Tools

The following tools were published on KnowledgeLeader this week:

Spreadsheet Controls Policy

Ensure compliance and enhance financial reporting accuracy for critical spreadsheets in alignment with SOX guidelines with this sample spreadsheet controls policy. It also outlines the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders, including the IT department, users and developers, and provides detailed procedures for assessing the risk level of spreadsheets, defining financially significant desktop tools, and implementing minimum control standards.

Product Development Audit Work Program

Conduct efficient audits within the product development sector of your organization with the best-practice steps in this tool. This document outlines a structured approach to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of product development processes, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and market demands.

Charge Master Maintenance Audit Work Program (Healthcare)

Our Charge Master Maintenance Audit Work Program document provides a high-level framework to evaluate the charge master maintenance process within healthcare organizations. This tool offers insights into the structured methodologies used for adding, changing or deleting charge codes, descriptions and pricing. 

Commercial Property Lease Application Audit Work Program

Review an application that handles transactions related to leasing and renting commercial property with our Commercial Property lease Application Audit Work Program. Through this program, a structured approach is highlighted that spans planning, fieldwork and reporting phases, ensuring a thorough examination of the lease application process.

International Site Visit Audit Work Program

Conduct thorough audits of international offices, addressing both local and corporate requirements in support of the enhancement of global operations. It outlines key project phases such as planning, fieldwork and report issuance, with detailed steps, including gaining an understanding of the business environment, assessing internal controls and performing analytical procedures on financial statements. 

Data Privacy Maturity Audit Report

Assess and improve your organization's data privacy practices with this audit report sample. It provides a detailed examination of the company's current state of data privacy maturity, benchmarked against the American Institute of Certified Public Accountant's (AICPA) Generally Accepted Privacy Principles (GAPP) Framework. The report identifies potential areas of improvement, including management practices, consent procedures, data collection and third-party disclosures. 

PMO Effectiveness Review Audit Report

Review an enterprise's project management office (EPMO) to determine if practices, management principles and processes are aligned with industry leading practices and standards as outlined by the Project Management Institute. This document is utilized to identify strengths and weaknesses within the EPMO's practices, governance and methodologies, providing insights into how effectively the EPMO facilitates project selection, management and delivery across the organization.

Publications 

KnowledgeLeader has also published several publications this week.

IPO Trends Q4 2024 

In the fourth quarter of 2024 there were 80 new initial public offerings (IPOs), which raised a combined total of $8.8 billion. Despite total IPOs increasing by 33% from the previous quarter and reaching a high point for the year, total gross proceeds decreased by 17% in Q4, the smallest combined gross proceeds of any quarter in 2024. In this article, Audit Analytics further examines the Q4 2024 IPOs, highlighting SPAC IPO dominance, direct listing trends and key audit contributors.

Did China Break Encryption? Protiviti’s Quantum Director Sets the Record Straight

Konstantinos Karagiannis is the director of quantum computing services at Protiviti. He helps companies get ready for quantum opportunities and threats, including quantum portfolio optimization using cardinality constraints and post-quantum cryptography agility assessments. In this VISION by Protiviti Interview, Karagiannis sat down with Joe Kornik, editor-in-chief of VISION by Protiviti, to discuss the news that China may have broken military-grade encryption.

Are Your Board Materials Highlighting What’s Really Important?

Directors want more strategic emphasis and less operational detail in boardroom prep materials and discussions. Yet, we continue to hear board members express the view that materials they receive for, and in, scheduled meetings are voluminous to the point of obfuscating what’s really important. In this issue of Board Perspectives, we provide six steps that can help board leadership and the CEO keep board meeting agendas and supporting materials fresh and relevant. 

Recommended Resources 

This list of recommended resources from the web may be of interest to you. Click each link to learn more. 

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