Welcome to the First Issue of the PolicyPro Bulletin

The PolicyPro Bulletin is a monthly e-newsletter published by First Reference Inc. It replaces the Finance and Accounting PolicyPro E-Newsletter.

The PolicyPro Bulletin contains news that affects policies, procedures and internal controls for businesses in Canada and around the world.

Canadian Securities Administrators Propose Changes to Internal Control Reporting Rules

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have announced that they will withdraw a proposed instrument (MI 52-111) that would require public companies to obtain an audit opinion concerning management’s assessment of the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting.

The withdrawn instrument would have brought the requirements for Canadian public companies into line with the requirements of section 404 of the U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOx). But the revised proposals, if approved, will mean that Canadian public companies will not need to receive an audit opinion that their internal controls over financial reporting (ICOFR) are adequate. Instead, they will be able to rely on the certification of their CEO and CFO that they have evaluated the effectiveness of the ICOFR and have caused the disclosure of this evaluation in the annual management discussion and analysis (MD&A).

Click here for a more in-depth analysis of this change, and how changing climate of internal control will inevitably affect the best practices of private companies.

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We’ve come a long way since risk management was just another name for insurance. In today’s complex business environment, risk comes in many different guises, and means different things to different companies. Successful companies integrate risk management with strategy setting, aiming to establish a sustainable competitive advantage, optimize the cost of the risk management process, and position themselves to take advantage of new opportunities.

This new paradigm of risk management is known as Enterprise Risk Management. This month, we’re pleased to offer access to two valuable ERM documents published by protiviti on KnowledgeLeader.com.

Click here to open The Bulletin, Volume 2, Number 6, entitled Enterprise Risk Management: Practical Implementation Advice.

Click here for the Guide to Enterprise Risk Management: Frequently Asked Questions.

For more information on risk management, see Volume II – Corporate Governance in Finance and Accounting PolicyPro.

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Whistleblowing occurs when employees reveal corporate wrongdoings of their employers. Unfortunately, it is common for whistleblowers to experience demotion, dismissal, and negative treatment from their employers after they disclose the malfeasance and/or corruption.

Although the Criminal Code contains a section making it criminal to take or to threaten disciplinary action, demotion, and termination against a whistleblower, only Saskatchewan and New Brunswick have enacted whistleblowing provisions in their employment standards legislation. However, it is only a matter of time before other provinces catch up.

Even if your province does not yet have a whistleblowing provision, it’s time to consider developing internal reporting policies to deal with employee complaints and manage information relating to unlawful corporate conduct.

For more information, click here for a recent article on HRinfodesk.com.

Whistleblowing policies are discussed in section 1.10 – Ethics and Business Conduct in Volume II – Corporate Governance of Finance and Accounting PolicyPro. Whistleblower policies are also being added in upcoming releases of both the Ontario and BC editions of Human Resources PolicyPro (HR 5.11 ON and HR 5.11 BC).

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The objective of business continuity planning is to plan for the resumption of business after a natural or man-made disaster that renders a company’s primary business location inaccessible or otherwise unusable for an extended period of time. Considering the disastrous consequences of even a short-term interruption of critical business functions, business continuity planning is a component of many companies’ strategic planning process. Some organizations, such as those who conduct much of their business over the Internet, are encouraging the growth of a “continuity culture” at all levels, with clearly defined roles, responsibilities and reporting processes.

Are Canadian companies developing a continuity culture? To assess this, KPMG conducted a survey of 254 executives from medium to large-size companies in a variety of industries.

Some of the key findings are as follows:

• Half the respondents report that they believe that market and regulatory requirements dictate that they have an effective and tested business continuity plan. Interestingly, business continuity is becoming a compliance issue, as some industry groups, like the Investment Dealers Association, are enacting bylaws that set rules for planning and penalties for non-compliance
• An overwhelming percentage (83%) of respondents agree that they have very little tolerance for downtime where critical business functions are involved
• The same percentage (83%) of companies report that they have established procedures to reduce the risk of interruption of critical service and business functions

For a full copy of the KPMG report, click here.

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Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters have just published an extensive guide entitled: Influenza Pandemic: Continuity Planning Guide for Canadian Business. This 90-page guide is an excellent resource for Canadian businesses, providing guidance to help minimize the risk that a flu pandemic poses to the health of employees, the continuity of business operations and the financial health of an organization.

The guide contains a summary of the potential impacts of a pandemic on businesses, an overview of the HR issues involved, and the critical elements that should be part of a business continuity plan. It also features extensive appendices, containing, among other things, a comprehensive list of sources for further research and an overview of an actual pandemic business continuity plan.

For your own copy of the CME’s guide, visit www.cme-mec.ca or Strategis.gc.ca

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First Reference introduces the latest addition to the PolicyPro Library – Operations and Marketing PolicyPro (OMPP). With a focus on the Operations area of your organization – including engineering, design, production, sales and marketing – OMPP helps you to establish internal controls, reduce risk of loss and ensure compliance with legislation and best practices.

OMPP is a companion product to Finance and Accounting PolicyPro. Like all PolicyPro products, OMPP provides many tools designed to help you create policies and keep them up to date. However, it extends your controls further within your organization – effectively providing guidelines and information for your Operations and Marketing departments (and all associated functions).

Don’t miss your chance to try Operations and Marketing PolicyPro, absolutely risk free for 30 days. Click here for further details.

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About the PolicyPro Bulletin

Editor: Colin Braithwaite, Managing Editor – PolicyPro.

Please do not reply to this Email.

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

Please forward this Bulletin to your colleagues.

Please send any comments or suggestions about the PolicyPro Bulletin to editor@policypro.ca. For information about the PolicyPro Library, visit www.PolicyPro.ca. For information about First Reference and our HR-related products, visit www.firstreference.com. To read our Terms of Use, Disclaimer, Privacy Policy and other legal matters, visit PolicyPro.ca.

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 Bulletin, 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.

PolicyPro Bulletin ISSN: 1718-5866 Copyright ©2006, First Reference Inc., All Rights Reserved.

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