Do you know what “Delegation of Authority” means?  Does your company have a Delegation of Authority (DOA) policy? 

In this course, you learn the importance of a DOA policy, what it should cover, and how such a policy affects operations across the company, not just Accounts Payable.  Recognize the benefits of documenting the approval limits by job title as well as the steps one should take before approving any document.  Explore the details that should be supplied when approvals are applied, whether by manual signature, email or through a workflow system. Recommendations for formatting this policy and some tips on managing the content and distribution will also be covered.

Just as important and in some ways related, a company should consider a Segregation of Duties (SOD) policy.  For example, should a person who is able to create Purchase Orders also be able to manage the Vendor Master?  Reduce the possibility of risk and protect your employees from the appearance of impropriety.  Additionally, having a SOD policy may reduce the need for dual approvals or the application of the “Four-eye” rule.

Finally, learn how to weigh the pros and cons when creating and applying these policies in order to reduce delays in processing volumes of small dollar amounts or recurring transactions.  Discover what to consider when establishing an acceptable tolerance for price variances, freight billed on invoices, utility costs, etc.

Creating or modifying existing policies can be time consuming but just one small change can save time and reduce risk in the long run.

 

Learning Objectives
  • Identify the responsibilities of an “approver” of any document referring to a monetary value.
  • Explore the steps to be taken to create a Delegation of Authority (DOA) policy and recognize what should be included
  • Discover the advantages of weighing the pros and cons to determine acceptable exceptions within DOA and Segregation of Duties (SOD) policies.
  • Recognize the benefits of communicating policies out to all employees and of making them readily available when needed. 
Last updated/reviewed: August 23, 2023
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63 Reviews (228 ratings)

Reviews

5
Anonymous Author
Great overview of considerations when establishing or reviewing Delegation of Authority as well as Segregation of Duties, for any organizational size. Emphasizes the importance of creating/maintaining related policies, which is critical for establishing and communicating a framework, operating protocol, clear expectations, and addressing policy violations.

5
Member's Profile
Great overview course of the basics of segregation of duties applied to the accounts payable process. The course provides many examples and situations one might occur, including touching base on shops with limited resources and ways the risk can be combatted. Solid course.

5
Member's Profile
Delegation of authority shall ensure appropriate segregation of duties to ensure reduced risk for fraud and/or errors based on an assessment of the risk and cost of implementing risk mitigating measures within the stated risk tolerance from the Executive Board.

4
Anonymous Author
The is a very informative course. The way in which the concepts are presented is helpful and it is easy to understand. The instructor was engaging and was able to keep this interesting. This course could be useful across many levels of an organization.

4
Anonymous Author
Good overview of AP process. I tend to notice those not in accounting do not understand the approval / payment process and just want their vendors paid so that they can receive goods/services. This would be good for all to understand

5
Anonymous Author
A course that is beneficial to all those involved in purchasing, accounting, audit, review, etc. It is extremely helpful for all involved to understand the importance of segregation of duties to mitigate risk to an organization.

5
Member's Profile
This is an excellent refresher course that I would recommend. It is a good suggestion to keep the slide materials for future reference and is also great for recertification of the CPP. I highly recommend this course.

5
Anonymous Author
Thank you, this course was great. I felt like it covered everything necessary and provided me with the tools to pass the exam at the end. Overall I would recommend this to a colleague.

5
Anonymous Author
As a small business controller, we don't have capacity for hiring many people in the accounting department. As such, courses that emphasize segregation of duties are always helpful

3
Anonymous Author
selected this course because it was different from what I am used to.. Found it interesting, but for a small company, not very reasonable, but I see the training's point of view.

4
Anonymous Author
very good overview with practical examples that considers simple and more complicated processing environments. The principles are applicable across companies and environments.

5
Member's Profile
Excellent and concise, easy to understand presentation. She hit on all the important things I have come across in my career. She is well versed in her field of expertise.

4
Anonymous Author
This is a well laid out, informative course. It gives a good overview on delegation of authority and segregation of duties. I work in AP so most of it is not new to me.

4
Member's Profile
This course was extremely informative regarding delegation of authority and segregation of duties and set forth a protocol for how levels of approval should be handled.

5
Anonymous Author
Good information about segragation of duties, it is more than trusting an employee, but protecting the business and the employee with detailed policies.

5
Anonymous Author
The course was well thought out and planned. The instructor also has a soothing, easy to follow voice. The material presented was very relevant.

4
Member's Profile
Good course organization, meaningful use of real-life examples. I have also like the way the chapters were broken down into smaller segments.

5
Member's Profile
The course was very informative and easy to follow. I enjoyed the presentation and would recommend this as a refresher course to my peers.

4
Anonymous Author
Good overview of SOD's and why it's very important to have these policies in place, no matter how big or small the company is.

5
Anonymous Author
Good course and instructor kept it at a good pace. This could apply to other areas besides Accounts Payable, such as Payroll.

4
Member's Profile
Course was useful and the content was explained well. However, I felt the course could have been organized/sequenced better.

5
Anonymous Author
Good overall review of SOD. Its surprising how many companies I audit that do not adhere to basic SOD principles.

5
Anonymous Author
I am not an AP person but found this course very helpful in other of areas of the company for compliance control.

4
Anonymous Author
This course was interesting. I didn't apply to my job very much, but I think it is good information if needed.

5
Member's Profile
Excellent overview regarding the importance of having DOA and SOD policies created, updated, and implemented.

5
Member's Profile
I found this course very informative. I wanted an overview of SOD and DOA, so this was perfect. Thank you.

5
Anonymous Author
Thank you very much, it was a great course, very informative, very informative, great learning experience!

4
Anonymous Author
Although geared towards the AP department, this course was relevant to my area of responsibility. Thanks!

4
Anonymous Author
Overall, very helpful course for learning the early steps. Great overview of the SOD & DOA processes.

4
Anonymous Author
great job going over the material, .pdf is cryptic without more notes as you listen to the lesson.

5
Anonymous Author
Good course and instructor. Detailed overview with good information presented in an efficient way!

5
Anonymous Author
Very informative session and a refresher too. Thank you for taking the time to put this together!

5
Anonymous Author
Thank you for sharing this course. I learned a lot about this topic that I didn’t know before.

5
Anonymous Author
This course was well prepared and well presented with excellent insights and practical examples.

4
Anonymous Author
Very interesting content but the presenters monotonous voice makes it really hard to stay awake.

5
Member's Profile
informative information on the importance of delegation of authority and segregation of duties.

5
Member's Profile
Very informative and helpful to ensure appropriate SOD are established within an organization.

5
Anonymous Author
great course would definitely recommend for you to take it. passed the test on the first try

4
Anonymous Author
The topics covered are well organized and the speaker shared a lot of valuable information.

5
Member's Profile
Presentation brings really good points of why DOA should be established in an organization.

5
Member's Profile
This was an excellent course. It's content is what is applicable to every company. Thanks.

5
Member's Profile
Well done. Both topics were well covered. I would take another course from this presenter.

5
Anonymous Author
Great introduction and suggestions for segregation of duties and delegation of authority.

5
Member's Profile
Good solid information presented clearly and excellent slides and sample documents.

5
Member's Profile
This class gives an overview of delegating of authority and segregation of duties.

4
Anonymous Author
This course was a bit more basic than I thought. However, it was well presented.

4
Anonymous Author
Great course of importance of delegation of authority and segregation of duties.

5
Anonymous Author
I enjoyed learning about the delegation of authority and segregation of duties.

5
Anonymous Author
The information was provided in a clear manner with very informative slides.

4
Anonymous Author
Good course. Important information would definitely recommend. Thank you!

5
Anonymous Author
Very very good course - I recommend to anyone - The content was very helpful

4
Anonymous Author
This was a great review of Delegation of Authority and Segregation of Duties

5
Anonymous Author
I really enjoy this instructor's style and thoroughness. Good course.

4
Member's Profile
This is a great course about delegation of duties! Highly recommend!

5
Anonymous Author
Good course with a bit of humor written in to keep me motivated.

4
Anonymous Author
Good course. The information flow through very understandably.

5
Anonymous Author
Great reminder of the important of segregation of duties!

5
Anonymous Author
very thorough treatment of this topic. helpful scenarios

4
Member's Profile
good content, very useful course and kept my attention.

3
Member's Profile
This class had a lot of information I can use for work.

4
Anonymous Author
Presenter was thorough and course content appropriate.

5
Anonymous Author
Very clear information, informative and very helpful.

4
Member's Profile
This course would be great for AP and AP Managers.

Prerequisites
Course Complexity: Foundational

No Advanced Preparation or Prerequisites are needed for this course. However, it is suggested to take the instructor’s other courses titled "Procure to Pay Work Stream" and "Creating an Accounts Payable Documentation Management Policy" prior to taking this course.

Education Provider Information
Company: Illumeo, Inc., 75 East Santa Clara St., Suite 1215, San Jose, CA 95113
Contact: For more information regarding this course, including complaint and cancellation policies, please contact our offices at (408) 400- 3993 or send an e-mail to .
Instructor for this course
Course Syllabus
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
  Introduction to DOA and SOD1:59
  Delegation of Authority7:34
  Consider All Company Rules5:05
  What to Include in a DOA Policy6:59
  Creating a Policy2:17
  Segregation of Duties5:32
  Utilizing Resources1:16
  Decisions and Actions4:18
  The Importance of DOA and SOD Policies - Conclusion5:56
CONTINUOUS PLAY
  The importance of Delegation of Authority and Segregation of Duties40:01
Supporting Materials
  Slides: The Importance of Delegation of Authority and Segregation of DutiesPDF
  The Importance of Delegation of Authority and Segregation of Duties Glossary/IndexPDF
  Sample of DOAPDF
  Sample of Signature FormPDF
REVIEW AND TEST
  REVIEW QUESTIONSquiz
 FINAL EXAMexam