Planning

Initial planning is essential to an effective and cost-efficient Sox project.  It is especially critical that the planning process begin as soon as possible in order to allow time for internal control gap identification remediation, and re-testing.

The first step is to identify the Sox Steering Committee.  Since a successful Sox project requires support from all areas of the company, the Steering Committee typically includes some or all of the following: Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Information Officer, Senior Legal Counsel, Human Resources Director, and Internal Audit Director.

The Steering Committee then assigns the necessary company resources to the core Sox Core Team.    The Sox Core Team will be responsible for detailed planning and execution of the Sox project, under the Sox Steering Committee’s oversight.

In addition, a Process Owner is identified for each significant business process.  The Process Owners will work with the Sox Core Team to ensure that practical and effective internal controls are in place over the processes they manage.

One of the team’s first responsibilities is to design a timeline for all the phases that follow: from completion of Planning through final assessment of internal control exceptions.  Then, each phase is broken down into defined, measurable steps and assigned to an appropriate Sox Core Team member for execution.

The Precipio Group can help you select your Sox Steering Committee and Sox Core Team and define roles and responsibilities.  Then, we can assist you in developing an overall Sox strategy and a detailed project plan for a successful Sox implementation program.  Our experience will help you avoid the pitfalls inherent in a first year Sox implementation, or help you improve your existing Sox program.