We all recognize budget is a constant concern for auditors and investigators. Oftentimes our technology budgets are just too tight. We find ourselves looking for powerful tools to add to our toolbox that do not break the bank. One of these tools is Active Data for Excel.
Reflecting back on the performance of more than 1,000 business valuations over the last 20-plus years, I have observed the regular occurrence of an economic event in many divorce-related engagements that I have named the Pre-divorce Business Downturn Syndrome (“PBDS” for short).
As a frequent speaker on the subject of fraud, people often ask me, “How do you investigate fraud?” My answer is always the same: You look for the anomaly. To me, it sounds so simple until I step back and realize that most people cannot see the anomaly, although it is usually right in front of them.
Identifying fraud symptoms in financial statements requires observation and recognition. If you don’t look, you’re unlikely to find it. Worse yet, if you do look, are you sure you will recognize the symptoms of fraud?
Fraud, unlike acts of terror, murder, or bank robbery, is rarely observed. Instead, only symptoms or indicators, most often exhibited through changes in the financial statements, are present.
With all of the publicity that surrounded the Bernard Madoff, Scott Rothstein, ZeekRewards and Allen Stanford Ponzi schemes, among many others, you would think that people would have by now received the message about Ponzi Schemes; how they work and how those investors lose their money.
Rooting through and indexing large amounts of documents can be a complex and time-consuming task, placing undue burdens on investigators and clogging a case’s workload. This sort of complication can have negative effects on the timeline and ...
I was recently surprised to learn at a team meeting that my peers were not as familiar with the many Excel shortcuts that I apparently take for granted. Urged by our team to share more, I decided I should share a few of the more frequently used Excel shortcuts with you:
With the increase in accounting malpractice claims being filed today, it is of utmost importance that attorneys advise their clients on how to act in anticipation of litigation rather than being forced to react. It is becoming more a question of when than if auditors will be sued by one or more of their clients at some point during their career, and they need to be prepared at all times.
Like a magician’s sleight of hand, the barrage of headline news related to hackers and cyber criminals may divert attention away from the equally dangerous, but perhaps less obvious, threat to your corporate assets: employees. While trusted employees are moving, sharing, and exposing corporate data just to do their jobs, the malicious employee may be deliberately taking confidential information for personal gain or other nefarious reasons.
As professionals, many of us have had or will have the opportunity to serve on the Board of Directors of a nonprofit organization. This can be a rewarding experience and a way to maintain civic involvement and a connection to the community. But what if the nonprofit organization is defrauded by an employee, or worse yet, by the CEO? This event can have serious ramifications, especially if the organization receives government grants, not to mention the effects on those whom the nonprofit benefits.
