THE INSTITUTE OF INTERNAL AUDITORS DETROIT CHAPTER

April In-Person Meeting - Recognizing Students

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

4:00 PM - 7:00 PM EST

Italian American Banquet & Conference Center in Livonia

2 CPE Credits  

Registration will close on April 3rd at noon so we can provide our final count to the venue.

 

For the upcoming monthly IIA meeting, we’ll start with a pre-dinner speaker and then two after-dinner speakers.  At the end of the evening we will recognize all our students in attendance and one student will be selected at random from each Michigan college/university represented to be awarded $2,000 to help with his/her educational expenses.  We hope you can join us!

 

The Evolving Role of Internal Audit in Modern Organizations

• How Internal Audit has transitioned from a traditional "compliance check" role to a more strategic, value-added function.
• How Internal Audit partners with other departments to provide insights that support organizational success.
• Diverse opportunities within the Internal Audit profession outside of the traditional financial audit experience.
• Skillsets or experiences current students will need to set themselves apart.

Pre-Dinner Speaker: Brandi Thomas, Chief Audit Executive, General Motors

Brandi Thomas is a Fortune 25 senior executive, independent board director, and strategic voice across a spectrum of industries and companies—from playing a key role in General Electric’s historical transformation to guiding one of the fastest-growing start-ups in history. She now serves as Chief Audit Executive of General Motors, ensuring strong financial controls for the $43B global enterprise with more than 165,000 employees on six continents. 

Over the course of her career, Brandi has been a trusted advisor to leadership teams and boards on optimizing operations, mitigating risk, and driving growth. As a former Chief Diversity Officer, she brings deep insights into attracting and retaining world-class talent and fosters rich, transparent dialogue in and out of the boardroom. Brandi earned a BS in finance and international studies from Case Western Reserve University.

Strategic Vision for Audit Tools and Techniques

After-Dinner Speakers: Safet Cunmuljaj, General Motors and Brian Shea, General Motors

Safet Cunmuljaj, Assistant Director of Corporate, Financial, and Data Analytics Audit at General Motors, has held various positions within the company over 13 years, both within internal audit and in the business. Through each role, he has gained diverse perspectives on business processes, risk, and controls, helping to connect the dots on best practices for mitigating risks and working together to overcome challenges. Committed to transforming challenges into opportunities, Safet is always eager to help solve complex business problems and provide valuable insights for decision-making. A native of Metro Detroit, he received his Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Science in Accounting from the University of Michigan - Dearborn. Safet is also a Certified Information Systems Auditor.

 

Brian Shea is a Data Analytics manager at General Motors with 13 years’ experience within Internal Audit, 8 of those dedicated to Analytics and Audit Tool enablement. Brian has been involved in projects dealing with Process Mining, Automation, Predictive Analytics, Continuous Business Monitoring among others. He holds both CIA and CISA designation and his desire to merge the latest tools and technology with the daily realities of being an auditor for maximum value is what makes him unique in the audit space.

STUDENT AWARD OPPORTUNITY & CRITERIA:

• Eligible students will be entered into a drawing for a $2,000 award.
• One student award will be selected at random from each Michigan college/university represented.
• Recipients /student must be present in meeting
• Meeting registration is free for students.
• Students must be currently in enrolled in college with a focus on accounting, finance, or business-related field of study.
• Scholarships chosen at end of the meeting. Awards will be paid after validating college enrollment.

REGISTRATION FEES:  

• 2025 IIA & ISACA Spring Conference: In-Person Days will be Tuesday, March 4 - Thursday, March 6, 2025; Saint John’s Resort - Plymouth, Michigan 

Registration is still open for all the Virtual Courses being offered March 10th - 27th​​​​​​ - Register to Join Us

Please note - this year the in-person days for the Spring Conference will be held Tuesday through Thursday based on availability of the venue.

IIA ROCK STAR OF THE MONTH: