Paymon Aliabadi , Managing Director of Essent Trading, was justifiably proud of the news and quick to thank the team involved. "We should all be delighted with this news as it relates to a key success factor in our business. We are primarily dependant on our controls framework to ensure consistent, transparent and effective transaction management. Thank you to the Internal Control team, especially award winner Matty Pleumeekers for all their work on our behalf."

The award is given to those companies that have intensively used Computer Assisted Audit Tools (CAATS) to resolve business challenges, outline quantifiable results and improve their control processes. The award shows customers and outsiders that Essent Trading has full control of its business processes and transactions, and that they have a clear roadmap to continue improving in the future. As Matty himself said, "We've worked hard on an innovative audit approach, so it's great to receive acknowledgement by winning an international award."

ACL , based in Vancouver Canada is a global provider of audit analytics and continuous monitoring software to the audit and controls professions and the financial management community. The solutions give organisations confidence in the accuracy and integrity of the transactions underlying increasingly complex business operations and in the effectiveness of internal controls. Entrants were asked to answer a brief questionnaire to describe how they have used ACL technology to resolve business challenges in their company.

Overall Grand Prize winner was: Glen Winn - UPC Ireland; while the different regional winners were: ASIA - Mario Nazareth, Mahindra & Mahindra; EMEA - Matty Pleumeekers, Essent NV; LAC - Reinaldo Cilurzo, BOVESPA; NA - Shane Shultz - Union Bank of California.

(Published 16 April 2008)