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The
material on this page is particularly relevant
for:
Process Analysts • Process Owners •
CIOs • Auditors • Business Analysts
• CFOs
A definitive summary of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
(Public Law 107–204, 107th Congress - SOX)
may be found at the American
Institute of CPA's site. Updated information
and the actual act may be downloaded from findlaw.com,
or click here for a copy-and-pastable
version. My SOX Resource CD is available for
free, except for $4.95 for Shipping and Handling.
It may be downloaded for free. Request
your copy via email.
You
may be interested in ordering a SOX Compliance
Toolkit. This program costs $199 and may be ordered
on line.
Click
here for detailed information. It installs
the following files:
Click
here (or on the illustration to place an order.)
.
Other links are at the bottom of this page.
Eventually, you will need to answer
these questions:
- What is your view on Sarbanes
Oxley?
- What is your plan for compliance?
- Are you going to be leveraging
an IT Solutions to facilitate your plan for
compliance? If so, which tools will you will
be using? If you have not selected a tool to
use yet, have you identified the criteria for
selection. (Features - Costs - Future Costs
- Vendor's Track Record - etc.)
The
right Business Process Management software for
your company is a valuable tool to use to comply
with laws such as Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPPA (Health
Care.) I invite you to call me to discuss the
factors that will go into your decision making
process.
Perhaps
this information will be helpful:
- Sections
302 and 404, mandate a demonstrable and persuasive
basis for company disclosures on the status
of internal control processes. External auditors
of corporations also must provide an annual
opinion on the reliability of the control representations
made by the companies.
- Sarbanes-Oxley
requires auditors to certify processes not just
financial statements. This means auditors must
understand the processes that participate in
the creation of financial statements. Also,
there is a reporting requirement of 35 days.
- The
law has teeth: Noncompliance can mean a fine
of up to $5 million and a prison sentence not
to exceed 20 years.
- Significantly,
documentation of processes alone does not assure
compliance. Compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley requires
process control, with continuous
monitoring, testing, and appropriate improvements
to internal controls processes.
- It
turns out that this process control is a major
benefit to companies and organizations for a
basic business reason: It encourages companies
to develop processes that consolidate financial
information within 7 or 8 days, enabling better
business decision making as well as complying
with the law.
- Therefore,
Business Project Management (BPM) software that
provides real-time documentation, that allows
stakeholders to quickly ascertain and monitor
every aspect of the process flow, is beneficial
to the the top and bottom lines of business.
It is also quite comforting, particularly with
respect to high-risk financial accounting and
reporting procedures, such as revenue recognition.
Additional
Sarbanes-Oxley Links:
- Sarbanes-Oxley
web site - Provides a listing of news, current
events, compliance dates, and various primers.
(As
of the end of the fiscal year ending on or after
June 15, 2004, the annual reports of firms covered
by the act must begin to comply with the financial
reporting disclosure requirements of the SOX
management report on internal control.)
- Public
Company Accounting Oversite Board - A private-sector,
non-profit corporation, created by the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act of 2002, to oversee the auditors of public
companies in order to protect the interests
of investors and further the public interest
in the preparation of informative, fair, and
independent audit reports.
- USA
Today Article - Sarbanes-Oxley - A Dragon or
a White Knight
- Price
Waterhouse Coopers SOX Resources
- CFO.com
Article - What You Don't Know About Sarbanes-Oxley
-
Sarbanes-Oxley
Forum - This is an interactive forum dedicated
exclusively to this legislation.
Sarbanes-Oxley
mandates an unprecedented level of coordination
of all participants – process owners, resources
and systems. Furthermore, it is realistic to believe
that in the not-too-distant future, there will
be a requirement for real time process monitoring,
a feature which is available now with BPM software.
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