The Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act of 2002 is one of the most significant financial regulations for publicly traded companies. Created in response to corporate scandals, SOX aims to protect investors by requiring accurate financial reporting and strong internal controls.
Every public company in the U.S. must undergo regular SOX audits. These are detailed examinations that confirm financial statements are correct and controls are working to prevent fraud. Private companies planning IPOs or seeking major financing can also adopt SOX frameworks to strengthen credibility and governance.
But achieving compliance is rarely simple. Many companies struggle with manual, resource-heavy processes that slow down teams and frustrate auditors.
What a SOX audit involves
A SOX audit typically involves:
- Assessing internal controls: Independent auditors evaluate IT general controls (ITGCs), application controls, and entity-level controls like separation of duties (SoD).
- Verifying financial statements: Ensuring statements are accurate and free from material misstatements in line with GAAP.
- Testing compliance: Reviewing policies, documentation, and processes to confirm safeguards are in place and effective.
The process requires detailed documentation, risk assessments, control testing, and reporting. For organizations with complex IT infrastructures, this can take months without automation.
Common challenges in SOX compliance
Companies often run into the same roadblocks when preparing for SOX audits:
- Disparate systems after M&A activity make it difficult to understand who has access to what.
- Manual access reviews slow down teams and introduce errors.
- Evidence collection turns into a time-consuming hunt through spreadsheets, emails, and screenshots.
- Maintaining least privilege and separation of duties (SoD) across fast-changing infrastructures becomes nearly impossible.
Left unaddressed, these issues not only add stress to audit season but also increase organizational risk.
How ConductorOne streamlines SOX compliance
ConductorOne was built to eliminate these bottlenecks. By combining automation, centralized visibility, and auditor-ready reporting, ConductorOne helps companies reduce effort while improving security and compliance outcomes.
Here’s how:
1. Automated evidence collection
Instead of manually gathering screenshots or exporting spreadsheets, ConductorOne automatically collects evidence across systems. Every report is time-stamped, immutable, and ready for auditors at a moment’s notice.
2. Streamlined access reviews
User access reviews, one of the most resource-intensive SOX requirements, become quick and consistent. ConductorOne automates review campaigns across business-critical systems, giving reviewers a clear view of only the data they need.
3. Centralized visibility
Organizations gain a single-pane view into users, roles, and privileges across SaaS, cloud, and on-premise systems. This visibility helps enforce separation of duties and supports faster remediation when issues arise.
4. Continuous monitoring and reporting
ConductorOne keeps you compliant year-round. Real-time dashboards and continuous monitoring let teams spot control deficiencies early, rather than at the last minute.
5. Collaboration made simple
System owners, compliance teams, and external auditors can all work from the same platform. This reduces back-and-forth, accelerates approvals, and ensures alignment throughout the audit process.
Why companies choose ConductorOne
Organizations across industries have turned to ConductorOne to make SOX compliance easier. By integrating quickly with identity providers, cloud platforms, and even homegrown applications, ConductorOne delivers time-to-value in weeks, not months.
Companies report significant reductions in audit prep time, easier collaboration with auditors, and improved security through consistent enforcement of least privilege. With ConductorOne, access reviews and reporting are no longer a quarterly scramble, they’re “set and forget.”
SOX compliance is a must-have for public companies, IPO-bound startups, and organizations that want to build investor trust. But compliance doesn’t need to be a burden.
ConductorOne streamlines SOX audits by automating evidence collection, simplifying user access reviews, centralizing visibility, and providing real-time monitoring. The result is stronger compliance, less manual work, and a smoother audit experience.
Book a demo to see how ConductorOne can help your team streamline SOX compliance with confidence.
