Knowledge Management: Document & Records Management
Estimates have been created calculating that the significantly large proportion (some say, more than 70%) in the documents owned by an enterprise will be in digital format and may well not be seen in hardcopy.
According to become able to Gartner's Editor within Chief James Lundy: Records management will turn straight into a top 10 issue for most CIOs in the coming year.
In the particular following, we tend to be going to discuss the various sections involving SOX that will a document management solution might aid in complying with.
SOX Sections:
Section 302: According to Section 302, the CEO and also CFO have to personally certify the financial statements and also disclosures made from the company in authenticity along with accuracy. This specific needs a system in place that will increase the actual risk for CEO and furthermore the CFO positive that all the disclosures that will the business helps make tend to be accurate and authentic. This can become carried out in a pair of ways:
One is always to trickle-down the duty in the CEO as well as the CFO towards the lower management levels as well as in response bubble-up the particular sign-offs from the lower management ranges upon most documents which are inputs to the business filings.
Second would become to design comprehensive enterprise processes in which create the company filings. The Actual business processes will probably be designed inside a really rigorous manner for you to comply with all of your provisions and also appropriate implementation and also coaching of all the personnel related towards the enterprise processes will most likely be completed and tested on the periodic basis. Further, the business processes by themselves will possibly be available to stringent internal audits which will most likely be carried out from time to time.
One, or perhaps a combination of each these practices should go a considerable ways in the direction of ensuring proper compliance.
For both these options it actually is clear in which a strong enterprise-wide document management system will provide the foundation upon that your compliance will really be carried out. Within the really first case, the particular sign-offs could be configured using a workflow module with the document management system. Inside the second case, the business procedure itself will probably be configured inside the document management system and every 1 of the relevant supporting or input documents as well will probably be a part of your DMS and appropriate subordination as well as linking will be carried out between the official organization filings as well as every 1 regarding the input documents for you to it.
As proof in the records supporting the last company financials--as filed as well as reported--it is important for you to archive all regarding the emails, excel sheets, instant messages or just about any other communications as well as documents that have certificazioni been exchanged which triggered one last certified filing from the CEO and CFO. This can safeguard the actual CxO's declare that all associated with the monetary reports tend to be accurate with their knowledge as well as homework has been carried out prior to certifying the particular reports.
Section 404: The Particular CEO along with CFO must give a report assessing and certifying the "internal controls" happen in order to be assessed and as a result are working fine or perhaps that you will find weaknesses as well as suitable motion will be getting taken. Complying with this particular requirement is actually one of one with the most tough parts of SOX and also takes a complete slew regarding people, processes and also technologies. However, DMS has an essential role to attempt out in this.
All the emails as well as attached documents within the chronological sequence will require to become archived for the purpose involving proving that the internal controls are generally appropriate. Ideally, the workflow module will supply additional assurance the internal controls tend to be implemented.
Section 103: needs storing your documents for any period of 7 a long time regarding audit companies. The Particular company being audited would by natural means need to replicate the actual documentation to guard against any discrepancy or even miscommunication or even mismanagement. Furthermore an additional a part of the actual act requires
Section 409: demands near-real-time reporting of material events--whether internal as well as external towards the investors as well as the regulatory bodies. This could be accomplished through employing a single enterprise-wide document management system with suitable "alerts" along with notifications and workflow configured according to the style of the compliance-based business processes. This system would create certain most relevant information is right away relayed towards the leading management (CEO as well as CFO) as well as the compliance committee along with advisors with minimum delays as well as latency. DMS provides appropriate capabilities towards the compliance advisors for you to supply a recommendation (within the actual stipulated time frame) linked to every alert and also escalate the particular reports for the CxOs using the proper recommendations. The Particular CxOs can then choose whether or not really this merits disclosure beneath the actual compliance act according to recommendations involving their particular Compliance Committee as well as Advisors.
