Independent Audit

What Independent Audit does

Independent Audit Limited is a UK-based, privately held board governance consultancy founded in 2002 and headquartered in Bristol, with a secondary office in London. The firm specializes in board effectiveness reviews for UK-listed companies, financial institutions, pension fund trustees, and public sector bodies, supplemented by committee evaluations, individual director reviews, group and subsidiary board reviews, and internal/external audit effectiveness reviews. Board reviews account for more than 90% of fee income, positioning the firm as a focused specialist in a regulated, compliance-driven niche rather than a diversified professional services player.

The firm's core technology is Thinking Board, a proprietary online governance assessment platform built around a 12-area Board Effectiveness Model. Thinking Board supports both externally-facilitated and self-facilitated board reviews, with features including year-over-year tracking, unattributable director responses, subsidiary board comparison, root-cause identification, and board-ready reporting covering ESG governance, risk oversight, committee effectiveness, and individual director performance. The platform extends the firm's reach into lower-touch self-assessment engagements alongside the bespoke interview-based external reviews delivered by senior partners.

Commercial operations are built on direct enterprise engagement with board chairs, company secretaries, and audit committee chairmen, with bespoke engagement letters defining scope and fees rather than standardized pricing. The firm sells exclusively through its own senior team with no channel or reseller model, supplemented by content-led demand generation through the Effective Board Bulletin, case studies, webinars, and governance industry events. Geographic reach is primarily UK, with a strategic collaboration with Broadgate extending board evaluation services into Ireland from October 2025, and a claimed client footprint spanning every continent except Antarctica.

Name

Independent Audit

Legal name

Independent Audit Limited

Website

https://independentaudit.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Independent Audit is a UK-based board governance consultancy founded in 2002 that delivers board effectiveness reviews, committee and director evaluations, and audit reviews to listed companies, financial institutions, pension funds, and public sector bodies via its Thinking Board online platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Corporate Governance Consulting

akta.pro primary industry

Audit & Assurance Services (BPAHABAA)

Keywords

• Board effectiveness reviews
• Corporate governance consulting
• Board evaluation services
• Governance assessment platform
• Internal audit reviews

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Board Review Services: Externally-facilitated board reviews and internally-facilitated self-assessment board reviews. These are bespoke professional services delivered by senior expert teams. Board reviews account for more than 90% of the firm's fee income.
2. Internal Audit Effectiveness Reviews: Business-focused review of internal audit effectiveness as an alternative to typical providers. Complement to board reviews, offering deeper business perspective alongside the board's high-level view. Some clients engage the firm to review both board and internal audit as a package.
3. Thinking Board Platform: The Thinking Board SaaS platform is used for automated online board assessments. Revenue is generated as part of the board review engagement or as a standalone self-assessment tool.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Independent Audit is a UK-based board governance consultancy that delivers externally-facilitated and self-assessment board effectiveness reviews for listed companies, financial institutions, pension funds, and public sector organisations. The firm complements its bespoke advisory work with a proprietary online governance assessment platform called Thinking Board, which supports cost-effective year-on-year tracking, unattributable responses, root-cause identification, and board-ready reporting across 12 foundational areas of board performance.

Product overview

Independent Audit is a board governance consultancy offering a portfolio of human-delivered board effectiveness services and a proprietary online assessment platform called Thinking Board. The core offering comprises externally-facilitated board reviews (interview-based) and self-assessment board reviews, with the Thinking Board online platform serving as the digital delivery mechanism for self-assessments and enabling year-over-year tracking, subsidiary board comparisons, and board-ready reporting. Additional service modules cover committee evaluations (Audit, Risk, Remuneration, Nominations), individual director performance reviews, group and subsidiary board evaluations, internal and external audit effectiveness reviews, and risk and compliance advisory. The firm serves financial institutions, pension funds, public sector organisations, and listed and unlisted companies across sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Thinking Board: Online governance assessment platform that delivers board assessments beyond standard questionnaires, offering cost-effective tracking, unattributable responses, confidential information handling, and board-ready reporting for ESG governance, risk oversight, committee effectiveness, and individual director performance.

Products and services

• Thinking Board Online governance assessment platform that enables boards and committees to conduct self-assessment reviews, track progress year-over-year, compare performance across subsidiary boards, and generate board-ready reports covering ESG governance, risk oversight, committee effectiveness, and individual director performance.
• Externally-Facilitated Board Review Interview-based board effectiveness review conducted by the firm's senior team, suitable for UK-listed companies required to conduct a board effectiveness review every three years and other organisations following governance best practice. Available as interview-based or using the Thinking Board platform.
• Self-Assessment Board Review Internally-facilitated board review service that supports ongoing development focus and equips boards to handle change, delivered cost- and time-effectively with real value, often using the Thinking Board platform.
• Committee Evaluations Specialist evaluations of board committee effectiveness, covering Audit, Risk, Remuneration, and Nominations committees, delivered as standalone reviews or alongside full board reviews.
• Individual Director Reviews Annual reviews of individual director performance, facilitated by the Chairman with structured feedback, including 360-style peer review input.
• Groups & Subsidiaries Evaluation Board effectiveness reviews for group holding companies and subsidiary boards, enabling comparison of performance across subsidiary boards.
• Internal & External Audit Review Business-focused review of internal audit effectiveness and oversight assessment for external audit quality, offered as a complement to board reviews and sometimes packaged with them.
• Risk & Compliance Services Governance and risk management reviews covering risk committee structuring, risk appetite development, risk reporting, and regulatory compliance for financial institutions and other regulated entities.

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BroadgatecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Independent Audit and Broadgate announced a strategic collaboration to support boards in Ireland. The partnership was announced on 1 October 2025 and is aimed at expanding the reach of Independent Audit's board evaluation services into the Irish market, leveraging Broadgate's local presence and network.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Heidrick & Struggles: Global leadership advisory and executive search firm with a governance and board effectiveness offering. Targets similar enterprise boards for board review and committee evaluation mandates.
• Egon Zehnder: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm that increasingly offers board effectiveness, board reviews, and governance advisory. Targets similar board-level buyers and competes for governance review mandates.
• Spencer Stuart: Global executive search firm with a dedicated board practice that conducts board effectiveness reviews and director evaluations. Comparable in serving listed and regulated boards, particularly in the UK and Europe.
• PricewaterhouseCoopers (Governance Services): Big Four professional services firm with a corporate governance and board effectiveness practice, serving listed, financial, and public sector clients. Competes with IA on large-scale review engagements and brings wider advisory capabilities.
• Deloitte (Board Effectiveness Practice): Big Four firm operating a global board effectiveness and corporate governance practice. Overlaps with IA across externally-facilitated board reviews, committee evaluations, and director performance reviews, typically as part of wider audit/consulting mandates.
• KPMG (Board Advisory): Big Four firm with a corporate governance and board advisory offering that competes for the same UK-listed and regulated entity mandates as Independent Audit, often bundling governance reviews into broader risk and audit relationships.
• Ernst & Young (Board Advisory): Big Four firm providing board effectiveness reviews and governance advisory to listed corporates and financial institutions. Comparable in target market and review methodology, with broader regulatory and consulting resources.

Direct peers

• Broadgate Partners: Governance and board advisory firm that recently entered a strategic collaboration with Independent Audit to deliver services in Ireland. Comparable in scale and specialism, with overlapping board review and governance advisory offerings.
• Boardroom Review: UK-based specialist firm focused on board effectiveness reviews for listed and regulated clients. Most directly comparable competitor to Independent Audit in terms of service portfolio, target market, and senior-led delivery model.

Others

• Chartered Governance Institute (CGI UK & Ireland): Professional body that sets the Code of Practice for board reviewers and accredits firms including Independent Audit. Indirect peer as the standards-setter and gatekeeper whose accreditation scheme underpins the UK board review market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/independentaud

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Independent Audit