Sarbanes-Oxley was passed in 2002 and year one of attestation for publicly traded companies was 2004. Almost 20 years later the legislation continues to challenge companies, auditors and compliance professionals when evaluating a company’s control structure. SOX section 404, although the most prominent, is only one of the many requirements covered under the legislation.
In addition, the impetus of COSO 2013 has re-focused companies' efforts on evaluating their key controls. Companies must continually evaluate whether they have designed and identified the proper controls and have adequate tests in place to determine control efficiency. With the evolution of technology solutions, the impact of information systems changes must be continually evaluated to ensure controls are adequately addressed.
This Sarbanes Oxley training course is an overview of the legislation as well as the proper processes, controls and tests companies must use to determine adequate internal and financial controls. We discuss how to recognize components of SOX and the Internal Control Framework, the requirements for Top-Down Risk Assessment, as well as how to identify legislation changes and challenges, Auditing Standard 2 and Auditing Standard 5, and how to discover the SOX Sequence of process (documentation, design, evaluation).
Publication Date: February 2024
Designed For
Internal auditors, Professionals considering the role of internal audit, Chief Audit Executives
Accountants and Finance professionals, CFOs, CEOs, Legal and Compliance professionals, Board members, and Audit Committee members
Topics Covered
- SOX 404 process
- Internal Control Framework requirements
- SEC Requirements
- PCAOB Requirements
- Accounting Risk Assessment
- Establishing the Methodology
- Utilizing Risk Characteristics & Assertions
- Scoring Models
Learning Objectives
- Identify the various sections of the SOX legislation
- Identify the requirements of SOX section 404
- Describe the SOX sequence of events and important components of an accounting risk assessment, process documentation, sourcing risks, documenting controls, assessing design, testing operation and reporting
- Identify the connection of SOX to the COSO Internal Control Framework
Level
Basic
Instructional Method
Self-Study
NASBA Field of Study
Accounting (1 hour), Auditing (1 hour)
Program Prerequisites
None
Advance Preparation
None
Instructor
Lynn Fountain
Lynn Fountain has over 38 years of experience spanning public accounting, corporate accounting and consulting. 20 years of her experience has been working in the areas of internal and external auditing and risk management. She is a subject matter expert in multiple fields including internal audit, ethics, fraud evaluations, Sarbanes-Oxley, enterprise risk management, governance, financial management and compliance. Lynn has held two Chief Audit Executive (CAE) positions for international companies. In one of her roles as CAE, she assisted in the investigation of a multi-million-dollar fraud scheme perpetrated by a vendor that spanned 7 years and implicated 20 employees. The fraud was formally investigation by the FBI and resulted in 5 indictments estimating a $13M fraud loss.
Ms. Fountain is currently engaged in her own consulting and training practice. She is a highly sought-after trainer and international speaker. In addition, Ms. Fountain has assisted numerous companies with enterprise risk management frameworks, internal audit processes and financial accounting. She also serves as a discussion leader for the AICPA for numerous classes finance, accounting and risk management topics.
Ms. Fountain is the author of three separate technical books. Her first book released in 2015 by the Institute of Internal Auditors Foundation is entitled “Raise the Red Flag – The Internal Auditors Guide to Fraud Evaluations”. Her second book “Leading the Internal Audit Function” was released in October 2015 by Taylor & Francis Publications. This book serves as the initial launch for a series of leading practice internal audit and information technology publications. Her third book “Ethics and the Internal Auditor’s Dilemma” was released in December 2016.
Ms. Fountain obtained her BSBA from Pittsburg State University and her MBA from Washburn University in Kansas. She has her CPA, CGMA, CRMA credentials.