Financial shenanigans: The importance of anti-fraud education

Abstract

Fraud, financial distress and liquidation, audit failures, hubris and narcissism, are all genuine and serious issues in today’s business environment. Challenges exist for organisations in many different guises as they strive to achieve their goals. This often results in a balancing act between the right course of action and action which could be seen to be ethically immoral or even illegal. Recently many organisations have encountered financial distress for different reasons, at a high cost to employees, pensioners, and other stakeholders. How can organisations ensure that legal and ethical decisions and actions are taken? Through a review of literature, recent case studies, and the incidence of relevant courses in universities, this paper examines the importance of education in the fight against corporate fraud. Evidence indicates that employees can be effective corporate watchdogs in the fight against financial deception and unethical decisions; increasing the number of people in a firm with enhanced fraud awareness and knowledge through education should, therefore, be one of the essential requirements for our future business managers and leaders. We indicate why anti-fraud education is important in the fight against financial shenanigans, and why it should be more widely adopted for the benefit of all stakeholders.