If the chairman of the board asks, ‘can someone walk me through the anti-fraud and compliance program of our company’, it is not rare for the board to ponder who exactly owns the anti-fraud program in their organisation – legal, compliance, HR, IT?
In the article ‘Who owns fraud?’ by Dan Torpey and Mike Sherrod in the Jan-Feb 2011 issue of the ACFE magazine, the authors argue that often ownership for fraud management is not assigned to a single individual (e.g. Chief compliance office). As a result, there is an element of confusion within companies and inefficient responses to fraud.
The authors go on to recommend that “the ownership of anti-fraud efforts should be shared by a select group of individuals who each have, as part of their responsibilities, a role in addressing fraud proactively and reactively”.
I found the graphic in the article interesting and I have reproduced it here. However, I recommend that you read the full article, as there are some excellent suggestions and recommendations for a sound anti-fraud program for any company.
