If you’re like me, you likely don’t have months set aside to pass exams from financial regulatory bodies like the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC). I needed full transparency into the lifecycle of my IT assets to quickly meet the reporting requirements and action plans set by the FFIEC. This included the end-of-life and end-of-support status on the IT hardware and software across my IT estate.
IT asset management (ITAM) professionals know the struggles of audits all too well. Whether internal or external, they’re a resource drain. Most organizations have budget, time or personnel constraints that make dedicating time to regulation seem impossible, but some things—like death and taxes—can’t be avoided.
What does financial regulation look like for IT?
It varies for every industry, but the common theme of regulation is that it’s there to help protect consumer investments and data, establish guidelines and prevent or mitigate risk. Regulation in the financial industry can come from several organizations, but it’s frequently experienced via the FFIEC.
Timeline and process for an FFIEC audit
Let’s face it—no one enjoys being audited. Your organization should expect disruption and will need to balance resources to meet requirements. That being said, with organizations like the FFIEC, it’s a good-faith effort to build your responses in a timely-but-not-immediate manner.
Management will have the opportunity to work with the FFIEC and detail remediation and implementation tasks, set milestones and due dates and follow up with regulators in an efficient and effective framework.
What if I don’t have the tools in place to make updates to my infrastructure/IT estate?
Don’t sweat it—yet. Flexera provides the comprehensive visibility into your IT environment you’ll need to determine how well your technology is equipped to ensure protection and reduce risks. For most organizations, the first item to get a handle of immediately is the lifecycle management of IT assets (end of life and support) as well as the vulnerability and risk assessment of those assets.
Next steps
Getting audited can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Check out our Financial Regulations Overview to learn more about how to navigate financial industry regulation. And if you know you’re likely to head into an audit from a group like the FFIEC, consider a free consultation with one of our Business Value Advisors to ensure you’re on the best path toward audit success.
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