Support SOX Compliance

SOX compliance is about proving internal control over financial reporting (ICFR). For most companies, the hard part is not the policy. It is building repeatable IT controls, collecting evidence on schedule, and staying aligned with external auditor expectations.

Neutral Partners helps you scope and implement IT general controls (ITGCs), document and test controls, remediate gaps, and build an evidence cadence that survives quarter closes, new hires, and system changes. The goal is predictable audits and fewer last‑minute fire drills.

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At a Glance

Best for: public companies, companies preparing for IPO, and private companies adopting public company control discipline
Focus areas: ITGCs, application controls, and evidence of control operation
Core ITGC domains: access management, change management, and IT operations
Common failure point: controls exist, but evidence is inconsistent or not reproducible

Start with scoping and a realistic evidence plan.

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What Is SOX

The Sarbanes‑Oxley Act (SOX) introduced requirements for public companies to establish and report on internal controls, including controls over financial reporting. Section 404 is the section most teams feel directly because it requires management assessment of ICFR and, for many issuers, external auditor attestation.

SOX is not a one‑time project. Controls must operate consistently and be evidenced every period.

Who Needs SOX Readiness

SOX work typically applies to:

Public companies: required to maintain and report on ICFR controls
Companies preparing for IPO: building control maturity before becoming an issuer
Companies with complex financial systems: high transaction volumes, multiple ERPs, or heavy automation
High growth organizations: rapid headcount and system changes that create control drift

Even when not legally required yet, adopting SOX discipline early reduces future audit disruption.

What SOX Covers

SOX focuses on financial reporting risk. Control scope depends on your financial statement risks and the systems that support them.

Common control themes include:

Governance and tone at the top: policies, accountability, and oversight
Financial process controls: close processes, reconciliations, approvals, and review controls
IT general controls (ITGCs): foundational IT controls that support reliance on systems
Application controls: automated controls within systems that impact financial reporting
Third‑party and outsourced controls: service providers and key vendor dependencies

For many companies, ITGCs are the foundation. If ITGCs are weak, auditors will expand substantive testing, which increases cost and disruption.

SOX ITGCs Explained

ITGCs are the controls that support the reliability of systems used in financial reporting. External auditors often expect ITGC coverage in three core domains.

Access management

user provisioning and deprovisioning
privileged access controls and approvals
periodic access reviews
segregation of duties where relevant

Change management

change tickets and approvals
testing evidence and peer review
deployment controls and rollback procedures
emergency change handling with after‑action review

IT operations

job monitoring and incident handling
backups and recovery testing
vulnerability management and patching
logging and monitoring routines

The key is not to write a perfect policy. The key is to make controls repeatable and collect proof on schedule.

Evidence Auditors Expect

Auditors test both design and operating effectiveness. Evidence must be consistent, dated, and tied to each control.

Common evidence includes:

Control documentation: control descriptions, owners, frequency, and systems in scope
Access evidence: user lists, approvals, access review records, privileged access logs
Change evidence: tickets, approvals, test results, code review records, deployment logs
Operations evidence: incident tickets, job monitoring records, backup logs, recovery test results
Vendor evidence: SOC reports, monitoring routines, and complementary controls
Management review evidence: review sign‑offs, exception handling, and follow‑up actions

Evidence should be reproducible. If proof depends on one person remembering where a screenshot lives, the program will break.

SOX Roadmap

Scope systems and processes

identify financial statement risks and in‑scope processes
identify systems that support those processes
define what is in scope for ITGCs and application controls

Deliverable: a clear scope that matches auditor expectations

Design and document controls

define control owners and frequencies
document control steps and evidence requirements
identify key reports and the controls that rely on them

Deliverable: controls that are testable and operational

Implement controls and build evidence cadence

operationalize access, change, and IT operations controls
build a recurring calendar for evidence collection
train control owners on what proof is required

Deliverable: controls that run on schedule

Test controls and remediate gaps

perform management testing or internal audit testing
document exceptions and root causes
remediate and retest

Deliverable: fewer surprises in the external audit

Support external audit and ongoing improvement

coordinate auditor requests and evidence submission
maintain version control on evidence and control narratives
refine controls as systems and risks change

Deliverable: predictable audits and reduced disruption

SOX is easier when evidence is routine.

We will scope your ITGCs, build practical controls, and create an evidence cadence that holds up in the audit.

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Common SOX Gaps

Unclear scope: teams do not agree on which systems and processes are in scope
Access review inconsistency: reviews occur, but evidence and follow‑up are incomplete
Privileged access sprawl: shared admin accounts and weak approval trails

Change control gaps: emergency changes and hotfixes without after‑action documentation
Manual evidence chaos: screenshots and exports are inconsistent and not reproducible
Vendor reliance without monitoring: SOC reports exist, but complementary controls are not operated

How Neutral Partners Helps

We help finance and IT teams build controls that work in real operations.

What we deliver

SOX readiness assessment: scope review, control design evaluation, and evidence gap identification
ITGC design and implementation: access, change, and operations controls that are repeatable
Evidence mapping: clear proof requirements and storage structure
Testing support: management testing, exception tracking, remediation planning, and retesting
Audit support: evidence request management and auditor coordination
Sustainment: cadence, templates, and training for control owners

Proof matters. Since 2017, we have maintained a 100% audit success rate across more than 700 successful audits and assessments. We keep that record by making evidence simple, consistent, and repeatable.

SOX FAQs

Is SOX only for public companies?

SOX legal requirements apply to public companies, but many private companies adopt SOX style controls in preparation for IPO, acquisitions, or investor requirements. The discipline improves audit outcomes even before it is mandatory.

What are ITGCs and why do they matter?

ITGCs are foundational controls that support the reliability of systems used in financial reporting. If ITGCs are weak, auditors expand testing and costs increase.

How long does SOX readiness take?

It depends on maturity and scope. Teams move faster when they start with clear scoping and a realistic evidence cadence. The biggest delays come from unclear ownership and inconsistent evidence.

Can we automate SOX evidence?

Yes, in many cases. Automation works best when controls are clearly defined and systems can export consistent proof. We often start with a manual cadence, then automate the highest value evidence sources.

What is the biggest SOX risk?

Control drift. Systems, processes, and staff change constantly. If your control design does not account for change, evidence will break and audits will become reactive.

Key Resources

Useful Resources

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Make SOX a Growth Lever

When SOX controls run as part of normal operations, audits become predictable and the finance team spends less time chasing evidence. We will help you build ITGCs that work, then keep them working through change.

Start with a short working session. We will map your scope, your top gaps, and the next three moves.

Book a Discovery Session ➜