Sarbanes-Oxley

I recommend your reading of article The Unexpected Benefits Of Sarbanes-Oxley in Harvard Business Review, April 2006 issue, by Steve Wagner, Deloitte & Touche LLP and Lee Dittmar, Deloitte Consulting LLP.

Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) for some companies has become a source of valuable insights into operations, which management has translated into improved efficiencies and cost savings. These areas of improvements include:

• strengthened control environment
  
• more reliable documentation
  
• better, less burdensome compliance with other statutory regimes
  
• more standardized processes for IT and other functions
  
• reduced complexity of organizational processes
  
• better internal controls within partner companies
  
• more effective use of both automated and manual controls
  
• increased audit committee involvement
  

For quality and environmental managers and engineers finding barriers with finance and accounting on SOX planning and implementation, should reference this remarkable and influential article for support.  Businesses run on discovering and creating value and need to start viewing SOX as an ally in that effort.

Posted by John Walz at 11:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For those quality and environmental managers and engineers who have missed the ASQ one day workshop on SOX, should try to attend this webinar by the same title: The Sarbanes-Oxley Law: Quality & Environmental Management Systems Can Reduce the Risk.

My partner, Sandy Liebesman, is making this one hour presentation on the Compliance Online website.

Posted by John Walz at 09:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The June issue of Internal Auditor has a salary survey article by this title.  The 3662 surveyed internal auditors were involved in mostly Financial Auditing and surprising mostly in Operational Auditing! The two non-supervisory positions, Senior and Staff auditors, had 2006 total compensation of $74K and $61K respectively. Over the last three years these averages have increased 8%, well over inflation! 

How has your compensation done in this same period for auditing quality processes in your Operations. Can there be any incentives for you to start working with the internal financial auditors in order to better position your valuable work with top executives?

Posted by John Walz at 09:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

As you know a federal jury convicted former Enron chiefs Ken Lay on all counts and Jeff Skilling on most counts.  The trial revealed while major business units weren’t making their operational goals, the company was making statements to investors on how well the units performed.

When companies use the quality tool Balanced Score Card (BSC) to translate vision and strategy into action and targets, then both management and employees know periodically whether their unit and their bonuses are on track to the BSC targets. When these targets are missed and top management announces “success” to their investors, then an ethical employee will raise a flag and keep on raising it until reaching Whistleblower Protections in SOX Section 806.

Posted by John Walz at 07:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)