Curriculum for Fighting Fraud


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Curriculum for Fighting Fraud

Eric Hespenheide
Global Managing Partne
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

As organizations grapple with a myriad of new corporate governance regulations and auditing standards, a renewed focus on protecting stakeholder interests is creating a demand for activities that more effectively combat fraud in organizations. This spring, the internal audit profession’s principal educator is teaming with a leading global professional services firm to deliver a comprehensive set of training seminars covering an entire range of fraud control issues. The Institute of Internal Auditors has formed an educational alliance with Deloitte in the development and delivery of a nine-course curriculum, to be rolled out over the next two years.

“By providing this new fraud education curriculum designed specifically for internal auditors, The IIA is addressing, head-on, a very real and growing need in the marketplace,” said Eric Hespenheide, Internal Audit services global leader, Deloitte. “We are pleased to have been selected to develop and teach this new curriculum, and view it as a great opportunity to work with The IIA to equip its members to combat fraud in their organizations and to increase the understanding that fraud is a critical issue facing companies today.”

The first course, Fraud Awareness for Chief Audit Executives and Management, will be offered at The IIA’s General Audit Management Conference on March 16 in Las Vegas, and will help participants understand changing perspectives on fraud; new issues and trends in fraud; technology’s role in detecting fraud; maximizing benefits of internal fraud investigations; fraud risk management capabilities; and defining a COSO consistent approach for fraud risk management. Other courses that will be rolled out in the upcoming year include: Developing a Fraud Risk Management Program; Advanced Fraud Auditing Using Computer-Assisted Techniques; and Introduction to Fraud Auditing, which will be offered for the first time on April 2 in Houston.

Internal audit practitioners of all levels and experience can benefit from this fraud control curriculum designed to meet the needs of a variety of different participants’ backgrounds. Webinars will round out the entire series of educational offerings, with selected content also offered as half-day sessions for audit committees. The curriculum is designed to fit the unique requirements of companies and can be modified for on-site delivery of fraud programs.

A recent Deloitte Forensic Center survey* of 277 senior-level executives indicated that more than half ? 59 percent ? of the respondents consider their organizations less effective at fraud control and that training is a key factor for those respondents who consider their organizations more effective. IIA President Dave Richards, CIA, says that taking measures, such as participating in education and training, puts action behind an organization’s stance on fraud control.

“Many times management, the board, and other stakeholders do not expect to have fraud in their organizations ? and, therefore, aren’t prepared. Just saying, ‘we don’t want fraud,’ or ‘we don’t tolerate fraud’ doesn’t ensure that it won’t occur,” says Richards. “Training like this is for organizations that want to address the potential for fraud and to ensure appropriate fraud prevention and detection techniques are in place to adequately mitigate fraud risks.”

The IIA chose Deloitte to help develop the curriculum and teach the courses based on the experience of Deloitte’s fraud and internal audit specialists who have knowledge in their field and are adept at sharing their experiences and knowledge as instructors. Deloitte’s fraud specialists include forensic accountants and auditors, former prosecutors, senior law enforcement officials, and agents from the FBI, Justice Department, and other governmental agency practitioners that are involved with fraud prevention, detection, and investigations on a daily basis.

In addition to this new training curriculum, The IIA is rolling out other initiatives to elevate fraud awareness and control. Jointly authored with the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), The IIA will release a guidance paper in May titled, “Managing the Business Risk of Fraud: a practical guide.” The IIA also will host a three-day educational event, Fraud Forum: Awareness for Internal Auditors, on May 14–16, 2008, in Bonita Springs, Fla.

Check The IIA’s Web site at www.theiia.org/fraud for more information on any of these initiatives.

As used in this document, ‘Deloitte’ means Deloitte & Touche LLP and Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP, which are separate subsidiaries of Deloitte LLP. Please see www.deloitte.com/us/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of Deloitte LLP and its subsidiaries.

With members in 165 countries, The Institute of Internal Auditors is the internal audit profession’s global voice, standard-setter, and resource for professional development and certification.

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