Help, My Organization is Growing! Ensuring Your Internal Organization Grows Organically 

Published by IFS Finance on September 11, 2023

The growth of an organization is exciting, yet it’s critical that the internal structure is equipped to handle this expansion. Taking a moment to assess risks, processes, and administrations is key. Working with IFS Finance to establish an AO/IC (Administrative Organization and Internal Control) handbook ensures that the internal organization grows organically. This blog explains how AO/IC is applied to make financial data transparent.

Management and Control

Optimizing ‘Cost of Control’ for cost savings is crucial for guiding the financial administration correctly and minimizing risks. AO/IC helps oversee and monitor all processes, procedures, instructions, and the distribution of tasks, responsibilities, and authorities. It involves a critical review to ensure operations run smoothly without unnecessary risks.

The AO/IC Roadmap

Drafting an AO/IC may seem daunting, but it can be broken down into clear steps:

  1. Baseline assessment
    Starting with a baseline assessment, the existing setup of the financial administration is reviewed for relevance and efficacy.
  2. Processes
    The current (administrative) processes are then analyzed and described. This includes who does what, how information is recorded, and what controls are in place to ensure data accuracy, completeness, and timeliness.
  3. Risks
    Next, internal and external risks are mapped out to identify minimization strategies.
  4. Control Plan
    A ‘control plan’ consolidates all process descriptions and risk analyses, detailing who performs and documents controls and when.
  5. Handbook
    Finally, everything is compiled into a clear handbook containing the plan, protocols, contracts, and results of internal controls.

Assistance with AO/IC

IFS Finance can establish a well-functioning AO/IC where processes, procedures, and instructions are clearly defined. This ensures that employees know their exact responsibilities, and methods aiming to make processes more efficient and thereby contributing to the organization’s quality and goal achievement.