Nilufer K. Shroff will conclude her service as vice president and chief audit and compliance officer

Nilufer (Nilu) K. Shroff, who has led the Office of Audit and Compliance (OAC) since 2007 as the University’s first chief audit and compliance officer, will step down at the end of this academic year. She will continue to serve in a special projects role in the Office of the Executive Vice President until Dec. 31, 2025, before retiring from the University.

A leader in her field with over 35 years of experience, Shroff has transformed Princeton’s audit and compliance functions during her more than 17 years at the University. She significantly advanced internal audit, institutional compliance and risk management operations, practices and programs, including the internal audit program at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

“Nilu Shroff's outstanding work will benefit Princeton for generations: she has served this University with distinction and transformed our approach to audit and compliance,” President Christopher L. Eisgruber said. “Her values, expertise and integrity have made her a wonderful colleague, and I am deeply grateful to Nilu for her many and lasting contributions to Princeton.”

OAC works to ensure the strong stewardship of University assets and safeguards the integrity of University operations, information and resources within departments and offices across campus.

“Through Nilu’s leadership, the Office of Audit and Compliance has become a proactive, trusted adviser — offering not only critical insights but also innovative solutions that have been a catalyst to creating substantive improvements across the University,” Eisgruber added. “Her focus on collaboration and solution-oriented approaches has enabled the University to address its most significant risks while fostering an inclusive, thoughtful community.”  

Shroff spearheaded the first University-wide risk assessment and developed the University’s Enterprise Risk Management Framework, which now serves as a cornerstone for proactively identifying and mitigating risks across the institution. She has also played a vital role in guiding the University’s risk strategy and assessing audit and compliance priorities, serving on the President’s Cabinet, the Executive Risk Management Committee and the Executive Compliance Committee. 

The compliance program she designed for the University fosters campus-wide awareness and shared accountability, and underscores a culture of honesty, integrity and stewardship of University resources. In collaboration with the Office of the General Counsel, Shroff conducted projects to ensure rigorous oversight in key risk areas and uphold Princeton’s legacy and reputation.

Early in her tenure, Shroff worked with the Board of Trustees to establish the board’s Audit and Compliance Committee. Her position reports to the trustee committee and the executive vice president.

Executive Vice President Katie Callow-Wright said Shroff is an incredibly strategic thinker whose “counsel and wisdom are valued by partners across campus.”

“The combination of Nilu's passion for her area of expertise and her dedication to the research and education mission of Princeton makes her a powerful steward of University resources, principles and standards,” Callow-Wright said. “Nilu and her team have helped cultivate a culture of proactive risk mitigation that has strengthened the institution’s governance and preserved Princeton’s legacy.”

Shroff’s leadership has also led to numerous high-impact projects, including risk assessments in areas of high financial exposure, information technology, compliance risk and reputational risk. The projects include the University’s construction audit program; an assessment of decentralized information technology systems and cybersecurity risks; reviews of the implementation of new business systems across University departments; and audits of compliance assurance for business expenses, restricted funds and government-sponsored research expenditures.

Under her leadership, the Office of Audit and Compliance recently received the highest possible rating from a quality assurance review conducted per the Institute of Internal Auditors Professional Standards. The review recognized the office’s integral role within Princeton’s governance structure.

Reflecting on her tenure, Shroff expressed gratitude for the University’s commitment to integrity and service. Princeton’s educational mission especially resonates with her as a first-generation college student, she said.

“At Princeton, there is a shared commitment to always doing the right thing, and as an auditor, independence and objectivity are critical for professional success,” she said. “I am deeply grateful for this environment, which has greatly contributed to my successful tenure, and very proud of the University’s mission of service to the nation and the world.”

Shroff credits much of her success to “the supportive and high-performing team” she has led over the years. “Their resilience, particularly during Princeton’s response to COVID-19, has been invaluable,” she said. “My team members are thought of as problem solvers, insight generators and, most importantly, thoughtful advisers.”

She added appreciation for her family “for their spirited encouragement and enduring support of my work.”

Before joining the University, Shroff held leadership roles in internal audit and compliance at the University of Pennsylvania and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. In addition, she worked in Mumbai, India, as a public accountant for several years and also served as a faculty member at a college affiliated with the University of Mumbai. She holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and economics and a bachelor of laws degree from the University of Mumbai.

Shroff is a chartered accountant, certified internal auditor and certified risk management professional. She held various leadership positions for the Institute of Internal Auditors’ Philadelphia chapter, including serving as president and launching and co-chairing the chapter’s diversity and inclusion committee, where she spearheaded efforts to diversify the internal audit profession.

She has also served as co-chair of the compliance and audit committee of the Metropolitan Philadelphia chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Association. Shroff currently serves on the Risk, Audit and Compliance Committee of the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory at Stanford University.

The firm Opus Partners has been engaged to lead the search for Shroff’s successor at Princeton.