Grunig brings experience to new audit role

June 19, 2008

Question: What does University Audit and Advisory Services at Arizona State University do?<separator></separator>Answer: It’s an essential component of the way ASU conducts business, ensuring that university operations and administrative processes are conducted in an ethical and proper manner.<separator></separator>Tracy Grunig was recently hired as the new director of University Audit and Advisory Services, bringing significant experience in higher education and enterprise risk assessment to her role. Enterprise risk assessment is a process that is designed to identify potential events that may affect an entity and spell out methods of managing the risks. Grunig is a returning ASU employee who worked as the internal audit manager at the university and served as assistant executive director for the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) from 1993 to 1998. She is a certified public accountant and a certified fraud examiner. <separator></separator>“Tracy brings an unusual combination of prior experience including industry, a ‘big four’ accounting firm, and post-secondary educational institutions’ audit departments,” says Paul Ward, ASU Vice President for University Administration and General Counsel.<separator></separator>“It’s important to understand that all employees have a responsibility for internal controls and compliance with applicable laws and ABOR and ASU policies and procedures. With her extensive experience, Grunig is able to bring her expertise in promoting ethical workplace behaviors,” Ward says. <separator></separator>In a memo posted on the department’s Web site, ASU President Michael Crow states, “Arizona State University is committed to observing the highest standards of ethical behavior so that Arizona’s citizens may have confidence in the integrity of ASU. All members of the university community must recognize our shared responsibility of educating the future leaders of Arizona and the nation carries with it an obligation to adhere to fair, ethical and legal business practices.”<separator></separator>In her new role, Grunig will ensure that ASU adheres to proper business practices by supervising financial, operational and compliance audits at the university and coordinating with ABOR’s audit function. She will also direct advisory services with an educational component that offers personnel training to ensure good business practices, internal controls and separation of duties.<separator></separator>“This represents a more proactive type of education,” Grunig says. <separator></separator>One of her primary goals is to facilitate the relationship of her office with other areas within the university so that people feel comfortable coming to her to ask questions about business practices and day-to-day activities.<separator></separator>“If people have audit-related questions, it’s nice to have someone to call directly,” she says.<separator></separator>And Grunig is looking forward to working within the ASU community again.<separator></separator>“I really missed the university environment. It’s such a dynamic place,” she says.<separator></separator>Grunig graduated Summa Cum Laude with her master’s of public administration degree from Arizona State University and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from California State University in Long Beach.<separator></separator>Grunig may be contacted at tracy.grunig@asu.edu or (480) 965-5511. University Audit and Advisory Services is located at University Center, 1130 E. University Drive, Suite 110. The general office number is (480) 965-1801.

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