Compliance Headaches

Sarbanes-Oxley has been around for long enough to be a known nuisance. That doesn't make it much easier for companies to comply. And according to a recent Accenture study, the available software tools that are supposedly designed to help them meet SOX requirements leave a lot to be desired.The proof of that dissatisfaction is in the numbers. Sixty percent of the finance executvies said the compliance monitoring software available to them was at best only somewhat satisfactory.

Executives are also more than a little concerned about the resource requirements associated with monitoring and maintaining compliance. Fifty-seven percent of IT managers have added headcount to meet compliance already. Fifty-three percent of those IT professionals think they need to continue adding personnel over the next two to three years to stay in compliance.

There is some good news which could have a positive impact on the business as a whole. Ninety percent of the surveyed execs think their IT and finance groups are working well together to achieve compliance. Eighty-six percent said their IT staffs have delivered the support they need to meet those requirements.

That is something to go on but clearly there is an opportunity for vendors to step up to the plate with more adequate solutions. And my guess is, there are solution providers who are more than eager to comply with that request.