David William James Shepherd

Uncovering the hidden cost of staff fraud: an assessment of 45 cases in the UK

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide evidence on the additional costs of dealing with staff fraud, beyond the initial fraud loss, based on 45 cases of staff fraud. Design/methodology/approach – The research began with a “brainstorming” session with counter fraud professionals to map all potential costs in a staff fraud. It then utilised a twin-track approach of a survey and interviews. A survey was distributed using a number of methods yielding 28 usable cases. Interviews were also sought with organisations willing to discuss staff fraud, which secured a further 17 cases. Both the survey and interview used the same questionnaire, although the latter enabled a deeper questioning of participants. Findings – This study examined 45 cases of staff fraud from a wide range of sectors drawn predominantly from larger organisations. From each of these cases detailed, estimates of the costs of dealing with the fraud were identified. Major additional costs included the costs of investigation, staff suspe...

Fraud in overseas aid and the challenge of measurement

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges of measuring fraud in overseas aid. Design/methodology/approach – The research is based on 21 semi-structured interviews with key persons working in the delivery of aid in both the public and voluntary sectors. It uses the UK Department for International Development as a case study to applying more accurate measures of fraud. Findings – This paper shows there are significant challenges to using fraud loss measurement to gauge fraud in overseas aid. However, it argues that, along with other types of measures, it could be used in areas of expenditure in overseas governments and charities to measure aid. Given the high risk of such aid to fraud, it argues helping to develop capacity to reduce aid, of which measuring the size of the problem is an important part; this could be considered as aid in its own right. Research limitations/implications – The researchers were not able to visit high-risk countries for fraud to examine in the local context...

Organizational Inhibitions to Addressing Occupational Fraud: A Theory of Differential Rationalization

ABSTRACT This article examines organizational inhibitions in relation to addressing occupational fraud. The a priori assumption would be if an organization discovers occupational fraud it would deal with it. However, this research illustrates, drawing upon 24 semi-structured interviews, two case studies and participant observation, a range of avoidant rationalizations constructed by representatives of organizational victims to justify not tackling occupational fraud. These rationalizations bear great similarity to the rationalizations constructed by offenders, and the article argues they constitute a theory of differential rationalization. The research may have wider relevance to explaining why organizations fail to deal with other negative behaviors.

“The Higher You Fly, the Further You Fall”: White-Collar Criminals, “Special Sensitivity” and the Impact of Conviction in the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT The resilience of some high-profile white-collar criminals in the media gaze after prison may lead some to conclude, particularly as some research also supports this notion, that this group of offenders generally manages well after conviction. Research in this area is, however, small and largely American. The authors seek to add to this small body of research by offering findings on the impact of conviction on 17 UK convicted white-collar criminals after completion of their sentence. It provides a unique insight into the consequences of conviction, showing that although there were some offenders who did experience limited impact and coped well, there was also a significant group who suffered a decline in status, financial losses, negative media coverage, and relationship and mental health problems, to name some. The authors argue more research is needed on this group and their needs as they are often neglected by the criminal justice system.