Digital technologies, the rise of mobile commerce and changing consumer behaviour continue to drive transformation in the technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) industry. Providers are focusing on innovative offerings, managed services and cloud services for growth, while also capturing revenue opportunities from new ways in which services are consumed. At the same time, there is an increased focus on optimising operating costs and changing their business models, in part through transformation initiatives designed to improve efficiency, while enhancing the effectiveness of back-office functions.

So how should risk and internal audit functions respond to this changing environment and continue to remain effective? This paper discusses some of the considerations that should be top of the agenda for 2017, including building an effective risk management system, the top five imperatives to help develop a basic risk management framework, the top risk considerations, as well as the top 10 internal audit considerations.