Audit & Risk Awards 2024: meet the winners’ judges!

With a matter of weeks to go until the #AuditAndRiskAwards24, we’re gearing up behind the scenes to bring you the most glamourous event in the internal audit calendar. The awards celebrates excellence within the profession and gives you the chance to recognise your colleagues’ achievements.

But who decides who will walk away with an award on the night?

Let’s meet the five industry experts stepping up to this immense task!

Jawad Mahmood – Group Chief Auditor, Small World Financial Services

Jawad is currently the Group Chief Auditor at Small World Financial Services, a London headquartered global money transfer firm with operations in over 90 countries. He has more than twenty years’ experience working with big four and top tier FS firms. Jawad has led award winning IA teams and has a proven track record of transforming internal audit functions, driving productivity through use of innovative technology with a key focus on value addition. 

Prior to joining Small World, Jawad was Head of Audit for England for the European Commission programmes and Group Chief Internal Auditor for the Department for Levelling Up. He is a qualified Chartered Accountant and is a member of ICAEW and CIPFA. He also holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Finance. Jawad is passionate about children's education and supports a number of charities that help underprivileged kids achieve their full potential. 

Peter Elam - Group Head of Risk Management and Business Assurance, Anglo American

Peter Elam, CIA, QIAL, CRMA is Group Head of Risk and Assurance at Anglo American plc, a position he assumed on joining the company on 1 June 2019.  He is responsible for enterprise risk management, internal audit, ethical business conduct, investigations and insurance globally.

Peter was previously Head of Internal Audit at Novartis, based in Basel, Switzerland, from 2010.

Peter began his career with Shell, where he spent 15 years in positions of increasing responsibility in various countries, latterly as Shell’s CFO in China.

Peter graduated from Oxford University and also studied at McGill University in Montreal and Eötvös Lóránd University in Budapest.  He is a member of the International Internal Audit Standards Board, Council member of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors (UK and Ireland) and a Fellow of the UK Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.  

Natalie Butler - Global Internal Audit Director and Regional Compliance Director at Edelman

Natalie possesses 20 years of experience in the audit and assurance space – covering both external and internal audit.

Natalie serves as the Global Internal Audit Director and Regional Compliance Director at Edelman, an independent global communications company with over 60 offices worldwide. Her leadership extends beyond technical expertise, as she fosters a collaborative environment and empowers teams to deliver impactful solutions.  Natalie is also Six Sigma certified, further demonstrating her commitment to continuous improvement and data-driven decision-making.

Driven by a sense of community service, Natalie also actively contributes beyond her corporate role.  Her past position on the CIIA's Audit Committee and ongoing leadership at St. Luke's Hospice exemplify her dedication to advancing the industry while serving causes.

Kate O’Neill - Director of Stakeholder Engagement & Corporate Affairs, Financial Reporting Council

Kate joined the FRC as the Director of Stakeholder Engagement and Corporate Affairs in May 2020. Previously she was the Head of Corporate Development at Jupiter Asset Management where she was responsible for corporate strategy, investor relations and communications. Kate was the Managing Director of Investor Relations at Lloyds Banking Group during the financial crisis before becoming a Partner at Brunswick and then at Maitland advising global clients on capital markets and communications issues.

After qualifying as a lawyer, Kate spent most of her career in the financial services sector in the UK, Europe and Australasia in senior leadership roles in distribution and alternative assets at AMP Asset Management, Henderson Global Investors and RBS Asset Management.

Holly Sykes - Head of Audit and Electoral Services, Cornwall Council

Holly oversees and delivers the Internal Audit Service for Cornwall Council as the Chief Internal Auditor. In addition she is the lead for the Internal Audit Service for Council Group of Companies – ‘Corserv’ which includes Cornwall Airport Limited, Corserv Facilities Limited and Cormac; Council of the Isles of Scilly; Cornwall Housing Limited  as well as for a number of Multi Academy Trusts. Holly previously oversaw part of the audit service for the Ministry of Defence, with over 15 years’ experience in central Government from Internal Audit, transformation to working behind the scenes of Typhoon and Tornado fast jet projects. Previous experience includes auditing Housing Associations, local authorities, the NHS and education sectors as well as delivering external audit in the private sector. She specialises in Audit, Risk Management, fraud, electoral services, transformation and leadership development.