Risk Advisory Services
IT assurance and compliance — SOC examinations, HIPAA, GDPR, AIUC-1, and ISO 27001 — delivered to simplify and expedite your reporting.
Overview
From our Cleveland, Ohio headquarters, Pease Bell's risk advisory specialists help organizations across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., the EU, and Australia understand their controls, prove them through independent examination, and manage the risks that keep management and boards up at night. Whether a customer is asking for a SOC report, a regulator is asking about your controls, or leadership simply wants to know where the exposure sits, we translate frameworks into practical steps your team can act on. We provide independent assurance over your controls, assessing and reporting on them with the discipline of a Top 200 U.S. CPA firm and a boutique touch.
What we deliver
A full range of risk, controls, and assurance work scoped to where your business actually needs it.
SOC 1 & SOC 2 readiness and examinations
Readiness assessments that pinpoint gaps, plus Type 1 and Type 2 SOC 1, SOC 2, and SOC 3 examinations, so you can give customers and auditors independent assurance over your controls.
Internal controls & internal audit
We evaluate and test internal controls over financial reporting and operations against the applicable criteria, and provide co-sourced or outsourced internal audit support for organizations without a full in-house function.
IT & cybersecurity risk
Assessments mapped to recognized frameworks such as ISO 27001 and NIST, covering access, change management, and data protection so technology risk is understood and defensible.
Enterprise risk management
We help leadership and boards identify, rank, and monitor the risks that matter most, building a practical framework that connects risk appetite to day-to-day decisions and reporting.
Process & controls assessment
We map how work actually flows, pinpoint control gaps and redundant steps, and recommend improvements to the processes behind financial close, procurement, and other high-risk operations.
Third-party & vendor risk
Vendor and third-party risk reviews that help you understand exposure across your supply chain and hold critical providers to a clear, consistent standard.
Contact Us
Tell us about your business and a member of our team will be in touch.
When companies come to us
Most engagements start with a specific trigger rather than a general wish to improve. Common ones include:
- ✓A customer demands a SOC report — a prospect or existing client will not sign or renew without SOC 1 or SOC 2 assurance, and you need to get ready fast.
- ✓Growth outpaced your controls — headcount, systems, or acquisitions have moved faster than the controls meant to keep them in check.
- ✓A regulator or board is asking questions — leadership needs a clear, documented answer on how key risks are governed and monitored.
- ✓A new system or vendor changed the risk picture — a cloud migration, ERP change, or critical third party introduced exposure no one has formally assessed.
- ✓Something went wrong — a control failure or near miss has made the cost of not knowing painfully clear.
Why clients choose Pease Bell for risk advisory
Assurance and advisory under one roof
As a Top 200 U.S. CPA firm, we bring the same rigor to your controls that we bring to an audit — assessing, testing, and independently examining them with the independence that makes the result credible.
Plain-English, practical guidance
We translate SOC, ISO 27001, and NIST requirements into steps your team can actually execute, so controls stick after we leave instead of becoming shelfware nobody follows.
Full service, boutique touch
You work directly with experienced professionals who know your name and your business. We serve clients across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., the EU, and Australia while keeping the responsiveness of a boutique firm.
How we work
A straightforward path from understanding your risk to giving stakeholders lasting assurance.
Assess & scope
We learn your business, systems, and stakeholders, then define what needs to be covered, which framework fits, and where the real control gaps and risks sit today.
Identify gaps & report
We test your controls against the applicable framework and give you a clear, prioritized report of the design and operating gaps we find, so you can remediate with confidence ahead of the examination.
Examine & report
We perform the SOC examination, internal audit, or risk review, deliver a clear report, and stay available so the next cycle is smoother than the last.
Risk Advisory Team
Risk advisory insights
Practical reads on SOC reporting, risk assessment, and controls from our team.
- SOC basics
SOC 1 vs SOC 2: which report do you actually need?Explains the difference and helps buyers scope the right examination.
- Risk assessment
SAS 145 risk assessment: first-year lessonsHow updated risk assessment standards affect controls and documentation.
- Quality frameworks
QC 1000 vs SQMS No. 1 explainedPCAOB versus AICPA quality management approaches to risk.
- Benefit plan controls
SAS 136 reportable findings and sponsor dutiesControl and reporting expectations for plan sponsors.
- Technology & risk
How AI is transforming auditWhere automation and analytics change control testing and assurance.
Risk advisory FAQs
What is the difference between SOC 1 and SOC 2?
SOC 1 reports on controls that affect your customers' financial reporting, while SOC 2 reports on controls tied to security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. If clients rely on your service for numbers that flow into their financials, you likely need SOC 1; if they are concerned about how you protect their data and systems, SOC 2 is usually the right report. Many organizations end up needing both.
What is a SOC readiness assessment?
A SOC readiness assessment is a dry run before the formal examination. We review your controls against the SOC criteria, identify gaps, and give you a clear, prioritized list of what to address before fieldwork begins. It shortens the path to a clean report, reduces the risk of exceptions, and gives leadership a realistic view of the time and effort involved.
Do we need SOC 1 or SOC 2 Type 1 or Type 2?
Type 1 tests whether controls are designed properly at a single point in time, while Type 2 tests whether they operated effectively over a period, usually six to twelve months. Type 1 is a common starting point for a first report, but most customers eventually ask for Type 2 because it provides assurance that controls worked consistently over time. We help you decide based on what your clients require.
How long does a SOC 2 examination take?
It depends on the report type and how ready your controls are. A SOC 2 Type 1 looks at control design at a point in time and can often be completed within a few weeks once readiness is done. A SOC 2 Type 2 covers a review period — commonly three to twelve months — plus fieldwork and reporting. A readiness assessment up front is the best way to shorten the overall timeline and avoid surprises during the examination.
What frameworks do you work with for IT and cybersecurity risk?
We work with widely recognized frameworks including the SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria, ISO 27001, and NIST. Rather than forcing your business into a single template, we match the framework to what your customers, regulators, and industry expect, then focus on the controls that reduce real exposure across access, change management, and data protection.
Where do you serve clients?
Pease Bell is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio and supports risk advisory clients across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., the EU, and Australia. Engagements are delivered wherever you operate, combining the depth of a Top 200 U.S. CPA firm with the responsiveness of a boutique practice, so location is rarely a barrier to getting the SOC, internal audit, or risk support you need.