Senior Director - Internal Audit

Principal Financial Group; Des Moines (IA); Hybrid; USD 141,000 - 173,000; Full time

Job summary

Principal Financial Group is seeking a Senior Director to lead our Internal Audit function, directing executive-level oversight across core businesses and regulated entities. You will report to the Chief Internal Auditor and shape strategy, performance, and credibility of Internal Audit, aligning with enterprise risk and regulatory expectations.

You will engage with boards, management committees, and regulators, driving audit planning, scope decisions, and validation of assurance activities

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Demonstrated success setting functional strategy and translating it into priorities and measurable outcomes.
• Experience leading large, complex portfolios in regulated environments.

Responsibilities

• Provide executive leadership for Internal Audit coverage of core businesses, enterprise functions, regions, or regulated entities.
• Ensure adherence to Internal Audit standards and quality expectations; manage risk, control assessments, and advisory work.
• Partner with executive management and board committees to deliver independent assurance and enterprise insight.

Skills

Executive leadership

Strategic planning

Risk management

Audit governance

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

What You’ll Do

We’re looking for a Senior Director to join our Internal Audit team! In this role, you’ll provide executive leadership for Internal Audit coverage of one or more core businesses, enterprise functions, regions, or regulated legal entities. As a direct report to the Chief Internal Auditor, the Senior Director shares accountability for the strategy, performance, quality, operating effectiveness, talent, and sustained credibility of the Internal Audit function. The role converts enterprise strategy, business and regulatory developments, and emerging risk into a dynamic portfolio of independent assurance and advice; delivers clear audit opinions and enterprise insight; and exercises significant judgment and delegated authority in matters affecting executives, boards, regulators, and the company’s control environment.

What You’ll Do

We’re looking for a Senior Director to join our Internal Audit team! In this role, you’ll provide executive leadership for Internal Audit coverage of one or more core businesses, enterprise functions, regions, or regulated legal entities. As a direct report to the Chief Internal Auditor, the Senior Director shares accountability for the strategy, performance, quality, operating effectiveness, talent, and sustained credibility of the Internal Audit function. The role converts enterprise strategy, business and regulatory developments, and emerging risk into a dynamic portfolio of independent assurance and advice; delivers clear audit opinions and enterprise insight; and exercises significant judgment and delegated authority in matters affecting executives, boards, regulators, and the company’s control environment.

For assigned businesses or legal entities, serves as the senior Internal Audit executive and delegated representative of the Chief Internal Auditor, with direct access to and interaction with subsidiary boards, board and management committees, executive leadership, external auditors, and regulators, as applicable.

You’ll Also Have The Opportunity To:

• Strategic Leadership, Functional Direction & Audit Planning
• Set and execute multi-year strategy for the assigned portfolio and materially contribute to the strategy, operating model, priorities, performance measures, budget, workforce plan, and transformation agenda of the overall Internal Audit function.
• Own the risk assessment and audit-planning process for the assigned portfolio, integrating enterprise and business strategy, regulatory expectations, business change, data, stakeholder perspectives, and current and emerging risks.
• Translate strategy into clear functional priorities, operating decisions, capability investments, and measurable outcomes; lead department-wide initiatives and make decisions for the long-term effectiveness of Internal Audit, not solely the assigned portfolio.
• Determine and continually recalibrate the nature, timing, scope, sequencing, and resourcing of assurance and advisory coverage as risk conditions and strategic priorities change.
• Identify cross-business themes and systemic risks, connect insights across portfolios, and elevate matters that warrant enterprise action or attention.
• Audit Portfolio Accountability, Quality & Production
• Hold end-to-end executive accountability for the relevance, quality, timeliness, throughput, and impact of a high-volume portfolio of audit opinions and advisory work, including complex, cross-business, technology-enabled, and regulatory engagements.
• Exercise final review and approval authority delegated by the Chief Internal Auditor for engagement scope, risk and control assessments, significant judgments, issue ratings, reports, audit opinions, and escalation decisions.
• Ensure work conforms with the Global Internal Audit Standards, the Internal Audit Charter, department methodology, quality expectations, and applicable legal or regulatory requirements.
• Drive reliable execution of the audit plan through direct and indirect leadership: anticipate risks to planned engagements and opinion delivery; balance priorities and capacity; deploy and redeploy talent and external resources; resolve quality or schedule barriers; align stakeholders; and hold leaders accountable for production, without compromising independence, objectivity, or professional judgment.
• Board, Regulatory & Executive Accountability
• Serve as the primary Internal Audit relationship leader for assigned executive teams and, where designated, subsidiary boards and board or management committees—including audit, fiduciary, risk, compliance, governance, finance, and other committees relevant to the assignment.
• Provide clear, candid, and forward-looking reporting on the audit plan, significant risks, control themes, audit opinions, issue remediation, Internal Audit performance, and the adequacy of governance, risk management, and internal control.
• Represent the Chief Internal Auditor in regulatory examinations, meetings, and ongoing supervisory interactions for assigned entities; coordinate timely, accurate, and well-supported responses and follow-through. Where required by law, regulation, charter, or appointment, may hold direct, named personal accountability to a regulator for defined aspects of Internal Audit’s mandate, performance, reporting, or responsiveness.
• Escalate significant risk exposures, overdue remediation, resource constraints, quality concerns, or threats to Internal Audit independence to the appropriate executive, committee, board, or regulatory level.
• Talent, Succession & Operating Leadership
• Lead and develop a high-performing organization of leaders and audit professionals; establish clear accountability, provide candid feedback, and build a culture of professional courage, curiosity, inclusion, collaboration, and continuous learning.
• Own succession, organization design, capability, and capacity planning for the assigned portfolio, including recruiting, performance management, development assignments, recognition, and deployment of internal and external resources.
• Develop next-generation leaders and deepen business, regulatory, technology, data, and audit expertise needed to address the evolving risk profile.
• Model enterprise leadership and shared accountability across Internal Audit, resolving tradeoffs and allocating resources in the best interests of the overall function and company.
• Enterprise Partnership, Influence & Advisory Leadership
• Build trusted, appropriately independent relationships with executive management, first- and second-line leaders, Legal, Compliance, Risk, Finance, Technology, external audit, and other assurance providers.
• Provide effective challenge, negotiate difficult issues, and influence sustainable actions while preserving Internal Audit’s independent assurance role and avoiding ownership of the business activities, risks, controls, or remediation decisions being evaluated.
• Advise on significant business initiatives, transactions, operating-model changes, and control design when Internal Audit involvement can add value without impairing independence or objectivity.
• Represent the Chief Internal Auditor and the function on enterprise and business governance forums and lead enterprise or department priorities as assigned.
• Innovation, Data & Continuous Improvement
• Sponsor practical use of data, analytics, automation, and responsible AI to improve risk sensing, coverage, testing, insight, quality, productivity, and the speed of opinion delivery.
• Lead continuous improvement in methodology, reporting, talent models, and ways of working; translate lessons learned and external developments into scalable department practices.
• Maintain current knowledge of assigned businesses, regulation, industry developments, technology, and the internal audit profession; act as a visible thought leader internally and externally.

Operating at the intersection of financial services and technology, Principal builds financial tools that help our customers live better lives. We take pride in being a purpose-led firm, motivated by our mission to make financial security accessible to all. Our mission, integrity, and customer focus have made us a trusted leader for more than 140 years!

Who You Are

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Typically 15 or more years of progressive experience in internal audit, risk, compliance, finance, technology, or a closely related field, including 6+ years experience leading leaders and broad, complex portfolios in a regulated or similarly complex organization and experience supporting insurance, financial services, finance, or enterprise risk functions is preferred.
• Demonstrated success setting functional strategy, converting strategy into operating priorities and measurable outcomes, and influencing enterprise decisions on complex or sensitive matters.
• Deep knowledge of internal audit, governance, risk management, and internal control; working knowledge of the Global Internal Audit Standards and accepted control frameworks such as COSO. Specialized frameworks may be required based on assignment.
• Strong business and financial acumen, with the ability to understand strategy, operating models, technology, data, and the legal and regulatory environment of assigned businesses or entities. Experience with insurance products, operations, underwriting, claims, distribution, finance/accounting processes and systems, or enterprise risk management would be valued.
• Substantial experience communicating with executive management and boards or board committees. Experience interacting with regulators and leading audit coverage of regulated financial-services businesses is strongly preferred for applicable assignments.
• Demonstrated independence, objectivity, integrity, sound judgment, professional courage, and authority to provide effective challenge at the highest levels of the organization.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication, with the ability to synthesize complex matters into clear opinions, implications, decisions, and actions.
• Proven ability to lead through ambiguity and change, manage competing enterprise priorities, and deliver sustained results through layers of direct and indirect leadership.
• One or more relevant professional certifications—such as CIA, CPA, CISA, or an equivalent designation—strongly preferred and may be required based on assignment.
• Insurance operations/industry experience alongside audit, risk, compliance, finance, and technology experience.
• Travel may be required.

Salary Range Information

Salary ranges below reflect targeted base salaries. Non-sales positions have the opportunity to participate in a bonus program. Sales positions are eligible for sales incentives, and in some instances a bonus plan, whereby total compensation may far exceed base salary depending on individual performance. Actual compensation for all roles will be based upon geographic location, work experience, education, licensure requirements and/or skill level and will be finalized at the time of offer.

Salary Range (Non-Exempt expressed as hourly; Exempt expressed as yearly)

$157000 - $213000 / year

Time Off Program

Flexible Time Off (FTO) is provided to salaried (exempt) employees and provides the opportunity to take time away from the office with pay for vacation, personal or short-term illness. Employees don’t accrue a bank of time off under FTO and there is no set number of days provided.

Pension Eligible

Yes

Work Environments

This role offers hybrid (blending at least three office days in a typical workweek) in our corporate office in Des Moines, Iowa.

Work Authorization/Sponsorship

At this time, we’re not considering applicants that need any type of immigration sponsorship (additional work authorization or permanent work authorization) now or in the future to work in the United States. This includes, but IS NOT LIMITED TO: F1-OPT, F1-CPT, H-1B, TN, L-1, J-1, etc. For additional information around work authorization needs please use the following links.

Nonimmigrant Workers and Green Card for Employment-Based Immigrants

Investment Code of Ethics

For Principal Asset Management positions, you’ll need to follow an Investment Code of Ethics related to personal and business conduct as well as personal trading activities for you and members of your household. These same requirements may also apply to other positions across the organization.

Experience Principal

At Principal, we value connecting on both a personal and professional level. Together, we’re imagining a more purpose-led future for financial services – and that starts with you. Our success depends on the unique experiences, backgrounds, and talents of our employees. And we support our employees the same way we support our customers: with comprehensive, competitive benefit offerings crafted to protect their physical, financial, and social well-being. Check out our careers site to learn more about our purpose, values and benefits.

Principal is an Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.

Posting Window

We will accept applications for 3 full days following the Original Posting Date, after which the posting may remain open or be removed based upon applications received. If we choose to post the job again, we will accept additional applications for at least 1 full day following the Most Recently Posted Date. Please submit applications in a timely manner as there is no guarantee the posting will be available beyond the applicable deadline.

Original Posting Date

8/27/2026

Most Recently Posted Date

8/27/2026

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