the auditing and oversight professions in uncovering and preventing the high profile financial frauds that have occurred over the recent years. It is based in Southern New Jersey, outside of Philadelphia. This professional certification organization is dedicated to promoting an effective internal controls environment in all organizations through accomplishment of its mission of education and professional certification. Each member of the institute designated as a Certified Internal Controls Auditor (CICA) or Certified Controls Specialist (CCS) has earned certification after a rigorous qualification process.

CICAs and CCSs come from various professions, including auditors, accountants, fraud and loss prevention specialists, attorneys, and educators. CICAs and CCSs possess expertise in the areas of internal controls, including: audit, review, design and implementation. CICAs and CCSs are employed by many major corporations and government agencies and others that provide auditing and consulting services.

The Institute for Internal Controls encourages local chapters. Students majoring in accounting or specialized areas involving internal controls are encouraged to establish and join student chapters.

The Institute was created as a reaction of accounting professionals, consultants, and educators who were concerned with the failure of the various oversight organizations in preventing and detecting the massive financial failures that occurred in recent years. This, together with the present day announcements of continuing accounting irregularities, is causing a black mark on our profession that must be addressed. In addition to the regulatory changes that have been implemented during the last two years, the philosophy of The Institute is that there is a need to change the profession to address all areas of internal controls, including management controls, financial controls, operational controls, IT controls, physical security controls, and risk management.

John Tollefsen has been a Certified Controls Specialist since 2009.