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Southwest Airlines Uses Automation to Accelerate and Ensure SOX Compliance
Southwest Airlines implemented automation to enhance Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance within their SAP systems, significantly reducing the time required for testing and auditing processes. The Center of Excellence (COE) focuses on automating end-to-end business processes while facing challenges such as resource allocation and manual testing requirements. By committing dedicated resources and collaborating with audit teams, Southwest aims to streamline SOX compliance and improve operational efficiency.
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Southwest Airlines Uses Automation to Accelerate and Ensure SOX Compliance
- 1. Using Automation to Accelerateand Ensure SOX Compliance Southwest Airlines ERP Center of Excellence February 2015
- 2. Proprietary Page 2 Founded 1971 –Headquarters: Dallas, Texas – 46,000 Employees Ranked America’s #1 Best Run Company for 2014 – 2014 Revenue: $18.4 billion – 1-year share price change: 118.8% Nation's largest carrier for originating domestic passengers – 100 million customers annually – 3,600 flights a day International service launched June 2014 – Bahamas, Jamaica, Aruba – Mexico in 2015! About Southwest Airlines
- 3. Proprietary Page 3 SAP Footprint FICO –AccountsPayable –Accounts Receivable –Fixed Assets –General Ledger & Consolidation –Projects –Purchasing –Treasury & Cash Management –Currency Exchange HCM –Payroll –Benefits –Personnel Administration –Employee Self-Service Portal –Manager Self-Service Portal SIRAX –Custom passenger revenue management system
- 4. Proprietary Page 4 Monthly Transports –Initiatedby business –Enhancements, corrections Semi-annual Service Packs –Initiated by SAP –Annual updates for taxes, etc. Enhancement Packs –As needed –EnhP4 and 6 since inception Special Projects –Foreign currency Change Cycle
- 5. Proprietary Page 5 SAP implementedin 2010 –Wyatt ERP project Center of Excellence established –Embedded in business, not technology –Team of expert business analysts –Configure and test business processes –Responsible for user support, training Worksoft Certify® implemented in 2011 –Training delivered to CoE –Initial processes developed –Automated Service and Enhancement Packs Background
- 6. Proprietary Page 6 Benefits andChallenges Benefits: Successfully automated end-to-end business processes –Converted two week test into 30 minutes –Automated interface verification –Captured extensive library of transactions Challenges: CoE team members not dedicated to automation –Competing duties for configuration, manual testing, training and support –Too much elapsed time between testing cycles –Need for skills refresh due to lack of continuity of effort
- 7. Proprietary Page 7 Sarbanes-Oxley requiresaudit of internal controls –Time-consuming, manual task SAP has 45 automated controls –50 different documents require review 40+ hour manual process every quarter –Navigate to hundreds of screens –Capture related documents –Paste into Word document –Circulate for review, approval Opportunity
- 8. Proprietary Page 8 SIRAX hasmany revenue controls –Each control includes one or more scenarios –Each scenario has 20+ different screens Two week manual process every month –Navigate to hundreds of screens –Capture related documents and postings –Paste into Excel document –Verify against checklist –Verify all posting entries Opportunity (cont’d)
- 9. Proprietary Page 9 Commit dedicatedresources to automation –Two (2) full-time on Worksoft Certify –Automation skills, experience –Collaborate with CoE to prioritize and automate Target high risk/return areas –HCM portals –Expanded end to end –Expanded interfaces –SAP SOX –SIRAX SOX Approach
- 10. Proprietary Page 10 Processes mustrun in production –High security –Initial resistance to automated access Collaborated with audit and governance team –Defined process to request special credentials –Issued for automated execution only –Released at end of execution Negotiated acceptance of automated results –PDF format seen as secure –Automation viewed as objective Special Considerations for SAP SOX
- 11. Proprietary Page 11 SOX resultscaptured in Excel –Screen shots –G/L Account postings –Sequence varies by ticket type –Used by Finance to verify revenue accounting Environment comparison captured in text –Critical ticket data captured from screen –Process executed in two environments – one before, one after change –Results compared using File Compare –Used to detect differences introduced by upgrades, transports Special Considerations for SIRAX
- 12. Proprietary Page 12 Weekly regressionagainst QA environment –Executes overnight –Scheduled in Task Manager Automated result notification –Email sent to CoE distribution group –Subject has pass or fail status by area –Link to PDF results Benefit: Greater confidence that compliance processes are functioning as needed at all times “Lights-Out” Execution
- 13. Proprietary Page 13 Increased velocity,coverage with automation –Across end-to-end business processes, HCM portals, Interfaces, SAP/SOX automation, SIRAX automation –Test effort reduced from weeks or days to hours Repeatable weekly regression cycle –Greater efficiency: 100s+ hours of manual testing eliminated –Higher quality: Exposed defects from monthly transports Special projects –Clean-up of environments for BW –Testing multi-user changes Results
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