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6 Features to Look for in a Findings Management Solution

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2 min read
May 6, 2021

Every financial institution has findings from exams and audits that need to be dealt with. The big question is: How do you ensure they are all effectively remediated? 

The answer is adopting a findings management solution to track, assign, and remediate findings. A good findings management solution can guide you through the findings process to ensure nothing is forgotten and overlooked—reducing the risk that an unresolved finding will worsen regulatory issues. 

Be on the lookout for these six key features: 

1. Easy to get started and use. A lot of financial institutions adopt findings management software when the collection of spreadsheets, emails, and other documents they’ve been using to manually track findings becomes unwieldy. 

When looking for a findings management solution, look for a solution that keeps the onboarding process simple by letting you import findings from Excel and easily set up and convert existing findings while providing unlimited training and support.  

2. Organized, accessible information. Whether a finding comes from internal, external, or regulatory audits, it’s important to have all the information you need in one centralized, secure location that’s available anywhere and anytime you need it. An effective, streamlined findings management solution requires organization and unlimited storage  

3. Creates transparency and accountability. What needs to be done? Who needs to do it? By when? A good findings management solution gives you the tool to answer all these questions at a glance. It lets you assign tasks to each finding, assign those tasks to staff members, and monitor the work being done. Automated reminders and notifications help keep the remediation process moving.  

4. Real-time reporting. How far along is a finding in the remediation process? What are the most significant findings that aren’t yet fully remediated? How many findings were remediated this year?   

A good findings management solution offers custom reporting that lets you answer key questions in real-time—whether it’s for the board or in preparation for an exam. 

5. Promotes exam readiness. When examiners come in, you want to be able to show them everything you did to mitigate previous findings. Make sure the findings management solution you choose has an audit trail that tracks all changes. You can’t just promise the board or examiners a finding was resolved. You need the documentation to prove it. 

6. Integrates with audit. Most findings originate from audits, quality assurance, and other internal reviews. Avoid duplicating work and risking forgetting to enter a finding by seeking out a findings management solution that integrates with your audit solution. Findings management is simpler and more efficient when audit and findings management can easily share data. 

Don’t get tripped up by an unresolved finding. If your institution is struggling under manual findings management, it’s worth the time to find out if automated findings management could help. 


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