Participants will learn how to implement practical, risk-based internal controls in small and mid-sized organizations by combining COSO/ERM, COBIT/IT governance, and hands-on cycle work for Order-to-Cash (O2C) and Purchase-to-Pay (P2P). Participants will translate emerging trends (cloud, cybersecurity, automation) into concrete governance conditions, process designs, and control recommendations that fit SME realities.

• Finance leaders, controllers, and risk/governance professionals in SMEs who need a pragmatic playbook for implementing internal controls. 
• Practitioners seeking structured cycle-based methods (O2C, P2P) to design, document, and assess controls.  

By the end of this course, participants should be able to: 

• Explain how emerging trends (e.g., Enterprise 4.0, RPA, cloud, cybersecurity) affect internal controls in the SME context. 
• Define governance and leadership conditions for successful control implementation, including roles across the three lines of defense. 
• Use COSO/ERM and COBIT concepts to frame risks and select proportionate control activities for core finance processes. 
• Analyze O2C and P2P cycles to draft control objectives, design controls, and assess control effectiveness. 
• Build an implementation plan that simplifies processes, applies LEAN ideas, and aligns controls with risk tolerance and stakeholder responsibilities.  

Topics include: 

• Introduction: today’s control environment for SMEs; “trust but verify” principles and control objectives. 
• Emerging trends and issues: Enterprise 4.0, blockchain touches, RPA, cloud computing, cybersecurity, and automated controls; workshop on new control areas. 
• Frameworks overview: COSO (IC & ERM), COBIT for IT controls; linking frameworks to SME process realities (with workshop). 
• Case 1 – O2C: four-step control design approach; case set-up and application. 
• Governance & leadership: CFO governance challenges; ICFR structure; responsibilities across management and other key stakeholders; clarifying the three lines of defense. 
• Case 2 – P2P: identifying weaknesses (three methods), case set-up and application. 
• Implementation conditions: success factors for SMEs, applying LEAN to add value and simplify, keys to success for the CFO; wrap-up and action steps.  

Course Content Created: October 2022

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About This Product

On-Demand Courses by CPA PRO are either video recordings from live seminars, or video recordings produced specifically for the on-demand audience. Where available, accompanying materials such as handouts or course notes are included.On-demand courses are eligible for verifiable CPD hours upon successful completion, and a certificate will be made available for download for your records.

Note that some courses comprise both formal instruction and self-directed exercises. In such cases, participants must complete both components to claim full CPD hours, or must reduce their reported CPD hours accordingly.

Please note that not all on-demand courses include downloadable materials such as course notes or slides.

How to get started

After completing your purchase, go to mylms.bccpa.ca. Log in using your CPABC Online Services credentials. Click Go to Your Courses and Materials to access your Learning Center. Select your course title to begin.