WKU News

One word written on the board in Bruce Weisman’s office helps guide the WKU Office of Internal Audit – WHY?.

“Why do we do the things that we do? There’s usually a good reason why we used to do it but there may not be a good reason why we still do it,” he said.

Weisman joined WKU in January as Director of Internal Audit after working at Vanderbilt University for 13 years. WKU graduate Katelyn Durham returned to her alma mater in June as Senior Internal Auditor after 10 years in the community banking and grocery industries.

With the 2023-24 academic year under way, Weisman and Durham want to raise awareness of the office and change perceptions among the campus community.

“We’re approachable. We’re everyday people,” Weisman said. “We’re all on the same team. We work for WKU like you all do.”

Their goal is to help make things better.

“One of the big misconceptions is that we are numbers people,” Weisman said. “Numbers are helpful because they help tell the story, but we are process people. We also know we have to be people people. We can’t do our jobs without others. Being able to talk to people, understand them, and really understand their perspective on things is important to what we do.”

Weisman and Durham provide consulting services for departments or offices that are looking at their operations or wanting to know if their policies and procedures need updates. “I think whenever we come in there’s always that ‘Uh oh, it’s internal audit,’ like we’re out to get people,” Durham said. “That’s not what it is at all. It’s not the ‘Gotcha, you didn’t do your job correctly game.’ That’s not what we’re all about. That’s not our purpose.”

If members of the campus community have concerns about suspected fiscal misconduct, an Ethics and Compliance Hotline (run by a third party) offers an avenue for anonymous reporting by phone at 877-318-9178 or online at www.wku.ethicspoint.com.

“The hotline is an option everyone needs to know about because being able to remain anonymous takes fear out of reporting,” Durham said. “But you can always call our office to discuss an issue.”

Weisman said he and Durham couldn’t do their jobs without support from President Timothy C. Caboni, his administrative leadership team and the WKU Board of Regents. “We really appreciate the support from leadership,” he said. “We can’t do our job if we don’t have their support.”

As the only WKU employee other than the president who reports directly to the Board of Regents, Weisman said he and his office can conduct audits of the President’s Office and other offices and report to the board without facing questions about independence or objectivity.

The Internal Audit website notes that the office “is committed to enhancing organizational value by providing risk-based and objective advice and practical guidance in support of WKU's mission, vision and core values.”

In presentations to the Board of Regents, Weisman said, “I’m always talking about adding and protecting value. You can do that in many different ways. One of those ways is to focus on mitigating risk and capitalize on opportunities. To put that in more everyday terms, we just like to help people do their jobs better. That’s all we’re looking for.”

The Office of Internal Audit is located in Wetherby Administration Building, room G17. To learn more, visit https://www.wku.edu/ia/ or call (270) 745-8799.