Fraud Prevention Tip #32: Provide ‘How-to’ Anti-Fraud Skills Training

All right. Buckle your seat belts. Here’s the single most important thing you need to do to fight fraud.

Teach every employee, supervisor, manager, executive and
board member the skills they need to fight fraud.

So simple. So ‘common sense’.

Yet as my business results coach continually reminds me – too often common sense is not common practice in business.

Let me give you some interesting statistics. Several years ago I was instructing a skills training Webinar covering fraud prevention and detection. With over 1,400 people on the line from just about every time zone in the world, I asked the following question:

“The following four actions are part of an effective Anti-Fraud Campaign. But if you could only choose one, which one would have the greatest impact?”

Here were the choices:

1. Implement a Policy on Fraud Responsibilities

2. Conduct an organization-wide Comprehensive Fraud Exposure Analysis

3. Provide awareness, prevention and early detection Skills Training for managers and staff

4. Catch and Prosecute Wrongdoers

Which option would you pick? Remember, you only get one choice.

Well, through the wonders of modern Internet technology, each participant in the Webinar was able to vote using their keyboard. We had their responses compiled in seconds. And the winner was:

Skills Training for Managers and Staff

This option got 62% of the votes. That’s almost two-thirds of the anti-fraud experts on the Webinar screaming loud and clear that teaching anti-fraud skills is the

Fraud Issues & Answers for Managers and Key Control Employees

Organization leaders who are serious about managing the risks of wrongdoing, misconduct and fraud are waking up to the fact that most supervisors and employees simply lack the necessary skills. This ‘how to’ program fills in that gap – it shows participants exactly what to do to manage the fraud risks in their areas of responsibility. In this interactive workshop, executives, managers, supervisors and employees will learn the specific steps to take to prevent wrongdoing as part of their daily duties. And when prevention efforts occasionally fail, they’ll find issues faster and handle them more effectively.

single most important action organizations can take to manage fraud risks. Nothing else even comes close.

And here’s where simple common sense falls apart. Ever since that Webinar I’ve been asking the participants at my live programs if their organization provides the skills training needed to fight fraud. Not just ‘awareness’ sessions – real, useful, meaningful, day-to-day skills training. Result: less than 5% have ever raised their hands in response. And I’ve probably asked 20,000 or more in just the last two or three years.

5%. One in 20 employees who feel they know how to manage fraud.

Yikes! No wonder fraud is exploding in business.

How would your employees respond to this question?

Don’t expect team members to be able to handle their fraud risks if they’ve never been taught how to do so. Sponsor or conduct skills training programs specifically addressing what your team members need to know to prevent, detect and handle fraud.

Meaningful skills-based anti-fraud training is what we do. It’s our core business.

Let us know if we can help you.

John J. Hall, CPA

John J. Hall, CPA, is an author, speaker and results expert who presents around the world at conventions, corporate meetings and association events. Throughout his 35-year career as a business consultant, corporate executive and professional speaker, John has helped organizations and individuals achieve measurable results. He inspires audience members in corporations, not-for-profit organizations and professional associations to step up, take action and “do what you can.”