Lots of corporate boards put enterprise risk management on their agenda in some way or another. How to flesh out the details beyond that, however, still remains elusive. Some companies tack ERM onto the charter of the audit committee and leave the members to deal with it. Others parcel out specific risks to different committees, […]
Schmidt Kathrine
Posted inFrom the Archive
Spotting FCPA Risks: A Daunting Challenge
Business opportunities abroad can be an entrepreneur’s dream. The risks of corruption and fraud overseas can be a nightmare. Steering clear of shady business is hardly a new idea for the United States: The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act long ago made it illegal to bribe foreign officials and requires companies to report violations to the […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Small Businesses Brace For Hurricane SOX
With revised Sarbanes-Oxley compliance guidelines due out by June and small businesses poised to enter the SOX fold at the end of this year, smaller public companies are resigning themselves to taking on the new regulatory hurdles. At a hearing April 20 held by the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, business leaders pleaded […]
Posted inInternal Controls
In Canada, A Different Approach To SOX
Canada, America’s largest trading partner, is finally trying to answer the question of how much it wants to embrace U.S.-style corporate governance. Securities regulators in that country are seeking comment on two proposals: a proposal on the effectiveness of internal controls over financial reporting and a proposal to increase disclosure of executive compensation. Both were […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Unclaimed Property As A Control Threat
If the phrase “unclaimed property” recalls that overcoat you left at last year’s Christmas party, think again. Sure, states collect “UCP” such as abandoned bank accounts or family jewelry and publish lists of the goods to help find the rightful owners. But businesses also accumulate unclaimed property, from outstanding checks to balances in accounts payable […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Survey Says: Consultants In Widespread Use
Forced to confess their use of compensation consultants for the first time this spring, a solid majority of corporations report using pay consultants for outside help. Those are the findings of a Compliance Week analysis of nearly 250 proxy statements already filed this year. Three out of four companies in Compliance Week’s sample used some […]
