Audit Management System at Metric Stream Company - Case Study Example

METRIC STREAM COMPANY: AUDIT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND RISK MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Metric Stream Company: Audit Management System and Risk Management System A continuous system of auditing is a mandatory process that is gaining acceptance across business management disciplines in order to have compliance with government regulations as well as for effectiveness in business risk management. With many types of audits emerging as well as business complexity that is seen to be a main feature in the modern day business world, audit management is pointed to an increasingly challenging undertaking. Spreadsheet based auditing as well as point solutions are easily loosing competence in the modern day context and instead, more complex internal audit management systems are gaining acceptance. For instance, the software on Metric Stream ‘audit management solution’ has been designed and adopted for management of wide ranges of data as well as other audit related activities. Among other strengths of the audit software is the capacity of it to provide flexibility in development of different types of audits, which include operational, IT, supplier as well as quality. Besides, it provides utilities in end-to-end functionalities necessary for complete management of life cycle. Besides, then tool aid in reviewing audit reports by the auditors as well as by the company/organization management. The AMS has advanced capabilities such as the capacity to track time, allow risk assessment tools be applied as well as adopting alert and notification systems based on mails. This paper recommends the adoption of the AMS by trading companies and organizations because of the following benefits that are pointed to emanate from the system as used by the Metric Stream Company. Errors as well as inconsistencies in data collection across various enterprises within an organization are eliminated by the system as it allows systematic auditing processes. The system allows development of a closed-loop cycle of auditing which enables easy recording of findings, generating recommendations as well as overseeing implementation of action plans proposed. Moreover, the AMS strengthens audit staff efficiency and thus makes them focused on value results and be keen on audit data generation (MetricStream, Inc., 2014, para 1-4). The audit management solution adopted by the Metric stream company has basic features, which include planning, execution, review as well as results and metrics. The solution system adopted enables the auditors and the management of the company to plan the audit to suit different company’s needs, the suppliers, internal departments and periodical processes and products. Concerning execution, the solution system adopted by the company enables the auditors to record quantitative or qualitative findings together with such other observations or recommendations often in predefined formats. Besides, it has a capacity to work offline, which is strategic in that auditors can work even on personal notebooks and just merge later with the main organizational procedures. This therefore ensures effectiveness in execution of the audit processes within the organization. On the other hand, the audit management system adopted by the organization has the capacity to track down and route the audit results, observations as well as the recommendations by the auditors for reviewing as well as other subsequent actions as would follow. The built in workflows in the systems therefore aid in the process of review, which is a compulsory process. Finally, the system is effective in that it provides comprehensive capacity to compile reports on audits as well as working papers and has an easy ‘status tracking’ capability. These therefore form the basic features, which make the system distinct and very useful in the organization as pertains auditing (MetricStream, Inc., 2014, para 1-4). The audit management practices involved in the company streamlines the process of data collection, processes the data into relevant information and knowledge, which is useful for actionable decisions. In risk management processes, the organization combines the system with Metric Stream ‘Risk Management Solution’ and this supports the process of risk assessment based on likelihood of occurrence as well as risk severity. When risk is assessed on specific methodologies giving the auditors clarity of the risk profile of the organization. On the risk management highlights, the Metric Stream Company has improved and effective risk assessment system. Other highlights are the notifications and alerts capabilities, attachments, configurability and reporting wizards among others. With these features therefore, the AMS as adopted by the Metric Stream Company becomes very effective especially in management practices (MetricStream, Inc., 2014, para 1-4). According to a report on EGRC (enterprise governance, risk and compliance) by Gartner, companies adopt the platform for automation of processes of documentation and reporting for ease in managing risk and for compliance purposes. The main beneficiaries of the system as is adopted are the internal auditors, audit committee, compliance and risk managers, legal professionals as well as shareholders who would be interested in the reports. These persons and groups are responsible for risk management, audit management, policy as well as compliance management, regulatory change management as well as incident management. Among other benefits of the system is that it can be compatible with other business applications such as the business intelligence, general ledger, monitoring systems, technical controls (IT) and such other continuous control monitoring systems. The Metric stream organization used EGRC 6.0 according to the report by (Caldwell and Wheeler, 2013, p. 2). The company enjoys strengths in that the version offers a broad based platform for EGRC to many customers across industries and regions. Customization on specialty has enabled the company to attract many customers through offering basic capabilities as customers want. Besides, the ability of the company to integrate the services of highly skilled risk management professionals with the solution system has enabled the company make great steps in offering customer specific risk solutions over years. Rapid growth for the company has been attributed to the system management tools and solutions adopted. Nevertheless, performance in the wide market segment in the industry of software does not lack challenges and the main one faced by the company and its clients is mainly the implementation challenge (Caldwell and Wheeler, 2013, p. 10-11). In risk management, the system assists the Metric stream professionals in management of workflow, documentation, business impact evaluation and assessment, reporting as well as visualization and risk remediation. Through this, the business analysts and planners are in a position to analyze the company’s risk adjusted performance. Operational risk management as well as IT risks management processes are the immediate beneficiaries to the system in the organization as the solution system is able to collect and synthesize useful data from credit risks and market risk. Besides, the ability of the system to track and keep resolutions of incidences makes it very useful for the risk management process by Metric Stream Company. The system therefore assists the company in management processes, risk assessment, controls, policies as well as rulebooks. According to gartner.com 2013 report, Metric Stream is among the highly ranking software companies across the globe, which has effective management systems especially in risk and audit management. Just as is the case with many other companies, continuous system of auditing has had and continues to have effect in the management of Metric Stream Company. The usefulness of the AMS systems as adopted and applied in the company would form the basis of recommendation of the solution system to other companies by this paper. The system brings about various advantages to managements of companies which include development of quality audits and flexibility to all parties involved in operations of a company such as the suppliers, the it professionals as well as the operations personnel. Besides, the system is effective in data collection, storage and management for the purpose of effectiveness and efficiency in audit management as well as risk management. The effectiveness of the solution system as adopted by the company has seen its rise to rank highly in the Gartner ranking report in the recent past. Bibliography Caldwell F. and Wheeler, J, A. , 2013. Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Governance,Risk and Compliance Platforms. Gartner Inc. MetricStream, Inc., 2014. “Audit Management System” Accessed 4 February 2014. MetricStream, Inc., 2014, “Audit Management Solution: Features” < http://www.metricstream.com/products/auditmangmt_features.htm> Accessed 4 February 2014. MetricStream, Inc., 2014, “Audit Management Solution: Highlights” < http://www.metricstream.com/products/auditmangmt_highlights.htm> Accessed 4 February 2014. Read More