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ONE WOULD HAVE TO scorch the earth and search long and hard to find a profession more grounded in ethical principles than accounting. It goes without saying, but ethics and accounting go together like “peas and carrots,” as Forrest Gump would say. However, would it surprise you to know that very few professionals face more ethical challenges than accountants face? Especially when it comes to preventing, detecting, deterring, and disclosing fraud and misconduct? It may also surprise you to know just how easy it is for accountants to find themselves facing ethical dilemmas whose outcomes have far-reaching implications. One single decision can be career ending, or career defining. That is where I come in.

Over the course of my 25-year career, I have faced my fair share of ethical dilemmas, death threats, retaliation, and family hardships. I have experienced first-hand the peaks and valleys associated with the life and times of a fraud fighter. I have always heard that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Well, brothers and sisters, I think I am about as strong as I care to be! I like to think that being raised in a small town in north Louisiana and being force-fed faith and family helped sharpen my sense of right and wrong. And although I sometimes struggled, I survived and learned valuable lessons along the way. I have also seen clients, colleagues, and family members rise and fall, their careers made and delayed over one critical decision or lapse in judgment. I feel very fortunate to have experienced my fair share of second chances, as have many others mentioned herein. I feel even more blessed that I get to share those stories with you.

I have sought to illustrate the simple concept, “What can cause an accountant to do a bad job and violate professional standards? What can happen to them if they do?” In this narrative, I share common tendencies that hinder practitioners’ ability to detect, deter, and prevent fraud and misconduct, some of which could violate professional standards leading to dire consequences. I also categorize these ethical impediments in the following chapters, the headings of which ironically spell the word fraud:

• F – Forgetting the Present and the Past: Many practitioners feel that fraud could never happen to them or to their clients. However, one needs only to grab today's newspaper to address this fallacy. Professionals must stay on top of emerging trends to identify areas of weakness, or they could find themselves on the front page.
• R – Relying on Others: Often, practitioners face time and budget constraints, which require delegation to lower-level staff. If the work environment is not conducive to collaboration, inexperienced staff, combined with an overextended supervisor with limited time (or budget), can lead to a disaster. If you think reviewing working papers is expensive, try skipping the review and see what that costs!
• A – Accepting, Not Verifying: In God we trust; all others we audit. Practitioners must maintain a healthy dose of skepticism in discharging their duties. Having a habit of accepting, not verifying can put an examiner in the crosshairs of agencies that will certainly do more than just test.
• U – Underestimating the Effort: Many practitioners are given assignments with little time, budget, or direction. Sometimes, practitioners fight to “win” those very assignments, and shortcuts to the finish can ensue. Another iteration is within firms that espouse an “eat what you kill” environment that can push examiners to accept engagements they are not qualified to perform. Our profession is not to imitate Naked and Afraid, so examiners should stick to what they know and build an extensive referral network for situations outside their area of expertise.
• D – Determining the Outcome Before the Work: We have all heard it hundreds of times: “This is a relationship business.” But we have also heard horror stories that begin with “Well, I knew this guy ….” or “I had these friends and …” This is another area ripe for abuse, in that examiners can become close to their clients and establish biases. Sometimes, the examiner may not realize there is a bias at all. Overlooking red flags while at the same time looking forward to the holiday party invite or the honey-baked ham gift basket can lead an examiner to looking for a new career.

Finally, yet importantly, I talk about the barriers accountants face in situations in which they do find fraud, but struggle to decide whether to disclose it. Sometimes accountants do their jobs so well, they find the unimaginable and unanticipated. However, the burdens and consequences the accountant may face in “doing the right thing” can sometimes weigh heavily on an already weary accountant's shoulders.

In my occasionally homespun way, I share my personal challenges and perspectives, as well as my observations of other ethical lapses that have affected our profession. I write this to show that all accountants face challenges. I also like to remind accountants that even when they feel alone, they are not. Have faith greater than fear. Accountants must be reminded that even in these trying times there are strong and honorable professionals behind them. I hope after reading this, you will someday consider me one of them.