Download each of our reports in PDF format.

GRC in 2010: $29.8B in Spending Sparked by Risk, Visibility, and Efficiency

The Bottom Line: After a two-year period of decline, GRC spending growth returns in 2010, expanding by 3.9% to nearly $30B.

Sarbanes-Oxley Optimization: Emerging Trends in Risk-Based Section 404 Compliance

SOX Optimization in Europe leads to expanded Continuous Monitoring

The McKittrick Report: Manual Journal Entries - Zero Tolerance for Error

Manual Journal Entries...Alive and Kicking.

The McKittrick Report: Identify 'Surprises' Before It's Too Late

Transparency and renewed focus on reliability in business processes and financial reporting is coming back into style.

The McKittrick Report: Auditing Standard No. 5

Both auditors and organizations have had some time now to live with and understand the impact of the PCAOB’s Auditing Standard No. 5 (AS 5) “An Audit of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting That Is Integrated with An Audit of Financial Statements” which was issued in June 2007. AS 5 was welcomed as a replacement for Auditing Standard 2 which was generally seen to be expensive and inefficient for both companies and auditors alike.

The McKittrick Report: How Well-Protected Are You?

Continuous monitoring never rests. The big fraud events like Bernie Madoff, Enron, WorldCom, HealthSouth and others stay in our minds because of the attention they get from business and mainstream media. But there are countless lesser fraudulent events carried out by lesser perpetrators that fly underneath most of the radar and are rarely reported in the news. So you may want to consider how well your organization is protected from fraud occurring and thus consider the need to be diligent to protect yourself from “nefarious acts” at all levels at all times.

The McKittrick Report: Forensic Accounting

It's broader than you might think and it can help your organization. Learn what forensic accounting really means for an organization beyond legal situations into the operating areas. Forensic accounting can help you be proactive in reducing your transaction risk by helping you perform audit-type procedures on a routine schedule and more. Obtaining a better understanding of your business, allows you to dig deeper than basic accounting and auditing.

2008 Oversight Systems Financial Executive Report on Sarbanes-Oxley

The 5th annual SOX survey finds financial executives facing risk-assessment challenges in complying with AS5, at the same time they are looking to the new guidance to help them lower external audit overhead. Many are looking to transaction monitoring to help them hit their SOX goals – and at the same time, their business goals – in uncertain economic times.

The 2007 Oversight Systems Report on Corporate Fraud

Five years after the landmark Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act took effect, the 2007 Oversight Systems Financial Executive Report on Corporate Fraud finds that three-quarters of respondents feel institutional fraud is more prevalent today than it was in 2002.

2007 Oversight Systems Financial Executive Report on Sarbanes-Oxley

The 4th annual survey found financial executives were bullish on the use of continuous monitoring in Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance, have begun to reign in the costs of year-three compliance, recognized a bump in shareholder value and report a risk-based approach to 2007 compliance.

2006 Oversight Systems Executive Report on Shared Service Centers

First implemented in the 1990s by many large enterprises, the Shared Service Center (SSC) model allows companies to consolidate client-facing functions in an attempt to reduce costs. Today, shared services are not relegated for use in big business alone; they have been adopted by numerous academic institutions and member-driven credit unions alike.

How Technology-Driven Solutions are Closing the Compliance Confidence Gap

This paper compares the Oversight™ Real-time Transaction Inspection (RTI) technology to both traditional and competitive technology-driven compliance solutions. This feature-by-feature analysis reveals that the Oversight system outdistances alternative technologies for conducting transaction analysis, application configuration control, and business intelligence reporting, effectively closing the compliance confidence gap in financial systems and regulatory controls.

The 2006 Financial Executive Report on Risk Management

Companies are embracing the concept of enterprise risk management but continue to struggle with implementation according to the findings in the 2006 Oversight Systems Report on Risk Management. The national survey of financial executives shows room for improvement in the way companies assess, manage and prevent risk. The report indicates that nearly half of companies surveyed report having faced “significant operational surprises” during the last year.

The 2005 Oversight Systems Report on Corporate Fraud

From the conviction of former WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers to the acquittal of HealthSouth’s Richard Scrushy, corporate fraud continues to make headlines. Four years after Enron’s collapse, financial integrity remains a key issue for corporate America. The 2005 Oversight Systems Report on Corporate Fraud surveys certified fraud examiners to report the trends, risks and major concerns that businesses face today.

The 2006 Financial Executive Report on Sarbanes-Oxley

Despite its cost, The Sarbanes-Oxley Act continues to achieve its objective: bolster corporate integrity and investor confidence in U.S. public markets. The 2006 Oversight Systems Financial Executive Report on Sarbanes-Oxley surveyed 261 financial executives and identified growing benefits of SOX compliance. The findings show an across-the-board increase in the benefits that respondents experienced in 2005 from SOX compliance as compared to those reported in 2004. The greatest increases were found in SOX’s ability to improve financial report accuracy, up to 47 percent from 27 percent in 2004, and the ensured individual accountability in financial reports resulting from SOX, up to 65 percent from 46 percent in 2004.

2005 Financial Executive Report on Sarbanes-Oxley

Ongoing SOX compliance faces huge challenges beyond reigning in costs. Nearly half of financial executives feel the biggest issue related to compliance is the need to maintain the morale of the employees responsible for compliance, according to The 2005 Oversight Systems Financial Executive Report On Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance.

The 2005 Financial Executive Report on Risk Management

Like six sigma in the 1990s and total quality management in the 1980s, risk management now buzzes through corporate America as the latest initiative for better business management – and for good reason. Most financial executives say their companies faced significant operational surprises in the last five years. While it’s encouraging to see growing interest from business leaders in better management of corporate risk, the challenge will be for corporate America to transform that interest into action that actually helps reduce organizational risk.

2004 Financial Executive Report on Sarbanes-Oxley

Despite the high costs of compliance, most financial executives describe their company's Sarbanes-Oxley compliance as a good investment for stockholders, and 79 percent say they have stronger internal controls after complying with the Enron-inspired law, according to The 2004 Oversight Systems Financial Executive Report On Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance.