Director – Internal Audit & Advisory

Welcome to Warner Bros. Discovery… the stuff dreams are made of.

Who We Are…

When we say, “the stuff dreams are made of,” we’re not just referring to the world of wizards, dragons and superheroes, or even to the wonders of Planet Earth. Behind WBD’s vast portfolio of iconic content and beloved brands, are the storytellers bringing our characters to life, the creators bringing them to your living rooms and the dreamers creating what’s next…

From brilliant creatives, to technology trailblazers, across the globe, WBD offers career defining opportunities, thoughtfully curated benefits, and the tools to explore and grow into your best selves. Here you are supported, here you are celebrated, here you can thrive.

Your New Role

Internal Audit and Advisory strengthens WBD’s ability to create, protect, and sustain value by providing the board and management with independent, risk-based, value add, objective assurance, advice, insight, and foresight.   WBD Internal Audit’s vision is to accelerate innovation, increase efficiency and effectiveness while providing value added assurance and advisory services, while anticipating and mitigating risks. Our approach is designed to directly influence and drive change, facilitating the development of strategic relationships and bolstering the company's ability to anticipate and mitigate risks effectively.

We are seeking a dynamic and innovative Internal Audit & Advisory Director, focusing on enhancing the achievement of WBD’s ongoing business strategies and objectives. This includes actively supporting the business with risk, process and internal control perspectives in ongoing transformation efforts and aiding leadership in developing and executing initiatives that foster growth, innovation, efficiency and effectiveness and a proactive control environment.

You will be responsible for developing, leading, driving project teams to conduct broad audits and advisory projects of business units, processes and systems that extend from understanding risks, business objectives and strategies and then developing project plans, leading plan execution (facilitation, analysis, testing etc.), to identifying process opportunities and improvement and delivering clear and detailed insights. You will play a crucial role in identification of process and internal control observations, recommendations, and strategies to address risks and improve the business process & control environment, and opportunities to advance the organization’s transformation efforts and create synergies. 

In this pivotal role, you will serve as a business process, risk, internal control, and Internal Audit (IA) subject matter expert across designated organizations, business processes and stakeholders. To develop an effective internal audit project strategy and plan, you must understand the organization / process / business area’s governance, risk management, and control processes in addition to the objectives of the business / area. Your responsibilities will encompass leading project team(s) in strategizing, designing, and implementing comprehensive audits, reviews, analyses and suggest solutions and other related activities while confidently facilitating discussions with and presenting outcomes and developing recommendations to senior management.

As a primary point of contact, you will maintain strong, productive relationships with peers and up through leadership across the organization, playing a key role in driving the success of the Stakeholder and Internal Audit teams. The successful candidate will be a leader capable of influencing change, with a sharp focus on programmatic objectives who can support business leadership in the translation of the overarching strategy into focused initiatives, process and control capabilities and appropriate roadmaps and action plans.

Exceptional leadership, cross functional collaboration, and effective communication skills (both verbally and written) are crucial to navigate, lead and execute, and communicate audit & advisory projects successfully, engaging comprehensively with executives from various levels across the business. This strategic position demands an agile, proactive, and insightful leader committed to advancing business practices, strategic and critical thinking, creativity, and fostering excellence in stakeholder engagement. The Internal Audit Director will be asked to perform the following:

Your Role Accountabilities

Audit & Advisory Strategy for Various Businesses and processes; Project Leadership, Operation and Reporting

• Develop a comprehensive understanding of top-down goals, organizational objectives and the WBD businesses to tailor our audit strategy, focusing on value-added activities that support business strategy & transformation.
• Demonstrate leadership presence and influence across a broad range of business stakeholders to drive organizational change.
• Build deep understanding of WBD, external competitors, leading business practices and controls processes and overall industry trending to identify potential improvement opportunities and to develop solutions with business partners
• Structure high-level and ambiguous problems soundly, develop clear insights and effectively translate it to work planning and process, using both qualitative and quantitative methods.  Mentor direct reports and other team members to develop strong problem-solving skills.
• Regularly assess changes in the market and emerging and unaddressed risks to ensure robust and forward-thinking audit strategy.  
• Develop expertise as a subject matter expert in designated business process areas, guiding audit strategies and innovations with a fresh perspective.
• Expertly prepare and present insightful analyses and reports, detailing and delivering them to business unit leaders, C-suite executives, and senior leaders, including the WBD Audit Committee. Emphasize strategic foresight and value-add outcomes in each report, seamlessly integrating broader business visions into actionable business plans (working with the key stakeholders) that catalyze change.
• Engages in effective change management processes such as presenting the need for change in a way that encourages commitment and action, developing strategies and providing recommendations and solutions to implement desired changes, while managing stakeholders’ expectations. 
• Exemplify the highest degree of trust and integrity by continually upholding the principles of the internal audit profession and through the Global Internal Audit Standards

Team Leadership and Relationship Building

• Lead and mentor IA direct reports and team members to deliver value on a range of audit and advisory initiatives
• Advance the IA organization by leading initiatives to enhance overall team efficiency and performance through analytics, agile approaches, Artificial intelligence, and other efforts. 
• Develop leadership presence, and establish and maintain "trusted advisor" relationships, promoting robust collaboration with both clients and Internal Audit colleagues through innovative approaches and strategic objectivity and independence.
• Drive talent development by recruiting, training, mentoring, and coaching diverse teams, fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth.
• Keeps leaders and peers informed about key issues, communicates effectively, and courageously influencing others to support a point of view, gain alignment, or take action.

Qualifications & Experience

• 10+ years of experience in Big 4, Management Consulting, Multinational Corporate Environment, Internal Audit, Audit, IT, or related field.
• Experience managing multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience in the media & entertainment industry.
• Strong planning and organization skills, with the ability to be agile and manage large complex projects and synthesize information into executive presentations.
• Critical thinker that is able to work in ambiguous areas across multiple organizations with minimal direction.
• Self-starter who can work independently and spearhead projects.
• Experience working with business partners to understand, assess and evaluate, design and test control environment.
• Project management experience and ability to manage teams.
• Experience in assessing processes, designing and implementing internal controls, and continuous improvement.
• Consulting, audit, and control advisory experience.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills to develop and deliver executive summaries.
• Ability to partner with all levels of personnel, including senior leadership.
• Experience analyzing data, evaluating trends, and assessing risks to develop insights.
• MBA or Bachelor's degree in Accounting, IT, Finance, Business, or related field.
• Professional audit certifications preferred (CPA, CIA, CISA, CRMA, or other professional qualifications).
• Strong problem-solving skills and a continuous improvement mindset.
• Ability to work in a highly collaborative, team-oriented environment.
• Position may require domestic/international travel.

How We Get Things Done…

This last bit is probably the most important! Here at WBD, our guiding principles are the core values by which we operate and are central to how we get things done. You can find them at www.wbd.com/guiding-principles/ along with some insights from the team on what they mean and how they show up in their day to day. We hope they resonate with you and look forward to discussing them during your interview.

Championing Inclusion at WBD

Warner Bros. Discovery embraces the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects a wide array of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit, without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, mental or physical disability, and genetic information, marital status, citizenship status, military status, protected veteran status or any other category protected by law.

If you’re a qualified candidate with a disability and you require adjustments or accommodations during the job application and/or recruitment process, please visit our accessibility page for instructions to submit your request.

In compliance with local law, we are disclosing the compensation, or a range thereof, for roles in locations where legally required. Actual salaries will vary based on several factors, including but not limited to external market data, internal equity, location, skill set, experience, and/or performance. Base pay is just one component of Warner Bros. Discovery’s total compensation package for employees. Pay Range: $126,350.00 - $234,650.00 salary per year. Other rewards may include annual bonuses, short- and long-term incentives, and program-specific awards. In addition, Warner Bros. Discovery provides a variety of benefits to employees, including health insurance coverage, an employee wellness program, life and disability insurance, a retirement savings plan, paid holidays and sick time and vacation.