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Software Extends Sarbanes Oxley Compliance Capabilities

German, process management software company egip Software AG has announced the launch of a new addition to its suite of management software tools that allow companies to easily model, automatically track, and maintain data on all their processes, including financial and accounting procedures that are coming under increased scrutiny and compliance requirements.

egip’s new Risk Evaluation & Management Module was developed in cooperation with big four accounting firm, KPMG, based in New York, and will help public companies in the US and Europe comply with the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOA) in their closing procedures.

The new Module incorporates the vast knowledge and project experience of KPMG and extends egip’s ability to provide a complete solution to the challenges that many companies face today in meeting the requirements of SOA.

And because the new Risk Evaluation & Management Module can be integrated with egip’s Process Engine, interface problems that occur with many Excel-based risk control spreadsheets and other software programs can be eliminated.

In fact, due to its transparency and flexibility, egip’s Risk Evaluation & Management Module can be used across company operations—both vertically and horizontally—wherever risk management assessment and control is needed, whether in accounting, manufacturing, sourcing, sales, engineering, or research & development.

Through egip’s new Module, risk evaluation and control is directly tied into each company’s critical processes. For every appropriate step in a company process, risks can be defined and strategies developed to control them.

The egip program offers functions to automatically calculate:

• Risk priority or importance
• Costs associated with every identified risk
• The risk associated with counter-measures

The program allows process and risk managers to attach as many controls as required to any identified risks, for instance, within a company’s accounting process. An automated “To-Do Calendar” supports respective employees responsible for regular verification of in-time performance and cost control. Participating employees, managers, and senior management can check on the status of all steps and controls in the risk management process at any time.

Controls are visually sorted into four categories:

• Defined controls — controls that have been defined, but are not yet existing
• Existing controls — or controls that have been defined and a corresponding solution has been developed
• In Use controls — that are actually used to control the risk
• Tested controls — those that are used with a verified success

Special reports and risk portfolios are constantly updated to supply information about all risk relevant data and its development. And additional information such as individual responsibilities defined by role and participant, as well as all risk relevant changes, are continuously recorded and stored by the system in a revision-proof way using the latest version.

For more information on egip software solutions, for compliance with the Sarbanes Oxley Act and the control and management of other corporate processes, call Wolfgang Graaff, egip’s US Representative and Director Business Development, 312-375-9450 or visit http://www.egip.com/ie_index_en.htm.

riskVue | The webzine for risk management professionals
May 2004