Study finds federal agencies recognize value in governance, risk, and compliance programs as a way to reduce compliance costs and improve processes while advancing mission.

Washington, D.C. – October 25, 2010
MorganFranklin Corporation, a business and technology solutions provider to government and business leaders on high-stakes financial, operations, and IT issues, announced the findings of an informative new research study assessing the state of governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) efforts in the federal government. Conducted by the Association of Government Accountants (AGA), “The Maturity of GRC in the Public Sector: Where Are We Today? Where Are We Going?” was sponsored by MorganFranklin as part of the AGA’s Corporate Partner Advisory Group (CPAG) Research Series. The study reveals that a number of challenges and obstacles are preventing widespread adoption of GRC in federal agencies.

The report is the product of interviews with federal stakeholders, as well as survey responses from AGA members and federal CFOs, CIOs, and risk officers. Researchers found that the primary challenge agencies face is a lack of agreement on the meaning of the term GRC and the purpose of GRC programs. The respondents provided a wide variety of definitions for GRC, and as a result, 70% indicated that they faced challenges obtaining “buy-in” from senior management.

“While there are many complex issues to address regarding federal agencies’ GRC efforts, more than 94% of respondents indicated support for and willingness to do more with GRC efforts,” said Bill Hughes, managing director of MorganFranklin’s Federal Advisory Services practice. “The survey results indicate that federal agencies recognize GRC as a means to improve business processes, eliminate duplication, and reduce the cost of compliance while advancing their overall missions in an era of shrinking budgets.”

The report also indicates that there is much work to be done with respect to GRC efforts in the federal government. Some key findings include the following:

  • Agencies believe that GRC can have a real impact on their performance, with 63% of respondents agreeing that investing in GRC can drive accountability and performance.
  • At the time of the survey, the majority of agencies had not implemented GRC models. In fact, 81% of respondents noted that their organizations had yet to develop unified, integrated approaches to GRC.
  • Agencies that had already begun developing GRC programs realized benefits in other areas of compliance, with several using GRC to address American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) transparency requirements and comply with Open Government initiatives.

“MorganFranklin strongly supports the recommendations in the report, including developing and creating a fully integrated GRC approach,” Hughes said. “This exciting research comes at a pivotal moment as federal agencies navigate dynamic challenges while continually being asked to do more with less. In order to fully leverage all of the benefits of a GRC initiative, the federal community must collectively demonstrate strong leadership in this area and gain consensus and collaboration to unlock the organizational and operational value that can be achieved through GRC programs and initiatives.”

About MorganFranklin Consulting

MorganFranklin Consulting (www.morganfranklin.com) is a global management and technology consulting firm that works with leading businesses and government.  The firm helps organizations solve their most pressing challenges and address critical finance, technology, and business objectives. MorganFranklin is headquartered in the Washington D.C. area with regional offices in Atlanta and San Francisco, and supports clients across the globe.

MorganFranklin Consulting is the brand name referring to the global organization of MorganFranklin, Inc. and its subsidiary MorganFranklin Consulting, LLC.

For Media Inquiries:

Andrew Moses
MorganFranklin Consulting
Phone: 703-564-7525
Email: Andrew.Moses@www.morganfranklin.com