Multi-billion-dollar fines levied on global banks for compliance breaches and control failures have made headlines the world over. Some of these mistakes were egregious, others were merely careless. However, many of these fines could have been prevented if these companies were co-coordinating their risk, compliance and internal audit life cycle processes at a holistic, enterprise level. Meanwhile, government regulators and auditors have zeroed in on the importance of using spreadsheets in managing the GRC domain. Spreadsheets are often the system of record used in compliance with various governmental regulations and as such, their integrity in financial reporting must be maintained. Hence having insight into the spreadsheet estate and the use of these spreadsheets in the organization is mandatory to achieve all their benefits without the associated risks.

Headquartered in the USA, CIMCON Software, Inc. has perfected a 3 Step methodology that efficiently reduces spreadsheet risk to manage the GRC requirements of the client. CIMCON’s XLRisk tool scans the client network and creates an inventory of the entire spreadsheets owned by the client, which it ranks afterwards on the basis of risk. Additionally, it develops data maps indicating the data flow. The XLAudit software uses highly visual Diagnostic and documentation tools to identify errors and inconsistencies. CIMCON’s SOX-XL software provides a flexible platform that implements controls that has minimal end-user impact. This includes cell level audit trails, security, versioning and file comparisons to speed spreadsheet reviews. The company offers data tools for managers and reviewers to speed up reviews and approvals and then sign off electronically thus saving valuable time and improving productivity while maintaining the user experience and existing business processes. The company offers its customers with installation and configuration training services, at the end of which, the clients can implement the tools on their own. “Customers have reported spending weeks or even months trying to create an automated data map, which CIMCON tools can do in hours. Hence, manual controls lead to a lot of user overhead and frustration, and while they may work in the short term under management focus, they are not sustainable. As soon as the focus shifts to other priorities, the controls fade away exposing the firm to risk” says, Sanjay Agrawal, Director, CIMCON Software, Inc.

Ranked #1 in Operational Risk and Regulations Magazine’s annual Compliance Software Survey in the category of “Spreadsheets Compliance Products”, CIMCON prides in having many 3rd party endorsements and a clientele of over 300 customers in over 30 countries worldwide. The company stands to be a provider of a one stop comprehensive solution to address the entire lifecycle of EUC management. Keeping pace with the changing GRC needs of their clients, CIMCON Software, Inc. is planning to bring forth innovative and user-friendly tools that will provide business value. Judging by the company’s client satisfaction, it is only reasonable to say that CIMCON will be adept in solving the GRC needs of their clients via the strategic and tactical use of spreadsheets.