leverage

When the financial focus shifts to regulation...

Jim Kim — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 13:00:24 -0400

Hopefully the bailout package that passed will stabilize the markets to the point that the world can start discussing the real issue: how to regulate the financial markets and Wall Street. We've noted that this discussion has started already, and the perceived failures of Sarbanes-Oxley have been invoked. But that should not deter people from trying to establish a set of rules that can eliminate the excesses and return of sanity to Wall Street. The issues are many. What to do with hedge funds? What to do abut leverage? How to regulates credit derivatives? These will not be easy to answer, and politics will bleed into the discussion. But it is a discussion that must take place. The New York Times weighs in with an insightful column that makes it clear how tricky all of this will be.

Will the economy zap compliance initiatives?

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 06:59:59 -0500

You might have had big plans for taking your compliance efforts to the next level in 2008. You've had a few years to establish a baseline, and now you're ready to leverage compliance activity as a strategic asset. You're ticket to the next level. You're big chance to... Hold on! There's a big problem with this scenario: money. There likely won't be a lot of budget expansion this year at all levels, especially IT. All managers will likely be asked to "rationalize" their spending priorities. And that may mean some financial projects will have to be delayed. Then again, you may figure out a way to make it happen after all.

For more:
- here's an article from enterprise IT planet

What is reference data management all about?

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:01:39 -0400

Reference data--documenting, storing and protecting it--is a big issue these days. Most recognize the value of strong systems that can unify and consolidate this data from far-flung, discrete systems. By creating a centralized hub, companies can leverage various views of all this data for strategic purposes. Just as important, these same systems can be used to stay in compliance. Financial services firms have been leaders in this area. The focus of reference data management seems to be new systems that can manage the complete reference data lifecycle, laying a foundation to grapple with current compliance requirements and the requirements that will inevitably be passed. Companies that must now start complying with 404 should be thinking of this.

For more:
- here's an article from TechNewsWorld

Get the most out of your existing software

Mon, 21 May 2007 20:01:38 -0400

A lot of small companies are looking at finally having to comply with 404 over the next year. I wouldn't bet on another deadline extension. So there is precious little time to implement any really far-reaching solution, unless you have done so already, which I doubt. It will be imperative to get the most out of your existing software, notably Excel. So now may be a good time to start looking into all the add-on products that let you leverage your existing spreadsheets. There are a lot of products to look at, so start now. One example comes from Approva, which just announced it has integrated its GRC solution with Microsoft products, including Excel. It pitches it as a compliance solution from within the familiar confines of Office products. Release

Sarbox working against BPM solutions?

Mon, 22 Jan 2007 19:01:39 -0500

Chances are the IT-savvy among you have at least heard of BPM, or business performance management, software. It promises all new cuts of key data, packaged into dashboards, that can link a company's finances with its planning functions. The key vendors are Cognos and Hyperion. Part of the problem, according to some, is that the demands of Sarbanes-Oxley has taken up so much time that key decision makers can not focus on the benefits. But now that more companies are firmly entrenched in Sarbox 2.0 mode, there may be a reprieve. The fact is that Sarbox has focused attention on the downside of the spreadsheet and manual compliance processes, which are still common. The trick will be to find ways to leverage BPM for compliance needs. This really points to an industry-wide issues. Any piece of software that fits into the enterprise must be view with compliance in mind. The marketers are on to this, as you know. But in the 2.0 era, we'll see perhaps a slight shift in focus.

For more:
- here's an article from CIO Today

Steps to balance security and compliance

Mon, 08 Jan 2007 19:01:38 -0500

We've noted before that compliance burdens imposed on the IT side of the house may be working against the firm's security needs. Indeed, you can be fully compliant and less secure than you were before. With this in mind, one commentator has suggested five principles for balancing these needs: 1) Base your security program on a security framework, 2) Leverage compliance budgets for information security controls, 3) Automate policy compliance and auditing, 4) Be prepared to manage change in threats and regulations, and 5) Create an effective awareness and training program. Read more about these principle in this article on SearchSecurity.com.