CPI Qualified Plan Consultants, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Patent office has granted patent 8,355,964 to CPI’s Auditor’s Toolbox process. The brainchild of former CPI CEO, Robert J. Dema, the Auditor’s Toolbox brings together, online and in one central location, all of the information an auditor needs in order to complete the audit required for qualified plans with more than 100 eligible employees. This information includes, but is not limited to: the applicable SSAE16 audit reports, plan documentation, website data, transaction detail, financial statements, and detailed information on the plan’s loan program (if applicable), payroll remittance, distributions, and testing. The process conforms to the audit standards described in Audits of 401(k) Plans published by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).
CPI President Jon L. Prescott commented, “The yearly plan audit is time consuming and expensive for employers. Before its initial release to our clients, the Auditor’s Toolbox system and process received rigorous testing from both plan sponsors and certified public accountants (CPAs) who regularly perform qualified plan audits. In practice, plan sponsors and their auditors tell us that using the Auditor’s Toolbox cuts the audit time by up to 40%—and everyone remembers that tried-and-true saying: ‘Time is money.’ Seven years ago we were pleased to offer the Auditor’s Toolbox to our clients. Today we are gratified to have the unique nature of the process verified by patent.”