MQ1 Sarbanes Oxley Compliance Software (SOX Software)

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires businesses to include a report from management on the health of internal controls in their annual report. What does this mean for businesses? More books, paper and a ton of time involved to satisfy these requirements.

Sarbanes Oxley Enterprise Software For the Real World

As a result, CEBOS’ MQ1 Sarbanes Oxley compliance software (SOX Software) was designed specifically to address critical, time consuming aspects of complying with Sarbanes-Oxley. The Sarbanes Oxley Software Suite was developed based on the Internal Control-Integrated Framework report developed by the Treadway Commission’s Committee of Sponsoring Organizations five components for assessing internal controls (required by section 404). The Sarbanes Oxley software solution suite significantly simplifies the management of compliance by replacing manual business processes with automated business processes to easily and quickly identify requirements and complete tasks. The table below depicts the five components as identified in the report and a summary of the major features of the MQ1 Sarbanes Oxley software solution suite.

Five Components for Assessing Internal Controls and the MQ1 Sarbanes-Oxley Suite

Component	Major Feature of MQ1 Sarbanes-Oxley Suite
Control Environment	Define, document and manage each control environment element including accounts, processes, requirements, procedures and work instructions. Document reviews and approvals while automatically logging an audit trail of changes to all transactions. Provide one centralized location for required information readily accessible to all. Generate customized, automated workflow for required reviews, approvals and notifications.
Risk Assessment	Define and document any and all risks. Assess and rate each individual risk for prioritization. Link risks to activities and processes automatically. Author and analyze corrective / preventive actions using individual risk assessments.
Control Activities	Define specific audit procedures based on risk assessment results. Complete audit management with the ability to document all aspects of audit tests while linking them to control objectives, risks, and results for the tests performed. Execute on audit finding follow up with assignments of responsibility, due dates and escalation to others if items are delinquent. Manage employee’s skill and competency.
Information and Communications	Access appropriate information from one centralized location Track training and competency on any aspect that affects the internal control system View textual and graphical reports of results of audit assessments and corrective / preventive actions.
Monitoring	Develop comprehensive textual and graphical reports of all user defined key business metrics Automate data mining functionality with graphical trend charts of user defined key business metrics Document all meetings and follow up action items related to monitoring the system

CEBOS’ MQ1 Sarbanes-Oxley Suite not only allows management to develop and manage an internal control structure, but its functionality also facilitates assessment of procedures. Through an internal auditing system, this Suite enables managers to evaluate the effectiveness of company’s defined controls and processes in meeting Sarbanes-Oxley requirements.