Akanksha Kumar

• Currently leading the Attestation audit for legal Aid Ontario, for fiscal year 2024-25.
• In-scope areas of testing include Risk Assessment & Reporting (ERM), code of Conduct & Ethics Complaints, Accounting & Oversight of funds for special purpose projects, Accrued Lawyer Billings, Month-end financial close process.
• Took initiative to re-perform a high level risk assessment and scoping of controls for the attestation, to manage audit delivery within agreed timelines. Built out a workbook template for ease of knowledge transfer between team members.
• Independently led process discussions with business contacts, to confirm remediation progress on open issues, understand changes in the process, discuss document requests.

• As the 2nd Line of Defense, leading the Financial Compliance & Internal Controls function for all 6 Canadian legal entities under the parent group, providing Canadian SOX / ICFR guidance and education to all key business functions.
• Managed delivery of the ICFR program through: continuous testing, detailed reviews over 300+ controls across 17 Processes including Business Controls, IT General Controls (ITGCS), SOC1 reviews.
• Managed the quarterly CEO/CFO ICFR certification process over all entities, refreshing process and control documentations to align with SOX and ICFR requirements. Led the Design, Implementation of Internal Controls in RCM, conducting Process Walkthrough meetings, creating Process Narratives and Process Flowcharts in line with ICFR requirements.
• Drafted the ICFR Framework and SOX readiness cheat-sheets, Account reconciliations, Journal Entries, Subsidiary Governance policies.
• Maintained oversight on the Account Reconciliation tool, Cadency. Monitoring the data integrations from ERP and user access reviews.
• Streamlined User Access Reviews across all financial statement impacting systems, resulting in cost savings of $200k from reduction in user licenses and contract renegotiation.
• Assisted the new Legal Entity SCS (Information Security group) with building out ITGCs across financial systems.
• Provided quarterly reporting to VP and SVP, Financial Reporting on ICFR matters. Continuously tracking deficiencies, providing guidance to management on sustainable remediation plans, ensuring timely closure of issues prior to Year-End reporting to Audit Committee.
• Collaborated with Internal Audit on ad-hoc initiatives, conducting operational audits and fraud audits for critical risk areas.
• Collaborated with the External Auditors (Deloitte) on annual Financial Statement audits, aligning on reliance controls. Liaising with multiple business functions to ensure timely and accurate submission of PBCs (document requests) to the auditors, query resolution and monitoring workflow on Deloitte Connect.
• Provided SME guidance on Financial Compliance, ITACS, ITGCS during the implementation of Workday Enterprise Management Cloud platform for Payroll function.

Worked on multiple client projects during my tenure, most remarkable and long term project was:

Canada Pension Plan (CPP) | Assets-$540 Billion

• As the 3rd Line of Defense, I was the Engagement Manager, leading a co-sourced team of 12+ consultants/seniors on the annual voluntary CEO/CFRO certification by the Canadian Crown Corporation (CPP).
• Assisted with Planning, Scoping, Process Walkthrough, Detailed Review over testing of 300+ Internal Controls across business processes, ELC, ITAC, UDA, GITCS, deficiency assessment and reporting to Senior Management, remediation testing, support with year-end reporting to Audit Committee.
• Actively collaborated and aligned with the External Auditor on reliance areas, to support the first year of their integrated audit opinion.
• Completed monthly and quarterly reporting on progress/observations to the senior stakeholders/Managing Directors; providing additional value adding services such as a SOX health check on the current state of their ICFR program.
• Also provided oversight on the implementation of an Enterprise GRC solution (ServiceNow) to support delivery of the client's Internal Controls Certification and Enterprise Risk Management (ERM). Worked closely with the C-suite to align on product strategy and roadmap to successfully support their audit & assurance activities; Conducted discovery and demo sessions of the tool across business functional groups to define product specification and KPIs; Conducted UAT sessions with the relevant end-users, and supported with articulating feedback on test scripts to developers for execution

Worked on multiple client projects during my tenure, most remarkable and long term projects were:

The Body Shop (São Paulo, Brazil ) | Rev-$10.9 Billion

• Based on-site at client HQ in London, UK. Delivered on SOX implementation of a recently acquired subsidiary.
• Led the end-to-end SOX Compliance review of Payroll process for Canada, US and Australia. Leading process walkthrough with VPs, developing risk and control matrix (RCM), Process Flowcharts, Test of Design & Implementation, communicating and tracking of deficiencies, agreeing on remediation plans.
• Assisted with ITGC, IT automated and User Access controls' assessment and testing in addition to business controls review.

Flowserve (Texas, USA) I Rev-$4.8 Billion

• Led multiple co-source SOX and Internal Audit reviews on client site at 15 global locations, resulting in expansion of EY team from 3 to 10 FTEs reporting into me (across North America, Europe, Middle East and APAC).
• Performed end-to-end PMO and reporting directly to the Chief Audit Executive, coordinating with business contacts, process discussions, sample selections, detail reviews, reporting of exceptions and remediation tracking.

AGCO (Coventry, UK) | Rev-$9.3 Billion

• Led on-site Internal Audit (team of 3 FTEs) for Order to Cash on the client's highest selling product line covering 5 brands, with full ownership of audit life cycle and reporting to the VP Global Internal Audit.
• Engaged with senior stakeholder (VP Global internal Audit, Regional Financial Controller and others to deliver on agreed timelines.

Manchester United Football Club (Manchester, UK) | Rev-$0.8 Billion

• Part of the core team for 2 years, for on-site SOX compliance to test Design and Operating effectiveness of control environment and Remediation testing of deficiencies. Responsible for detailed process interviews, coordinating with the SOX Compliance Manager, assisting External Auditors with areas of reliance

BMW OEM (Munich, Germany) Rev-€97.4 Billion

• Established methodology and led a team of 5 FTEs on Dealership Internal Audit pan-India (57 dealer outlets across 33 cities) over a span of 2 months
• Review involved dealer compliance to brand retail standards and guidelines
• Assisted client in developing framework for a specialized technical tools audit and a compliance guidelines handbook for its sales and aftersales processes