WEBINAR: Beyond Governance: Putting Agent-Assisted Review to Work in the Audit Plan
Date: Tuesday, August 18, 2026
Time: 12:00pm to 1:00pm
Location: Virtual
Speakers: Nick Bednorz, CEO & Managing Partner | Co-Founder, AXIA Partners and Julie Lathrop, Principal, Mirror Ridge Advisory
Speaker Bio - Nick Bednorz: Nick Bednorz is the Co-Founder and CEO of AXIA Partners, bringing more than 30 years of experience in risk, compliance, accounting, and advisory. He has held senior executive roles including Chief Risk, Regulatory and Compliance Officer and Director of Internal Audit at Shell Global Trading in London, and Chief Accounting Officer of Shell U.S. Trading. Earlier in his career, he served in corporate development and controllership roles at Quanex Corporation and as a Senior Manager at Deloitte. Nick advises public and private companies on enterprise risk management, IPO readiness, SEC reporting, derivatives, and complex transactions, combining technical rigor with a practical, business-focused approach. https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickbednorz
Speaker Bio - Julie Lathrop: Julie Lathrop is an experienced executive with a distinguished record in finance and compliance driving transformation programs and effective risk management practices for more than 20 years. She has held key finance roles at HP, including North American Controller, Global Revenue Controller, and Finance Executive for Mergers and Acquisition Integration. She also held global compliance roles at HP and Apple. She started her career at Ernst & Young serving with clients in the technology, healthcare, oil and gas, manufacturing and retail sectors. She holds a bachelor of science degree in business administration and finance from the University of Southern California. Ms. Lathrop is a California Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) and Certified Risk Management Assurance (CRMA) professional. She served in various IIA leadership roles over the years, including the Global Board, North American Board and Professional Certifications Board. linkedin.com/in/julielathrop
Session Description: Most discussions about AI and internal audit stay at the level of governance and policy. This session is about execution. It gives auditors a practical method for choosing where AI can deliver value now, starting with the rules-based, document-heavy processes that already sit inside the audit plan.
We will work through how to evaluate a process for AI suitability, how to structure an agent-assisted review that keeps a human in the loop, and how to translate the result into outcomes management recognizes. Real examples from process-optimization work ground each step, with attention to where the work is reliable today and where judgment still governs.
The session is built for internal auditors and audit leaders who are past the question of whether to use AI and are now asking where to begin and how to do it responsibly.
Learning Objectives: After attending this session, participants will be able to:
- Evaluate a business process for its suitability for AI-assisted audit and optimization
- Describe how to structure an agent-assisted review that preserves human oversight and professional judgment
- Recognize the difference between what AI can reliably support today and where auditor judgment remains essential
- Apply a practical approach to quantify and communicate the value of an AI-assisted audit in business terms
Experience Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Recommended credit hours: 1 hour
Cost: Free