The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission selected Lucia Wind, vice president of internal audit at the technology company Unisys, as its next board chair, succeeding Paul Sobel, for a three-year term starting Jan. 1, 2023.
She will be responsible for leading COSO in offering thought leadership on internal control, enterprise risk management, governance and fraud deterrence. COSO is responsible for maintaining and updating widely used frameworks in internal controls and ERM. Sobel, as previously announced in May, plans to step down after serving as chair since 2018 (see story).
Ever since that announcement, COSO has been doing a global search looking for a successor to Sobel who would combine the attributes of executive maturity and presence, deep knowledge and experience in internal controls, ERM, governance, and fraud deterrence, leadership skills, public speaking proficiency, and a commitment to ensuring the relevance and influence of COSO around the world.
Wind has been a business partner, enterprise risk management leader and internal audit executive at large global technology firms with a global footprint, in addition to leadership roles at smaller enterprises and NFPs. She currently leads the internal audit function at Unisys and established a COSO-based ERM function that reports to the board of directors. She also implemented analytics-based capabilities to support her lead functions. While at another large technology company, Ellucian, earlier in her career, Wind led ERM, risk assessment, internal audit and SOX compliance using the COSO Internal Controls- Integrated Framework. Wind previously worked as chief internal auditor at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a chief audit executive at AOL, a senior accountant at PricewaterhouseCoopers., a senior auditor at TJX, and a staff auditor at Friendly Ice Cream.
“I look forward to serving this revered organization, its founding sponsors and the global profession and leading COSO forward in an era of disruption, uncertainty and business transformation enabled by technology,” Wind said in a statement Thursday. “I hope to build on my predecessor’s legacy by listening, by engaging, and by applying what I have learned in diverse assignments in the areas of corporate governance, ERM, internal controls for financial and non-financial reporting, and technology application.”
Wind is also a certified fraud examiner and is pursuing other certifications. She earned a BBA in Finance from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and speaks multiple languages.
“The COSO board greatly appreciates Paul Sobel’s service, and we look forward to enhancing COSO’s influence and relevance globally in a disruptive business environment led by Lucia who brings board experience, practical experience in all of the focus areas of COSO’s mission, and technology expertise, combined with a passion to learn and advance the profession,” said Jeff Thomson, COSO lead director and outgoing CEO of the Institute of Management Accountants, in a statement.
