If It Wasn’t for Legislation, Would Auditors Even Exist?

Let us be brutally honest with ourselves - auditors were never invited to the table because someone thought, “You know what we need? Someone to independently check if we’re doing the right thing.” No. We arrived because regulation knocked on the door with urgency, and legislation kicked it open……………………………. 

Auditing - both internal and external - is not a naturally occurring part of business evolution. It is a corrective measure. A safety net. An imposed necessity. Without legislation, would most organisations voluntarily subject themselves to the level of scrutiny we bring? Highly unlikely. Because the truth is, when governance is left to self-regulation, history shows us it does not end well! 

We have seen it time and time again. Governance structures that looked good on paper but were hollow in practice. Boards that were too passive or too compromised to challenge executive overreach. Risk committees that ticked boxes instead of sounding alarms. Whistleblowers silenced. Internal controls bypassed. Reports polished while reality burned in the background. It was never about lack of frameworks - it was the absence of will. 

Think of the collapses and scandals that have rocked economies, eroded pensions, and left reputations in ruins. They were not the result of poor strategy - they were symptoms of failed governance. These failures did not emerge overnight; they festered in cultures where accountability was optional, and transparency was performative. In that world, the auditor becomes more than a compliance requirement - they become the last guardrail before the cliff. 

For over two decades of experience, I have moved between the roles of CAE, CRO, CFO and Audit Committee. That vantage point has been a masterclass in the real dynamics of power, risk and control. And here is the reality in my view - most organisations don’t embrace audit because they believe in it. They tolerate it because they have to……………... 

And that is okay. Because legislation - as blunt and bureaucratic as it may seem - has done something profoundly valuable: it has created non-negotiable accountability. It has forced institutions to open themselves to scrutiny, even when they would rather not. It has made transparency less about choice and more about obligation. Without that legislative scaffolding, we would not be seen as essential. We would be seen as optional - and optional does not survive in the boardroom. 

But here's the opportunity. While legislation created the demand for auditors, governance failures validated it. The onus is now on us - as a profession - to turn that validation into value. 

If we continue to limit ourselves to checkbox reviews and post-event reporting, we risk reinforcing the idea that we are merely a cost of compliance. But when we become enablers of strategic insight, early detectors of institutional blind spots, and trusted challengers in governance conversations, we shift the narrative. We move from “must-have because of the law” to “can’t-do-without because of the value.”

Because ultimately, if all we’re doing is showing up because legislation says so, then we’re expendable the moment the law changes. But if we lead with courage, insight, and relevance - then even in a world free from regulation, they will still call us in. Not because they have to. But because they want to…………………………. 

And that’s the future worth fighting for.