Data Governance and Microsoft Dynamics

If you are a stakeholder in your accounting department or IT administration, you have likely heard the term “data governance” tossed around in high-level meetings or business literature. Recently, firms have found data governance at the center of compliance and cyber security, with data being the primary enabler of business. How does data governance apply to Microsoft Dynamics ERP, and CRM and why does it matter to you?

Satisfies Regulatory Requirements

Depending on your industry and the size of your firm, you could be audited by any one of dozens of government agencies. For example, a public manufacturer of pharmaceuticals could be audited by FDA, IRS, OSHA, SEC, EEOC, and more. In each scenario, an auditor would likely want to know how solid your internal control enforcement is, and data request is a common part of audit procedure to determine to what extent your controls work, in daily practice.  Any audit-ready data governance program should include five aspects:

• Documented business processes
• Documented internal controls
• Employee training and awareness
• Corrective action plans
• Risk mitigation steps

Don’t let auditors make a name for themselves with your shaky data governance program!

Hits the “Bottom Line”

Going back to the documented business processes and internal controls, we know that for firms on Microsoft Dynamics AX, the ERP system has been, for many firms, the accounting system of record, and the MES, Trade & Logistics, CRM, and Project Management system second. Because of this, perhaps a lot of the focus of segregation of duties efforts have been posting functions that have direct impact on the Income statement and the Balance Sheet. You should also consider taking (and documenting) measures to control access to these other critical business functions. For example, you would not want an employee to edit their own wages & labor rates, report flawed product that never passed Quality Assurance as finished, or run an inventory cycle count and approve the results. These functions should also be considered for segregation of duty controls, as they also impact the financial statements, even if indirectly.

Even if you do not split these business processes among your teams, which may very well be the case for smaller firms, it is a good idea to create internal controls around these processes and enforce them in your ERP system, and monitor enduring compliance with tools that monitor user access and data creation, edit, and deletion.

To gain control over your Microsoft ERP and CRM systems, and work closely with experts to achieve continuing data governance, contact us at Arbela Tech. Our Arbela Audit and Security Manager tool is designed to allow your firm to manage security and control data access while providing data and access insights.

By Cody Bess, Functional Consultant for Arbela Technologies

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