Harnessing Artificial Intelligence to Deliver Real-Time Intelligence and Business Process Improvements

Abstract

As demand for data scientists in audit/Governance, risk management and compliance (GRC), and industry in general, outpaces supply, data science in a box—packaged analytics powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and guided machine learning—can bridge the gap to bring analytics to every major enterprise. Packaged analytics harness the power of AI and machine learning technologies to help operations, finance executives, and GRC professionals do their jobs better; optimize business processes; and deliver actionable insights for better decision making. This article will explore real-world case studies of how companies have used packaged analytics to achieve process improvements, better oversight over financial spend, and significant return on investment. It is a guide to internal auditors and their GRC counterparts on what is available and suggests they can partner or use the products independently and significantly contribute to their companies.

Notes

1. M. P. Cangemi, “Internal Audit’s Role in Continuous Monitoring,” EDPACS 41(4) (2010).(Page 2)

2. M.P. Cangemi “Addressing the C-Level Question: How Effectively are Assurance Functions Contributing and Using Automated Analytics?” EDPACS in 2017 (Page 6)

3. ibid Page 5

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Michael P. Cangemi

Michael P. Cangemi is a prolific writer, active speaker and has had a wide-ranging career having served as a CAE, CIO, CFO, and then in two CEO positions, as well as on Boards and as AC Chair. His experiences as a CAE were published in his second successful book, Managing the Audit Function. The book, now in a third edition, was featured in the business section of the Sunday New York Times in August 2002 and translated into Chinese in 2005 and Serbian in 2013.

Mr. Cangemi now has a significant focus on Technology for Business and specifically Continuous Monitoring and Analytics for GRC, Finance, and Business Process Improvement. He is a Senior Fellow at and serves on the Rutgers Continuous Auditing and Reporting Lab–Advisory Board, a Senior Advisor to Oversight Systems (CM & Analytics), a Senior Advisor to CaseWare Analytics (CA & CM Analytics); he is an investor in and periodic advisor to Solink Corp (Video & Contextual Analytics) and an Audit Advisory Board member at Libra Corp. which is developing audit technology for blockchain distributed ledger systems. He has served in numerous volunteer positions at IIA and ISACA, including Chair of the ISACA Board of Directors and IIARF Trustee. He went on to serve as Editor-in-Chief of the ISACA Journal for 2 decades, as well as serving as a COSO Board Member, 4 years on the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council (FASAC), and 2 years on the International Accounting Standards Board-Standards Advisory Council in London. These and other positions give him an excellent window into the audit & financial communities.

Patrick Taylor

A CPA retired and CISA retired he was President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director of Etienne Aigner Group, Inc., a leading designer of women‚s accessories and President and Chief Executive Officer of Financial Executives International, the professional association for senior-level corporate financial executives. He currently serves as President of Cangemi Company LLC, which he founded, and through which he serves as senior advisor and director to various companies and manages his other business interests. He also serves on FEI’s Committee on Finance & Technology (CFIT) and their GRC Sub Committee; the EDPACS Editorial Advisory Board; and the ISACA Governance Committee.

Patrick Taylor is chief executive officer of Oversight Systems, which annually analyzes more than $2 trillion of business transactions to identify and mitigate fraud and waste, improve compliance and optimize business processes. Taylor is an authority in the convergence of business analytics, information security, and the implementation of technology to boost organizational performance. An innovator in his field, Patrick recognized that most IT-security and financial-system controls focus on user access and role management, but do not address how to convert ERP, CRM, and other financial transaction resources into plain-language, actionable insights. Taylor has held previous leadership positions with Internet Security Systems (ISS), Symantec, ORACLE, Red Brick Systems, GO, Air2Web, and Fast-Talk. Patrick earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Georgia Tech and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.