Providing peace of mind
Friedman LLP’s Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) Services Practice provides advisory and implementation services that enable organizations to efficiently and effectively meet their corporate governance, risk management and legal and regulatory responsibilities. We are committed to helping senior management and board members achieve the peace of mind that comes with knowing that significant risks to their “must achieve” objectives are being controlled within acceptable levels of exposure. Equally important, our GRC services methodology is designed to assist organizations in identifying and exploiting cost-saving and revenue-generating opportunities. We strive to add real value to every organization we serve, leveraging the extensive "hands-on" operational experience of our seasoned team of professionals.
Key services include:
Internal Audit - co-sourcing/outsourcing/transformation
Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Certification Support - co-sourcing/outsourcing/transformation
Internal Control Assessment and Enhancement
Legal and Regulatory Compliance
Enterprise Risk Management (ERM/GRC) Services
Fraud Assessment and Controls
Licensing, Royalty, Cost and Pricing Compliance
IT Audit and Security
U.S. Patriot Act, Bank Secrecy Act and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Compliance
Board and Audit Committee Advisory
Internal Audit - co-sourcing/outsourcing/transformation
Friedman GRC professionals help organizations achieve a more sustainable, efficient and effective internal audit function optimized for risk mitigation and the maximum exploitation of cost-saving and revenue-generating opportunities. Our risk-based approach targets areas for performance improvement and results in recommendations focused on achieving a more effective and efficient function that is aligned with the current and future “must achieve” objectives of our client’s audit committee, executive management and operating units.
Additionally, our experienced professionals can assist management in developing tailored accounting manuals, standard operating procedures, and accounting policies and procedures to further enhance the quality and consistency of the organization’s financial reporting.
Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Certification Support - co-sourcing/outsourcing/transformation
We help organizations establish and maintain compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and Stock Exchange Governance Listing Standards. Our scalable risk-based, top-down methodology aligns with the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) Framework and has been accepted by external national and local auditing firms, including the “Big 4”. It provides exceptional value in:
- Minimizing key controls to be tested through our rationalization and optimization process
- Minimizing cost and management effort consistent with SEC Guidance and the PCAOB’s Auditing Standard No.5
- Minimizing down-stream testing by leveraging direct and precise entity-level monitoring controls
- Facilitating external auditors’ integrated audit and 404(b) attestation work
Internal Control Assessment and Enhancement
Friedman GRC professionals assist corporate management and boards of directors to enhance their organization’s internal controls and reduce risks. Effective controls can significantly reduce risk and inefficient or inappropriate business decisions (e.g., inappropriate revenue recognition, unauthorized transactions, theft and fraud, etc.).
Effective controls need not be either expensive or time-consuming to put in place. Moreover, effective internal controls don’t just help an organization reduce risk and improve the bottom line, they also:
- Provide financial reporting benefits
- Reduce IT-related risks and failures
- Reduce potential for theft and fraud
- Assist in safeguarding assets
- Reduce regulatory risk
- Provide operational benefits
- Can lower borrowing costs
- Can help attract new business partners and buyers
- Facilitate “readiness” for an initial public offering
Additionally, our experienced professionals can assist management in developing tailored accounting manuals, standard operating procedures, and accounting policies and procedures, to further enhance the quality and consistency of the organization’s financial reporting.
Legal and Regulatory Compliance
Our GRC professionals assist organizations in designing and implementing “effective” compliance programs and processes to satisfy regulatory mandates and to enable maximum mitigation under the Organizational Sentencing Guidelines. All organizations – public, private, partnerships, not-for-profits, etc. – are subject to the Organizational Sentencing Guidelines statutes. The ability to demonstrate an “effective” compliance program can mitigate fines, restitution, forfeiture and probation by as much as 95%. Conversely, an “ineffective” or “non-existent” compliance program, as defined by the Guidelines, could result in quadrupled fines and penalties, including the imposition of deferred prosecution agreements.
Enterprise Risk Management (ERM/GRC) Services
Friedman GRC professionals help organizations integrate risk management into their business and strategic processes to enable them to take appropriately mitigated risks to create value. Our scalable ERM methodology facilitates the ongoing identification and exploitation of wealth – creating opportunities, as well as the assessment of significant risks to the organization’s “must achieve” strategic, financial reporting, operational and legal and regulatory objectives.
Additionally, we can assist boards in developing an effective process to meet their new regulatory responsibility to disclose their role in overseeing the organization’s risk management process.
Fraud Assessment and Controls
We assist organizations in developing, implementing, assessing and improving anti-fraud programs and controls at the business unit and significant account levels. Our approach includes the identification of industry-specific fraud scenarios, risk factors and fraud opportunities using advanced data mining and analysis techniques.
Our scalable anti-fraud services assist organizations in establishing and maintaining robust anti-fraud programs that:
- Provide tangible evidence of a culture of integrity
- Help prevent fraud and facilitate early detection
- Improve monitoring and training
- Limit unpleasant surprises which could affect reputation, confidence, credibility and stock price
The expert resources of Friedman’s Forensic Accounting, Litigation Support and Valuation Services (FLVS) practice are also available to assist in investigative activities where fraud is suspected or has already occurred, and further forensic analysis is required.
Licensing, Royalty, Cost and Pricing Compliance
Our GRC compliance team is a dedicated group of professionals with the expertise and experience to assist clients in protecting intellectual properties and recovering underpaid royalties and profits. We assist organizations in validating contractual compliance, including audits of contractor performance and records, and provide analytic support surrounding disputes with tenants, contractors, customers, suppliers and licensees. Our comprehensive approach incorporates the use of advanced data mining and analysis techniques. While conducting royalty and contract compliance audits, we creatively look for ways to identify opportunities for potential recoveries. We also identify potential improvements to internal controls and develop internal policies for licensees that will help to ensure accuracy in future reporting.
The expert resources of Friedman’s Forensic Accounting, Litigation Support and Valuation Services (FLVS) practice are also available to assist management with disputes involving complex business and legal transactions or where litigation is likely to result or has already been initiated.
IT Audit and Security
Our GRC professionals help organizations to identify, document, rationalize, test and improve the cost-effectiveness of the information security risks of an organization’s technology infrastructure. We assist organizations with the design and assessment of their general computing controls, including those related to logical and physical security, program change management and computer operations. Using advanced scanning and penetration testing techniques, we assist organizations in assessing the vulnerabilities of their IT infrastructure and business critical and confidential data assets to unauthorized and unlawful access, and potential data corruption and loss. We also assist organizations which accept credit cards as a method of payment in meeting their Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Compliance requirements.
U.S. Patriot Act, Bank Secrecy Act and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Compliance
We conduct forensic accounting investigations on behalf of corporate management, boards of directors and outside counsel. We also provide assistance to corporate management and/or corporate boards of directors in ensuring compliance with the accounting and internal control requirements of these laws.
The expert resources of Friedman’s Forensic Accounting, Litigation Support and Valuation Services (FLVS) practice are available to assist organizations in the event of shareholder or government investigations.
Board and Audit Committee Advisory
In today’s highly sensitive compliance and reporting environment, many boards and audit committees value having the services of an experienced and proactive advisor to assist them in meeting their legal, regulatory and fiduciary responsibilities. We provide industry-specific, customized value-added advisory services on current corporate governance issues and mandates for public, private and not-for-profit boards and audit committees.
Additionally, we can assist boards in developing an effective process to meet their new regulatory responsibility to disclose their role in overseeing the organization’s risk management process.
The expert resources of Friedman LLP's SEC Services Group are available to further assist organizations across the business spectrum to negotiate the maze of assurance, regulatory and transactional demands.
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