Business process control for the twenty‐first century

Many of the traditional controls that accountants and auditors are most familiar with can be traced to bureaucratic management. This article introduces a business process control model that fully captures the broader array of process controls now being implemented by world‐class organizations, including value‐adding controls focused on quality, cost and time. The article describes the categories of controls included in the model, presents a new way of mapping process controls that reflects the model, and illustrates the use of the model within the context of an actual business process. The article also discusses the primary benefits of adopting the model. First, the model provides a common business process control language and structure which will facilitate communications and foster a uniform understanding of process controls among senior executives, process owners, accountants and auditors. Second, the model provides a framework for comprehensively assessing business process risks and evaluating and improving business process controls.