Policy - Segregation of Duties

Section: Human Resource Policies
Policy Owner: Ignition633 Ministries Human Resources
Policy Name: Segregation of Duties Policy
Origination Date: April 2025

Segregation of Duties Policy

Purpose:
The Segregation of Duties Policy establishes guidelines for separating key business functions and responsibilities among different employees. This policy prevents any single person from having complete control over critical business processes and transactions. The policy helps prevent fraud, errors, and conflicts of interest while ensuring effective internal controls.

Scope:
This policy applies to all financial, operational, and administrative functions within 633Donor Solutions. It covers all employees and their assigned duties, particularly those involved in financial transactions, system access, and approval processes. The policy defines which duties must be separated and establishes procedures for maintaining proper segregation of responsibilities.

Policy:
Critical duties must be divided among at least two individuals to ensure no single employee controls all aspects of a transaction or process. Authorization, custody, record keeping, and reconciliation functions must be assigned to separate individuals whenever possible. Position descriptions and task assignments must clearly define job responsibilities to prevent control conflicts. System access rights must align with segregated duties and follow the principle of least privilege.

Control Activities:
Managers must regularly review work assignments to identify and correct potential segregation of duties conflicts. All financial transactions must be subject to multi-level approval with different individuals responsible for initiation and authorization. Key reconciliation processes must be performed by individuals independent of related transaction processing. Documentation of all control activities must be maintained for audit and compliance purposes.

Exception Management:
Exceptions to segregation requirements due to limited staff resources must be documented and approved by executive leadership. When perfect segregation is not feasible, compensating controls must be implemented and documented. Special attention must be given to high-risk areas where temporary exceptions occur during employee absences or turnover. All exceptions must be regularly reviewed to ensure appropriate mitigating controls remain effective.

Compliance and Monitoring:
Internal audit will conduct periodic reviews to ensure compliance with segregation of duties requirements. Violations of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment. All employees must receive training on segregation principles as part of their onboarding and annual compliance education. Management must immediately address any identified segregation conflicts or control weaknesses.

This policy will be reviewed annually and is subject to change. Any changes will be communicated to all employees promptly.
For any questions or further assistance regarding this policy, employees should contact the HR department at hr@ignition633.org.