Internal Audit at General Motors in the Late 1920s

ABSTRACT This paper explores an important archival document that provides the uniform auditing policies of General Motors Corporation (GM) developed in the late 1920s. The GM “Standard Audit Procedures” manual offers original material on internal auditing at a time when the discipline was not yet standardized. Studying its detailed procedures gives one an inside view of GM’s global business operations during this time and the opportunity to understand the important managerial role of the internal auditor at GM. Further, the timing of the manual is of great significance due to the economic environment in 1929. Despite experiencing the nation’s worst economic downturn, GM continued its priority of financial controls. This paper provides a unique analysis of GM, an early adopter of internal auditing within corporate America.