No, and no, but why are you looking for such a cert? I may be able to point you in the right direction as far as an existing cert that would be recognized.
SOX Work Remember that SOX is the legislation requiring the CEOs and CFOs of public companies to certify that their financial statements are correct. As well, CEOs and CFOs are required to certify that their companies' internal controls are operating properly. SOX is largely responsible for driving up the demand for accountants in the U.S. and abroad. Public accounting firms (especially the Big 4) need accountants to help their clients comply with SOX. Public companies also are hiring more internal accountants to do SOX work, as it is an enormous undertaking to document and test all of your processes to ensure they meet the appropriate internal control objectives. To get into SOX work, you need a strong accounting background and a very good understanding of IT. SOX work can be thought as being primarily an internal audit function. This can be accomplished through the following designations: Certified Public Accountant (CPA) or Certified Management Accountant (CMA) - To work in public accounting, CPA is the preferred designation, although the CMA can help as well. This will give you an excellent base for accounting knowledge. http://www.aicpa.org/somethingbig/index.htm http://www.imanet.org/certification.asp Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) - This is the main designation for internal auditors, which mainly focuses on designing, documenting and testing internal controls (the core of SOX work). http://www.theiia.org/index.cfm?doc_id=3&bhcp=1 Certified Information System Auditor (CISA) - As IT is such a large part of accounting systems, it is also important as part of SOX work to test IT controls. This designation focuses on IT controls and IT security. http://www.isaca.org/Template.cfm?Section=CISA_Certification&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=16&ContentID=4526 Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) - While this is not directly related to SOX work, it is also good to have forensic accounting training and experience. As SOX is primarily designed to fight fraudulent financial reporting and other forms of fraud, a good knowledge of how to fight fraud can't hurt. http://www.acfe.com/Membership/become.asp As a final note, I must say that accounting is one of the hottest fields to get into, not only for the present but also for the future. I am a Chartered Accountant in Canada who works for a Big 4 firm and I can honestly say that the sky is the limit when it comes to accounting careers! Michael Weedon, CA
Many thanks for the replies and for the details Michael! I was looking for a recognizable certificate (or online seminar, etc.) on SOX - something that I could refer to during an interview as evidence of my broad understanding of the legislation. I have a finance and accounting background, but no formal training in SOX. It seems to be a highly sought after skill right now! I've found www.soxinstitute.org, but thought there may be a better (or less expensive) alternative out there. Thanks again for any input.
"Less expensive alternative:" Write an article on some aspect of SOX. There are many trade publications and professional journals that will publish such an article.
