Assignment: Milestone Guidelines

For Milestone, prepare a draft of a comparative systems report. Compare and contrast electronic data processing (EDP) systems used by Trinity Industries with those in the marketplace. Using substantive testing, audit the transaction flow and determine whether financial information is accurately reflected in the system transactions. This will allow for an assessment and recommendation as to the effectiveness of the company's internal control processes, including changes in transaction processing if necessary. Compose a short memorandum that communicates the results of the first year of testing along with recommendations as to what Trinity should do differently in subsequent years, including recommendations for reducing SOX-related expenses.

Prompt: Assess the compliance approach implemented by Trinity Industries in order to recommend a cost efficient software system.

Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:

I. Bottom-Up Approach

a) What were the strengths and weaknesses of Trinity's practice-based bottom-up approach? How effective was it?
b) What would you recommend it should have done differently in Year 1? Defend your response.
c) Compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of a bottom-up versus a top-down risk approach to compliance.
d) Which approach is more appropriate in completing a compliance project successfully for Trinity's first year?
e) How does each approach affect a company's internal control structure?
f) Identify the chief insights from the pilot project. How does the pilot project for the EDP system compare to SOX requirements?
g) Identify the testing processes Trinity performed and whether Trinity took the appropriate approach in designing their controls.
h) Based on the substantive tests, which testing process proved to be most useful in assessing Trinity's accounting system?
i) Compose a short memorandum that communicates the results of the first year of testing along with recommendations as to what Trinity should do differently in subsequent years.

II. SOX-Related Expenses

a) Formulate recommendations for how Trinity could further reduce SOX-related expenses in 2008. Be sure to consider the barriers the company may encounter with each of your recommendations.

b) What are the major sources of cost in Trinity's compliance maintenance and testing?

c) Rank each of the major sources of cost in terms of value.

d) Compare the choice of Oracle as the selected software systemagainst two other systems of comparable size and scope. Evaluate each software system's advantages and disadvantages.

e) If you determine that another software system would have been a better choice through your analysis, defend the decision. If Oracle is the choice after analysis, defend that decision.