There is no end to what we as individuals can effectively achieve, but when push comes to shove, there still remains an awful little that we do better than growing on a consistent basis. This stone-hard commitment towards getting better, no matter the situation, has already enabled the world to touch on some huge milestones along the way, with technology appearing as a rather unique member of the group. The reason why technology’s credentials are so anomalous is purposed around its skill-set, which was unprecedented enough to realize all the possibilities for us that we couldn’t have imagined otherwise. Nevertheless, a closer look should be able to reveal how the whole runner was also very much inspired by the way we applied those skills across a real world environment. The latter component was, in fact, what gave the creation a spectrum-wide presence and made it the ultimate centerpiece of every horizon. Now, having such a powerful tool run the show did expand our experience in many different directions, but even after reaching so far ahead, this prodigious concept called technology will somehow keep on delivering the right goods. The same has grown to become a lot more evident in recent times, and assuming one new GRC-themed development pans out just like we envision, it will only propel that trend towards greater heights over the near future and beyond.
Onspring GovCloud, a cloud-based GRC software platform with FedRAMP In Process designation, has officially announced the launch of a brand-new OMB A-123 Risk & Controls Management product, which is designed to help federal agencies meet the stringent requirements outlined in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-123. According to certain reports, the stated product is our first ever cloud-based software that offers OMB content in ready-made workflows, and dispatches reports that directly integrate with POA&M processes. By doing so, it enables you to put-together a structured, integrated, and automated approach to manage risk and stay compliant, while simultaneously saving measurable time and effort. Another detail worth a mention is how you can avail the given value proposition without investing any IT or DevOps resources. Talk about this value proposition on a slightly deeper level, it includes, for starters, risk profile identification and evaluation capabilities that describe your organization’s overall risk profile, establish clear-cut risk objectives, and conduct what are essentially continuous risk identification and assessments. Apart from it, these capabilities apply comprehensive data to generate reports and communications geared towards informing key stakeholders. Next up, we have the prospect of internal control management. Here, you can expect a full set of internal controls, aligning with standard internal control components and principles outlined by the GAO (Government Accountability Office) Green Book. Like in the previous feature, this management framework further paves the way for internal control assessments and formal reporting of results, including the classification and evaluation of Internal Controls Over Reporting (ICOR) as outlined in OMB Circular A-123 Appendix A. Moving to the product’s integration with POA&M process, it bears the prime responsibility of letting federal agencies identify and classify deficiencies, establish corrective action plans, and report details, such as issue severity, ownership, and status, in real-time. Onspring GovCloud’s latest brainchild also comes decked up with one dedicated stakeholder management functionality where you have the option to assign Risk and Control Program Oversight responsibilities in conjunction with the Circular. Meant to be done through a centralized and real-time data platform, this offering is available for the Senior Management Council (SMC), Senior Assessment Team (SAT), and Risk Management Council (RMC). Rounding up the highlights is a mix of specialized control components, attributes, and principles, which will basically address a longstanding need for capturing and relating these ingredients. But what drives a need of this sort in the first place? Well, such a mix can go a long way when the agenda is to explicitly define and document internal controls so to conceive a robust and comprehensive approach to risk management on an organizational level. Among other supporting details, we can dig into a fact that the software captures and categorizes controls based on type, including Controls Over Reporting, Fraud, Privacy, Security, and External Service Provider.
“Federal agencies still relying on manual spreadsheets, email silos, or legacy software to manage risk, internal controls, and POA&Ms can now take advantage of the best-in-class automation tried and tested in the private sector,” said Brett Sommers, Director of Product at Onspring. “Our OMB A-123 Risk & Controls software represents a significant leap forward in enabling federal agencies to meet the evolving demands of enterprise risk management and control compliance. We remain committed to delivering innovative solutions that drive efficiency, transparency, and compliance to the federal market.”
Although pretty significant in what it has on the offer, the new solution is only the third cloud-based software product released by Onspring GovCloud, during 2023, in a FedRAMP environment to address federal agencies’ current and future risk management requirements. The previous two included a stand-alone POA&M Management product and a comprehensive Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) suite specifically designed for aiding the case of these agencies.
Founded in 2010, Onspring GovCloud’s rise is rooted in its simple no-code and cloud -based approach to risk reduction and compliance. Betting on automated workflows, notifications, and real-time analytics to help federal agencies, the company is today at a point where it has been named for five years in a row the #1 GRC software. This recognition came in the context of its product features, customer experience, and ROI.