Your free copy of the FAPP Risk Assessment Review

Don´t miss your opportunity to get a free copy of the FAPP Risk Assessment Review. This new whitepaper, written by Jeffrey D. Sherman, author of Finance and Accounting PolicyPro (FAPP), features eight internal control checklists in the following areas:

• The Revenue Cycle
• The Purchasing Cycle
• Inventory
• Payroll
• Banking and Treasury
• Fixed Assets
• Accounting and Reporting
• Control Environment

These checklists incorporate the objectives and risks from the COSO Internal Control - Integrated Framework and the key controls from the Risk/Control Matrices in the CICA´s Professional Engagement Manual (PEM). They make it simple to identify areas where you may need to establish new controls or review existing ones.

Each of the key controls in the checklists is cross-referenced to a policy in FAPP (or another publication in the Internal Control Library), so it´s simple to identify the policies you need to mitigate specific risks.

The FAPP Risk Assessment Review normally costs $75, and you can click here to order your copy. But it´s free if you agree to take a 30-day trial of Finance & Accounting PolicyPro (FAPP). And, if you take a trial before October 30th you´ll pay only $510 (plus GST and S+H) for a one-year subscription to FAPP (a savings of $85). Click here for more information and to order your 30-day, no-obligation FAPP trial.

If you are a current FAPP subscriber, you will receive a link to your free copy of the Risk Assessment Review from the FAPP CD as part of your ongoing subscription. This link is available with update release 2008-05 (October 2008).

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New Ontario human rights law and its impact on NPOs

All employers in Ontario, both for-profit and not-for-profit, should be aware of the changes introduced by the Ontario Human Rights Code Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 107), which came into effect on June 30. Among many other changes, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) will now be processing human rights complaints instead of the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC).

All employers must ensure that their employment policies and practices comply with the Human Rights Code. For instance, not-for-profits should consider a policy concerning accommodation for employees who are members of a disadvantaged group identified in the Code. In addition they should review their recruitment and hiring processes to ensure that they do not expose the organization to human rights complaints.

For more information, click here for a link to an article by Terrance S. Carter, B.A., LL.B., and Pamela Shin, B.A., LL.B. of Carters Professional Corporation, a full-service law firm with a focus on charities and not-for-profit organizations.

As legislation affecting not-for-profits evolves, you can count on the quarterly update releases of Not-for-Profit PolicyPro (NPPP), to keep you on top of the latest changes. For more information on NPPP, click here.

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Meeting the deadline to certify internal controls

Over the past several years in Inside Internal Control and its predecessor, the PolicyPro Bulletin, we´ve been following the progress of the Canadian Securities Administrators as they created a Canadian version of the U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) that requires the CEOs and CFOs of public companies to certify the effectiveness of their internal controls over financial reporting. We last reported in Vol 1, Issue 3, at which time the CSA made some significant changes to Multilateral Instrument 52-109, chiefly to exclude venture issuers.

The process is now complete. The multilateral instrument has been replaced with National Instrument 52-109, effective for periods ending after December 15th, 2008. Click here for a PDF of the OSC document containing the notice, the new instrument and associated forms and companion policy.

KPMG has recently published Certification of Internal Control: Final Certification Rules which provides not only an overview of the rules, but also a useful methodology for applying a top-down, risk based approach to the CEO/CFO certification process. For a link to the KPMG paper, click here.

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Role-Based Access Security

Earlier this year in Vol 1, Issue 1 we discussed the exploits of Jérôme Kerviel, the trader at France´s Société Générale, who subverted the bank´s internal controls and caused a loss of 4.82 billion euros.

As noted in a recent article on KnowledgeLeader.com, this event was a wake-up call for many organizations to re-evaluate their own access security controls. The article discusses role-based access controls (RBAC) , where access rights are configured to specifically-named roles, and assigned to individuals based on their job responsibilities.

Click here to link to the KnowledgeLeader article.

With more than 75 ready-to-use IT policies and procedures, Information Technology PolicyPro (ITPP) is a fast, easy, cost-effective way to build a robust IT control framework. For more information on ITPP, click here.

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Update on financial reporting for private enterprises

Kevin Dancey, FCA, the CICA´s President and CEO, has issued an Alert on the progress of the project to develop made-in-Canada, GAPP-based financial reporting standards for private companies. The core message in the Alert is that the current financial instruments standards in the Handbook do not need to be applied to reports for private companies. Click here for a link to the Alert.

For the full story on this project, click here for the AcSB Strategic Planning - Private Enterprises home page. Need more background? This page also includes a link to a video interview with AcSB Chair, Paul Cherry.

With six update releases every year, the policies in Finance & Accounting PolicyPro (FAPP) will reflect the changes in the financial reporting requirements for private companies when they are finalized. For more information on FAPP, click here.

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Privacy and Radical Pragmatism

Privacy and Radical Pragmatism, the latest whitepaper from Anne Cavoukian, Ontario´s Information and Privacy Commissioner, describes the challenges currently facing privacy rights and sets out her office´s approach to deal with these challenges.

To counter the notion that privacy is an outmoded concept that must be left behind as technology evolves, Commissioner Cavoukian advocates "radical pragmatism," a positive-sum solution that makes transformative privacy-enhancing technology an integral component of new and emerging technology.

Click here for a link to the paper and the press release that accompanies it.

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About Inside Internal Control

Editor: Colin Braithwaite, Managing Editor, PolicyPro.

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Inside Internal Control is a complimentary service published by First Reference Inc. and is sent to you monthly. Each issue provides headlines and summaries of news that affects internal controls and policies in Canada.

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Please send any comments or suggestions about Inside Internal Control to the editor. For information about the Internal Control Library, click here. For more information about First Reference, including our terms of use, disclaimer, privacy policy and other legal matters, visit www.firstreference.com.

This publication is written for informational purposes only and should NOT be relied upon as legal advice or opinions. The reader should always obtain legal advice from a qualified lawyer or other qualified professional, which will be responsive to the case or circumstance of the individual. Please note that the content provided in this Bulletin or any content contained in or made available through any third party website linked to from this newsletter, is provided "as is" without representations or warranties of any kind. All representations and warranties in respect of Content or Third Party Content, express or implied, including, without limitation any representations to warranties or conditions regarding accuracy, timeliness, completeness, non-infringement, merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose are hereby disclaimed.

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