Overview of Control Design and Operational Effectivness in Control Inventory Module
Control inventory(Control Library) in Ansarada GRC refers to the repository or database within the Ansarada GRC where all control activities related to compliance, risk management, and governance are documented, tracked, and managed. This includes controls implemented to mitigate risks, ensure regulatory compliance, and uphold organizational policies and procedures.
In our ongoing efforts to enhance the functionality of the Ansarada GRC platform, we are pleased to announce the introduction of three new fields within the Control Inventory Module. These fields are designed to provide comprehensive insights into the effectiveness of your controls:
Overall Effectiveness
Control Operational Effectiveness
Control Design Effectiveness
"Control design and operating effectiveness" refers to two critical aspects of internal control systems within an organization, particularly in the context of risk management, financial reporting, and regulatory compliance. These aspects play a significant role in ensuring that controls are not only well-designed but also effectively implemented and maintained.
Control Design Effectiveness: This refers to the adequacy and appropriateness of the controls implemented within an organization to mitigate risks and safeguard assets. Assessing the design effectiveness helps determine whether the controls are designed and implemented in a manner that adequately addresses the identified risks. Control design involves the development and establishment of control measures, policies, and procedures within an organization. These controls are designed to mitigate specific risks, maintain the integrity of financial information, and ensure compliance with regulations.
a. Key Elements: Identifying and understanding risks: The first step in control design is to identify the potential risks that an organization faces, such as fraud, data breaches, or operational errors.
b. Control objectives: Establishing clear control objectives to address identified risks.
c. Selection of control activities: Determining the specific controls and activities that will help achieve these objectives. This may include segregation of duties, access controls, and reconciliation procedures.
d. Policies and procedures: Develop detailed policies and procedures that outline how controls will be implemented and maintained.e. Documentation: Proper documentation of control design is essential for transparency, accountability, and auditing purposes. This documentation should outline the rationale for control selection and how controls are expected to function.
Control Operational Effectiveness: Operational effectiveness assesses how well the established controls are functioning in practice. It focuses on evaluating whether the controls are operating as intended to mitigate risks and achieve control objectives.
a. Key Elements: Testing and monitoring: Regular testing and monitoring of controls to ensure they are functioning as designed. This may involve internal audits, self-assessments, or third-party assessments. Compliance and performance: Evaluating not only whether the controls are in place but also if they are consistently adhered to and are achieving their intended results.b. Corrective actions: Identifying and addressing any deficiencies or issues in control effectiveness. This may involve remediation plans and continuous improvement efforts.
c. Reporting and communication: Providing feedback and reports on the operating effectiveness of controls to management and relevant stakeholders.
Effective control design and operating effectiveness are critical for various aspects of an organization's operations, including financial management, data security, and regulatory compliance. Organizations need to strike a balance between well-designed controls that address specific risks and the continuous monitoring and assessment of those controls to ensure they remain effective over time. This process helps organizations reduce the likelihood of adverse events, such as financial fraud, data breaches, and compliance violations.
What this new features offers in Ansarada GRC 🚀
Ability to record Design, Operational and Overall Effectiveness of the Control record via record:
With these additions, users will now have the ability to record the design, operational and Overall effectiveness of their control measures directly within the platform. You can create your own Lists of Effectivess Levels and choose colours to define these effectiveness. This is done from the Maintenance Menu of Control Inventory.
2. Ability to record Design, Operational and Overall Effectiveness of the Control record via Tasks:
You can efficiently update the effectiveness of these Controls by generating "Update Effectiveness" Tasks directly from the record and executing the changes via Tasks on your My Summary Page, as illustrated below:
3. See historical Data using the record effectiveness history icon:
Moreover, users can now access historical data using the record history icon. This feature enables a longitudinal view of control effectiveness over time, facilitating informed decision-making. Additionally, users can effortlessly export this data directly from the Effectiveness History for further analysis.
4. Run reports on Control Effectiveness from Reports Main Menu:
Furthermore, users can generate reports on Control Effectiveness directly from the Reports Main Menu. Utilizing Ad Hoc queries, users can extract detailed Excel-format reports, providing a comprehensive overview of control effectiveness. Similarly, PDF Reports are also available for streamlined sharing and documentation purposes.
Ad Hoc query as shown below:
5. Ability to show the Linked Control in your Risk Register:
Lastly, users now have the capability to display linked controls within their Risk Register. Under the assessment tab, users can easily view linked controls alongside their respective effectiveness levels, providing a holistic view of risk management efforts.
These enhancements underscore our commitment to empowering users with robust tools and insights to effectively manage their governance, risk, and compliance processes.
🙌 As always, if you have any questions or feedback, please don't hesitate to reach out to our support team ([email protected]).