Our client in Richardson, Texas is seeking a Director of SOX Compliance who will be responsible for leading the Company’s Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance program and ensuring the effectiveness of internal controls over financial reporting (ICFR). This role partners closely with Finance, Accounting, IT, Internal Audit, external auditors, and business leadership to maintain a strong control environment while enabling operational efficiency and scalability.
The Director will provide strategic oversight of SOX planning, execution, risk assessment, testing, remediation, and reporting, while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and alignment with business changes, systems implementations, and transformation initiatives.
Key Responsibilities
SOX Program Leadership
- Own and lead the end-to-end SOX compliance program, including annual planning, scoping, risk assessment, control design, testing, remediation, and certification.
- Ensure the Company maintains effective internal controls over financial reporting in compliance with SOX and PCAOB standards.
- Serve as the primary point of contact for external auditors related to SOX matters, including walkthroughs, testing coordination, issue resolution, and audit requests.
Risk Assessment & Control Oversight
- Perform and oversee annual financial statement risk assessments and significant account and process scoping.
- Evaluate the design and operating effectiveness of business process controls, entity-level controls, and IT general controls (ITGCs).
- Assess the SOX impact of new systems, process changes, acquisitions, outsourcing initiatives, and automation efforts.
Issue Management & Remediation
- Identify control deficiencies, assess severity, and partner with control owners to develop and track remediation plans.
- Monitor remediation progress and validate resolution through retesting.
- Communicate control issues, trends, and risks to executive leadership in a clear and actionable manner.
Cross-Functional Partnership
- Collaborate with Finance, Accounting, IT, Procurement, HR, and Operations to embed strong controls into business processes.
- Provide guidance and training to control owners on SOX requirements, documentation standards, and control execution.
- Work closely with Internal Audit to align testing approaches, leverage work performed, and avoid duplication of effort.
Governance, Reporting & Continuous Improvement
- Prepare SOX status updates, dashboards, and executive-level reporting for senior management and the Audit Committee as required.
- Drive continuous improvement in SOX processes, documentation quality, and use of technology/tools.
- Maintain SOX policies, procedures, and documentation standards.
Team Leadership
- Lead, mentor, and develop SOX compliance and/or internal controls staff.
- Establish clear goals, performance expectations, and development plans for the team.
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or related field.
- 10+ years of progressive experience in SOX compliance, internal audit, external audit, or internal controls.
- Strong knowledge of SOX, ICFR, COSO framework, and PCAOB standards.
- Experience partnering with external auditors and managing audit relationships.
- Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives.
- Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
Preferred
- CPA, CIA, CISA, or similar professional certification.
- Experience with large ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle, Workday, Intacct) and ITGC environments.
- Prior experience in a multi-location, regulated, or PE-backed environment.
- Experience supporting business transformation, system implementations, or outsourcing initiatives.
Key Competencies
- Strategic thinking with strong execution focus
- Risk-based decision making
- Executive-level communication
- Stakeholder influence and collaboration
- Attention to detail with a practical business mindset