Corporate IT Audit Associate

Company Description

At Nielsen, we are passionate about our work to power a better media future for all people by providing powerful insights that drive client decisions and deliver extraordinary results. Our talented, global workforce is dedicated to capturing audience engagement with content - wherever and whenever it’s consumed. Together, we are proudly rooted in our deep legacy as we stand at the forefront of the media revolution. When you join Nielsen, you will join a dynamic team committed to excellence, perseverance, and the ambition to make an impact together. We champion you, because when you succeed, we do too. We enable your best to power our future.

Job Description

About This Job 

Nielsen’s Corporate Audit Staff (CAS) is a fast-paced, dynamic, and highly-selective team. CAS provides objective assurance over Nielsen’s reported financials and has reporting accountability to Nielsen’s management team, Audit and Risk Committee, and External Audit partner. As Nielsen is a global enterprise, CAS has audit responsibilities in over ~40 countries. Besides audit work, CAS engages in projects that support process improvement and critical strategic initiatives to support Nielsen. 

We are seeking a proactive, highly technical IT Audit Associate to join our Internal Audit team during an exciting period of technology modernization and scope expansion. As Nielsen advances its digital infrastructure through cloud migrations, cybersecurity enhancements, and enterprise-wide initiatives like our SAP S/4HANA transformation, our audit function is evolving in tandem. This role offers a unique opportunity for an ambitious professional to truly build out the position, broaden our coverage across diverse technical domains, and make a high-visibility impact across the organization. 

Rather than focusing solely on routine compliance routines, the primary driver of this role is broad, technical IT testing across our global environment. Operating independently within our core audit team, you will move beyond standard checklists to evaluate complex technical and cloud architectures, conduct operational IT audits—including cybersecurity reviews, network security assessments, and vulnerability management—and execute system conversion reviews. We are looking for an adaptable, forward-thinking self-starter who is highly comfortable with ambiguity, naturally curious about complex technical layers, and ready to help shape the future of our IT audit function. 

Responsibilities 

● Evaluate the effectiveness of internal controls by performing comprehensive IT audits, including planning, scoping, testing, and drafting audit reports. 

● Assist in operational IT audits beyond compliance, including participating in cybersecurity reviews, network security assessments, cloud architecture reviews, and penetration testing validation. 

● Assist in pre- and post-implementation reviews for our ongoing SAP S/4HANA transformation by validating data migration integrity, security role mapping, and other critical implementation components. 

● Execute end-to-end testing of IT General Controls (ITGCs) and ITACs across our current enterprise environments (including legacy SAP ECC), focusing on streamlined testing during critical roll-forward periods.

● Partner with business and IT stakeholders to conduct deep-dive process reviews and document "as-is" workflows for newly implemented or changing business environments where clear instructions or historical documentation may be missing. 

● Participate in scoping and designing new audit procedures from scratch for emerging business areas or systems where a pre-written audit program does not yet exist.

● Identify control deficiencies, operational bottlenecks, inconsistencies, and/or incidents of fraud, and assist in drafting pragmatic recommendations for process owners.

● Present findings and recommendations to senior leaders, partnering with the business to develop remediation plans and support best practice sharing. 

● Provide independent assurance on business compliance with policy, governance, and internal controls. 

● Contribute to audit process efficiency by leveraging AI tools, automation routines, and data analytics to streamline testing workflows. 

● Collaborate with the financial audit team to identify manual testing bottlenecks and find opportunities to streamline audit workflows across departments. 

● Work on high-impact projects related to process improvement, analytics, and risk assessment, embracing an analytical mindset to evaluate emerging business risks.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications: 

● 2- 4 years of experience in IT Audit, Cyber Security Auditing, IT Compliance, Internal Audit, or technical Risk Advisory. 

● High degree of comfort with ambiguity and working in unstructured environments, with a proven ability to map unorganized processes, design audit procedures from scratch, and solve complex problems without a pre-written checklist. 

● Demonstrated experience working with AI tools and generative AI platforms to enhance workflow productivity, assist in documentation, or analyze audit datasets. ● Strong foundational understanding of IT-related testing, including ITGCs, ITACs, and infrastructure components (operating systems, databases, network architecture, and system interfaces). 

● Proven capability to operate effectively in fast-moving, changing environments (such as major system implementations or unmapped technical areas) where standard operating procedures are still being developed. 

● A self-driven, proactive approach to work and a natural curiosity to ask the right questions and understand complex technical workflows from scratch. 

● Strong interpersonal and written communication skills to interview technical IT teams and clearly document technical processes into simple business terms. 

● Strong communication skills with the ability to pitch reports to senior leadership and engage in productive discussions with external auditors. 

● Outstanding project management skills and the ability to deliver in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple workstreams. 

● Advanced skills in Google Suite of products.

● Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems (MIS), Cyber Security, Data Analytics, Finance, Accounting, Computer Science, or a related business/technical field. 

Preferred Qualifications: 

● Prior experience in public accounting and/or within a public company SOX compliance environment. 

● Exposure to SAP environments (ECC or S/4HANA) or experience participating in a system implementation/conversion review. 

● Familiarity with cyber security frameworks (NIST, ISO 27001) or basic exposure to vulnerability management and penetration testing tools/methodologies. 

● Familiarity with or a strong desire to learn data manipulation and automation tools (such as SQL, Alteryx, Power BI, Advanced Excel macros, or Python) to drive testing automation and efficiency. 

● Experience with AuditBoard (Optro) a plus. 

● Progress toward or completion of relevant certifications (such as CISA or CIA).

Additional Information

Please be aware that job-seekers may be at risk of targeting by scammers seeking personal data or money. Nielsen recruiters will only contact you through official job boards, LinkedIn, or email with a nielsen.com domain. Be cautious of any outreach claiming to be from Nielsen via other messaging platforms or personal email addresses. Always verify that email communications come from an @nielsen.com address. If you're unsure about the authenticity of a job offer or communication, please contact Nielsen directly through our official website or verified social media channels.