Senior Manager, SOX & Internal Controls

WidePoint Corporation•Fairfax, VA

3h•Onsite

About The Position

WidePoint Corporation is seeking a highly motivated Senior Manager, SOX and Internal Controls to lead and coordinate the Company's Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance and internal controls program, including the transition to Section 404(b) compliance. This role will oversee SOX planning, risk assessments, internal control documentation, testing coordination, remediation activities, and audit readiness. The position requires working with cross-functional stakeholders, Internal Audit, external consultants, and independent auditors to maintain an effective internal control environment within a fast-paced, demanding start-up like environment of a micro-cap publicly-traded company.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field.
Eight (8) to twelve (12) years of progressive professional experience in SOX compliance, internal audit, public accounting, internal controls, financial reporting, finance governance, or a related discipline.
Demonstrated experience leading or playing a significant leadership role in a first-year SOX 404 implementation or SOX 404(b) readiness program.
Demonstrated experience coordinating with independent external auditors, Internal Audit, executive management, and cross-functional business stakeholders.
Strong knowledge of the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) Internal Control—Integrated Framework and internal control over financial reporting (ICFR).
Strong working knowledge of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Sections 302 and 404.
Knowledge of Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) auditing standards applicable to integrated audits.
Knowledge of U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) financial reporting requirements.
Strong understanding of financial reporting risks, business process controls, and IT general controls (ITGCs).
Ability to evaluate control design, identify control gaps or deficiencies, and support appropriate remediation activities.
Strong program and project management skills with the ability to plan, coordinate, and manage multiple concurrent SOX workstreams, priorities, dependencies, deliverables, and deadlines.
Ability to coordinate activities across multiple business functions and external stakeholders.
Ability to identify program risks, resolve issues, drive accountability, and escalate matters appropriately.
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to maintain accurate and audit-ready documentation.
Demonstrated ability to provide functional leadership and influence stakeholders without direct authority.
Exceptional written, verbal, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills.
Ability to communicate complex SOX, internal control, and financial reporting matters clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
Ability to build effective working relationships with executive management, process owners, control owners, Internal Audit, consultants, and independent auditors.
Ability to exercise sound professional judgment and appropriately handle confidential and sensitive information.
Strong analytical, critical-thinking, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to assess complex processes, identify risks and control implications, and develop practical recommendations.
Ability to analyze testing results, control deficiencies, and remediation activities to identify issues requiring management attention.
Ability to adapt to changing priorities, requirements, and business conditions while maintaining established deadlines.

Nice To Haves

Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), or comparable professional certification.
Experience with Workiva or similar governance, risk, compliance, audit management, or SOX management platforms.
Previous experience supporting a public company's transition to SOX 404(b) compliance and its first integrated audit.
Experience working with publicly traded companies and public company financial reporting requirements.
Government contracting experience and familiarity with the financial reporting and compliance environment of government contractors.

Responsibilities

Leads and coordinates the Company's Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Section 404(b) implementation and ongoing compliance program.
Develops, maintains, and manages the SOX implementation plan, including milestones, deliverables, dependencies, responsibilities, and deadlines.
Coordinates SOX activities across Finance, Accounting, Information Technology (IT), Human Resources, Legal, Operations, Internal Audit, external consultants, and independent auditors.
Monitors program status, identifies risks and potential delays, facilitates issue resolution, and escalates matters requiring management attention.
Promotes accountability for the timely completion of SOX-related responsibilities and deliverables.
Supports management in maintaining an effective internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) framework based on the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) framework.
Coordinates annual SOX scoping and risk assessment activities.
Evaluates significant accounts, disclosures, financial reporting risks, business processes, systems, applications, and locations to determine SOX applicability.
Coordinates the identification and assessment of key business process controls and IT general controls (ITGCs).
Assesses changes to business operations, systems, processes, personnel, and organizational structure for potential impacts to SOX scope and the internal control environment.
Coordinates and oversees the development and maintenance of SOX documentation, including process narratives, flowcharts, process maps, risk assessments, key control documentation, ITGCs, and business process controls.
Maintains the Company's SOX risk and control matrices (RACMs) to accurately reflect identified risks, controls, control owners, control frequency, and other applicable control attributes.
Establishes and communicates documentation standards for SOX-related processes and controls.
Ensures SOX documentation remains accurate, complete, current, consistent, and audit-ready.
Coordinates updates to documentation resulting from changes to processes, systems, risks, controls, or organizational responsibilities.
Coordinates the evaluation of the design and implementation of internal controls and assists in identifying potential control gaps and deficiencies.
Coordinates management responses to identified control deficiencies and audit findings.
Works with process and control owners to develop appropriate corrective action and remediation plans.
Tracks identified deficiencies, responsible owners, remediation activities, target completion dates, and status through resolution.
Monitors remediation activities and escalates overdue or high-risk matters to appropriate management.
Coordinates validation and retesting of remediated controls prior to completion of applicable audit activities.
Coordinates SOX walkthroughs and internal control testing activities performed by Internal Audit, external consultants, and independent auditors.
Develops and coordinates testing schedules with applicable stakeholders.
Facilitates walkthroughs with process and control owners.
Coordinates the timely collection, review, and submission of supporting documentation and control evidence.
Monitors testing progress and results and facilitates resolution of testing questions, exceptions, and documentation issues.
Tracks identified deficiencies through remediation and retesting.
Maintains visibility into overall SOX testing status and readiness.
Serves as the primary management liaison with the Company's independent registered public accounting firm for SOX and internal control matters.
Coordinates external auditor walkthroughs, control testing, and related meetings.
Manages SOX-related Prepared by Client (PBC) requests and monitors timely completion.
Coordinates management responses to auditor questions, observations, and identified deficiencies.
Provides updates regarding remediation activities and significant control changes.
Coordinates periodic SOX status and readiness meetings with management and independent auditors.
Facilitates communication among management, Internal Audit, external consultants, process owners, control owners, and independent auditors to support an efficient integrated audit process.
Develops and maintains SOX program dashboards, status reports, readiness assessments, and other management reporting.
Reports on program status, testing progress and results, identified deficiencies, remediation activities, key risks, significant control changes, and matters requiring management attention.
Provides periodic SOX and internal control reporting to the CFO, Controller, Disclosure Committee, executive management, and Audit Committee, as appropriate.
Supports management's quarterly and annual SOX certification and assessment activities, including requirements associated with Sections 302 and 404.
Maintains appropriate records supporting management's assessment of internal control over financial reporting.
Identifies opportunities to strengthen the internal control environment and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of SOX compliance activities.
Evaluates opportunities to automate controls and reduce reliance on manual processes.
Recommends improvements to documentation, evidence retention, control execution, monitoring, and governance practices.
Promotes standardization and consistency of internal controls and documentation across applicable business functions.
Supports the implementation and effective use of Workiva and other governance, risk, compliance, audit management, or SOX management technologies.
Develops and coordinates SOX and internal controls awareness training for process owners, control owners, management, and other applicable personnel.
Provides guidance regarding control execution, documentation standards, supporting evidence, remediation requirements, and audit readiness.
Communicates applicable SOX requirements, internal control responsibilities, and documentation expectations.
Promotes accountability and consistent execution of internal control responsibilities throughout the organization.
Performs other duties as assigned.