Corporations face brutal economic conditions these days. To improve business performance, many have cut costs by outsourcing some of their business processes to cheaper labor, often based overseas. As a budgetary measure, outsourcing business processes isn’t a bad idea. Accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, master data, and general accounting are all transaction-based processes, and consequently […]
Internal Controls
Posted inInternal Controls
Easton-Bell Chief Ethics Officer on SOX Compliance
In the latest of our occasional conversations with chief compliance and governance officers, we catch up with Elliot Fisch, director of internal audit and chief ethics officer at sports equipment maker Easton-Bell Sports. Fisch joined the non-accelerated filer specifically to help the company through its first Section 404 audits under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; excerpts of […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Tips, Tactics, and Tools for Managing Disclosure Risk
For most corporate counselors and advisers, hardly a day passes now when we’re not talking or reading about the latest cautionary tales about risk assessment and management. These concepts, more formally called “enterprise risk management,” have been around a long time. But current events being what they are, risk assessment, management, and disclosure have become […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Preventing Fraud in the Era of Budget Cuts
The cost-cutting craze sweeping Corporate America is leaving internal control systems full of holes that could be potential entry points for fraud, even as temptation to commit fraud is soaring, a new survey says. The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners polled more than 500 anti-fraud professionals, and more than half reported an increase in the […]
Posted inInternal Controls
As 404(b) Nears, Small Filers Hear Advice
Non-accelerated filers may still be hoping for yet another delay in full compliance with Section 404 of Sarbanes-Oxley, but the wise ones should prepare for the inevitable now rather than risk incurring more audit costs later this year. Small filers have evaded Section 404 for years, with its costly requirement to assess and audit internal […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Cos. Not Covering Increased Fraud Risks Amid Crisis
While it’s not surprising that the vast majority of experts say the economic crunch has led to an increase in occupational fraud, companies may not be doing enough to address their increased risk, according to a survey of anti-fraud professionals. More than half (55 percent) of Certified Fraud Examiners say the number of frauds increased […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Scoping Out an Audit of Privacy Programs
Any corporation of any size today must worry about privacy and information security. Protecting sensitive information has always made good sense, but most developed nations now have laws that restrict some uses of at least some types of data. European countries have regulated personal data protection since the mid-1990s. Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic […]
Posted inAnti-Bribery
UK’s Proposed Bribery Law Targets Foreign Companies
The UK government has published long-awaited draft legislation that will create new criminal offenses to combat bribery, including measures aimed at foreign companies. The draft Bribery Bill, if enacted, would bring the UK into line with its international obligations to deal with companies that bribe overseas officials. The country has a woeful record in this […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Boosting Control With Third-Party Codes of Conduct
Despite increased risks posed by supply chains, companies still have a long way to go when it comes to establishing ethics and compliance standards for their vendors, suppliers, and other business partners. So says a recent benchmarking survey by the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics. The SCCE surveyed more than 400 compliance and ethics […]
