SOX 404 Virtual Conference: Redesigning Your SOX Program to Drive Value in the New Post-COVID World

DAY ONE AGENDA

Welcome & Opening Remarks
8:45 – 9:00 AM

Regulatory Trends: Recent Trends That Will Impact 2021 SOX Programs
9:00 – 10:00 AM
The SEC and PCAOB continue to focus on Internal Controls over Financial Reporting (ICFR). This session will provide an overview of the specific ICFR areas that remain on their combined radar, with an emphasis on the ongoing impact of COVID-19.

Break
10:00 – 10:10 AM

Impact of COVID-19 on Complying with SEC Requirements, Including ICFR Compliance
10:10 – 11:25 AM
COVID-19 has disrupted businesses worldwide. In order to drive value and prepare for the future, companies must now adopt new procedures and technologies, while redesigning their SOX programs to align with the latest working models. In this session, we will address key uncertainties related to SOX programs, such as emerging risks, relevancy, and bringing added value to a business.

Break
11:25 – 11:35 AM

Audit Committee’s Role in Financial Reporting & Oversight
 11:35 AM – 12:35 PM 
With more and more people working from home due to COVID-19, the SEC’s “Statement on the Role of Audit Committees in Financial Reporting…” is now more relevant than ever. This roundtable discussion will focus on the latest guidance from the SEC, and discuss how it impacts interaction between Chief Audit Executives, Heads of Internal Audit / Internal Controls, and other financial professionals with Audit Committee Members.

Lunch
12:35 – 1:20 PM

Panel Discussion: ICFR Lessons Learned during the COVID Crisis & Leading Practices
 1:20 – 2:35 PM 
This roundtable discussion will examine how lessons learned during year one of the pandemic can be used to optimize your current and future SOX life cycles. You will discover ways to improve risk assessment, control selection and design, controls related to significant unusual transactions, Information Used in Controls (IUC) and how to implement new technology to modernize your SOX program.

Break
2:35 – 2:45 PM

Industry Panel Discussion: SOX Insights, Including Innovation in the SOX Program
 2:45 – 4:45 PM 
This roundtable panel discussion will be moderated by a Big 4 accounting leader, and feature industry practitioners, who will provide insights on today’s hottest risk management and SOX compliance topics. In this highly interactive session, we encourage attendees to share their real-world experiences, and gain insights into their biggest challenges from the nation’s leading SOX authorities, taking into account lessons learned as a result of the pandemic.
 

DAY TWO AGENDA

Welcome & Opening Remarks
8:45 – 9:00 AM

Robotic Process Automation—Internal Control Over Financial Reporting Considerations
9:00 – 10:30 AM
Companies are rapidly digitalizing parts of their business through Robotic Process Automation (RPA). Although RPA may reduce unintentional or intentional human errors, the implementation of robots presents new risks that businesses need to understand and address. During this session, we will discuss a key risk presented by the rapid adoption of robots—an organization’s failure to consider the effects of these operational changes on its Internal Control over Financial Reporting (ICFR), specifically those controls over IT and the potential impact on the value created by this automation arbitrage. The session will focus on the risks and benefits associated with RPA across the three lines of defense including the following:
• Considerations when automating processes and controls
• Considerations when automating control testing
 

Break
10:30 – 10:40 AM

Internal Audit Supporting the SOX Program: Delivering Greater Value & Efficiency
10:40 AM – 12:10 PM
In this session, we will explore Agile SOX, which is the mindset of an Internal Controls over Financial Reporting (ICFR) function designed to meet stakeholder needs, accelerate audit cycles, drive timely insights, and reduce wasted effort. We will address how Agile prompts auditors and stakeholders to determine, upfront, the value to be delivered, and how to produce this value. Finally, we will discuss how Agile prioritizes risk, based on importance and urgency, as well as high-impact reporting that focuses on documenting the work.

Lunch
12:10 – 12:50 PM

Digital Audit Readiness—Internal Control Over Financial Reporting Considerations in a Post-COVID World
12:50 – 2:05 PM
This session will focus on how to leverage data sets that are typically needed for external audit requirements by the SOX group to assess risk and perform monitoring. Digital techniques are disrupting process maturity, the transaction controls framework and the way in which companies are audited.
• Audit—Digital audit tools analyze the entire journal entry populations vs. samples
• Control—Complex web of manual and automated controls to be maintained
• Risk—Continuous monitoring of risks demands digital proficiency powered by analytics

Break
2:05 – 2:15 PM

Performing Cyber Risk Assessments
2:15 – 3:15 PM
Cyberattacks present a constant threat to risk exposure, as do changes in business, technology, and the regulatory environment. In this session, we will address:
• COVID-19 Impact: Downsizing, Remote Working, etc.
• Types of Risk Assessments
• Risk Officer—Establishing a Cybersecurity Subcommittee
• Data Classification
• Risk & Risk Alignment
• Disposition
• Public Relations
• General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
• Strategies for Incomplete SOC-1s
• Downloading Critical Files in Public Cloud

Break
3:15 – 3:25 PM

SEC Enforcement & FCPA Compliance
3:25 – 4:40 PM
• Recent Trends in SEC Enforcement
• Scrutiny of Internal Controls over Financial Reporting (ICFR)
• Leading Practices in FCPA Compliance

Conference Ends
4:40 PM