The Examiner – Insights on Fighting Financial Fraud

We frequently give and receive feedback. You can thrive from feedback if you are willing to receive it, accept it, and make changes. We all enjoy receiving positive feedback, but constructive (e.g., negative) feedback is tough to receive. However, it has provided the biggest impact on my career growth. As I get older, I become more self-aware of my actions, and self-assessments are a great way for me to be proactive about feedback.

My two daughters started school earlier this week. We took the obligatory first-day-of-school pictures of them in their uniforms with their book sacks. Not until we looked at the pictures from last year did we realize how fast they are growing up. As parents, it is difficult to actually see this transformation because we see them every day without realizing how much they are changing. It’s also difficult because we want them to remain our babies for as long as possible. But, we also know that we have to give them more freedom and responsibilities to allow them to grow and learn.

As parents, my wife and I teach our children many things. Our goal is to provide them with the tools they will need to become successful adults. The interesting part is that our definition for success is fairly abstract. We want them to pursue something that feeds their passion and makes them happy. We also want them to never give up during their journey.

Last week I had the opportunity to fail. My heart was broken. I was devastated. I believe the reason that it knocked me down so hard was because I wasn’t expecting it. I have failed many times and have learned valuable life lessons through my failures. My most recent failure reminded me that failure is always an option no matter how certain you are of victory. It was a humbling experience that I will not forget anytime soon.

Part 3 of 3 in the Protecting Your Castle series.

Engagement is the last, but certainly not the least, of the three areas that are required to maintain a strong internal control structure—the others being building strong internal controls and training employees. An organization may have the best internal controls, but because the controls rely on individuals to be implemented, this creates an unavoidable weakness. Employees may intentionally bypass the controls or simply make a mistake. In last week’s blog related to training, I discussed how giving your employees a sense of purpose is critical to keeping them engaged. Engagement is the final step to enhancing your control environment.

Part 2 of 3 in the Protecting Your Castle series.

It is foolish to ignore training. No leader wants an untrained army protecting their castle. After reading this blog, take a few minutes to consider whether your employees truly understand the importance of internal controls. Have they been properly trained?

Part 1 of 3 in the Protecting Your Castle series

A castle’s treasure is worth protecting. The lives, resources, and gold are critical to sustaining the kingdom’s long-term viability. But, are the castle walls strong enough to hold off an enemy attack? Strong walls are a critical component to protecting a castle, just as proper internal controls play a huge role in protecting an organization’s information, data, and profits—its assets. An organization’s leaders must build strong internal controls as a safeguard.

Hundreds of years ago, wealthy landowners built castles to protect their families, friends, animals, and treasures. These castles had stone walls to keep invaders out, and soldiers would help to protect the walls and castle. Some castles had large moats with draw bridges and others had natural land barriers like cliffs or rivers. Whenever there was a threat, the people would lock down the castle.

My last two days at the conference were jam packed with learning and forging new relationships. I even attended a Baltimore Orioles game. The Orioles were playing the Philadelphia Phillies and my seat was in the upper deck, but well worth the $10. When I arrived at the game, I hoped to watch the home team win—nothing more, nothing less. I never thought for a second that I would be part of the historic, record-breaking night at Oriole Park at Camden Yard. 

Late Sunday night, I arrived in Baltimore and checked into my hotel. It was hard to sleep because I was so excited about attending the ACFE’s 26^th Global Fraud Conference. The conference is an amazing event that allows members to learn new ways to fight fraud and connect with other professionals. With over 70 sessions, I will learn about forensic data analysis, ethical behavior and everything in between. The conference is attended by over 3,000 professionals from over 60 countries. I will meet new people and reconnect with friends I haven’t seen in years.