Technology is now playing an increasingly critical role in the internal audit process, so it is important to select the right internal audit management software solution. Not too long ago there were a limited number of options in the market, however, that has changed recently and there is a wide choice of internal audit software tools available.

Most of the solutions tend to be standalone solutions that don’t often integrate well with other solutions such as incident management, risk management, business continuity, disaster recovery, policy and compliance and so on. Implementing a collection of such point solutions may be helpful and a huge step forward from a manual system, however, they do not provide the efficiencies that can be realized from a single integrated risk and governance platform.

Point solutions are often difficult to integrate and/or require manual manipulation of the data. Data duplication is the biggest drain on resources when dealing with single point solutions as the shared data elements between solutions need to be input individually in each solution increasing data integrity issues. Multiple point solutions mean multiple vendors, contracts, SLA’s, negotiations and so on increasing the operational burden, cost and risk.

So, what should you look for in your next technology partner?

Your chosen vendor should at the very least, provide:

Simplicity

Multiple single point solutions hamper efficiencies and increase the total cost of ownership considering all factors. A single modern platform will not only reduce the cost but also the associated risk that stems from trying to integrate multiple solutions and managing multiple vendors.

Reliability

Often many point solutions cannot be integrated programmatically (using API’s), which means the integration has to be done manually. Aside from the additional resources required for the manual integration, the exercise itself is fraught with risks related to data integrity issues. You are probably no better off than sticking with manual spreadsheet and Word documents.

Flexibility

A good technology internal audit system solution will flex to your requirements, not vice versa. You should be able to make changes on the fly and not be drip-bled into paying for consulting for coding changes. The solution should be “future proof” so that it scales as your risk maturity and needs change.

Predictability

All the functionality should come as standard, and included support should provide future bug fixes, enhancements and version upgrades. The last thing you want is surprises, especially when it comes to financial costs! Be aware of vendors that nickel and dime for additional users, slicing and dicing types of users, add on costs for accessing more reports, assessments, questionnaires, forms and so on.

Affordability

It is generally good for the buyers that more vendors are entering the market, however, as discussed above, not all solutions are equal. Single point solutions may seem to have a lower total cost of ownership (TCO), but this may be a false saving once you add the cost for integrations, managing multiple vendors and so on. Multiple vendors also mean multiple risk, and all this should to be factored into the equation.

Good vendors will offer a transparent simple pricing structure clearly showing the TCO that includes future enhancements and version upgrades, has licensing agnostic of the type and number of users, includes an all access solution without tiering or need for future add on costs. The solutions should be open so that the client can self-serve using simple drag and drop functionality to add future changes and enhancements without the need for consulting or coding.

To learn more, request a demo, discuss a free trial proof of value or simply start a conversation drop an email to contact@maclear-grc.com

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