Charles Washington, CFE, is a senior director, global fraud and asset protection at Pfizer. He is responsible for external fraud prevention, investigation and recovery strategies. He developed one of the first global programs in the pharmaceutical industry dedicated to anti-fraud initiatives. He is known for his expertise in product diversion fraud and is a leader in developing collaborative relationships between drug manufacturers and health practitioners to mitigate pharmaceutical fraud risks. Washington frequently speaks at conferences and trains others on pharmaceutical frauds and diversion schemes.

Recently, Washington spoke on a panel for an ACFE webinar titled “A Conversation About Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Anti-Fraud Profession.” In this post, he digs in even further into this topic to share insights and advice on how you can make an impact in your own workplace and foster a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion as an anti-fraud professional.

How did your understanding of diversity, equity and inclusion take shape, particularly in your professional life?

Navigating diversity and inclusion became a part of my life well before I began my professional career. We live in a world where prejudice, bias and unfair treatment has become part of the fabric of our society. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) has become an important part of professionalism and career development that is designed to eliminate bias and unfair practices in the workplace.

Unfair practices due to race, sex and religion were relatively common as I was growing up, so I had to set higher standards for myself and endured to exceed those standards, to ensure I could compete. I prepared myself to be ready for opportunities that came into my path. I never expected DEI programs to provide any special advantages, but these programs were helpful in exposing greater opportunities on a fair playing field.

DEI programs, although well-intended, were not always successful, but they created a platform for me to challenge unfair practices. This made me feel like I was not fighting alone.

What skills do you have as an anti-fraud professional that help you support diversity, equity and inclusion?

I don’t have any special skills, anti-fraud or otherwise, that helped me to support diversity. I support DEI because it’s the right thing to do as a diverse and inclusive environment creates a more productive workplace. DEI programs have been meaningful as a remedy for addressing bias in the workplace. My career as a fraud examiner has made me quite efficient at lie detection.

When you examine bias carefully, you will see that bias behavior is built on the foundation of a lie. I believe that human bias, unconscious or otherwise, is one of the greatest frauds inflicted upon our society. As a fraud examiner, I have unraveled a myriad of schemes promulgated by lies that were so well told, they resemble the truth. People who exhibit bias behaviors and unfair practices are like fraudsters; initially they believe there is some form of righteousness in their behavior. So, I go back to my original premise: DEI programs play an important role in ensuring fairness, but more work must be done to eradicate bias — “the lie.”

What are some unique challenges in the anti-fraud profession related to diversity, equity and inclusion?

This is a difficult question to answer even though I have been in the midst of this question for most of my career. The anti-fraud profession is a unique profession in that it is not within the mainstream of occupations sought out by most people. A large segment of the profession is made up of independent entities addressing fraud in unique ways.

Even when anti-fraud is a platform service in larger companies, the number of anti-fraud colleagues are usually minimal. The independence and unique skill set of the anti-fraud profession requires a higher level of sensitivity to diversity and inclusion. To address these challenges, anti-fraud businesses and organization at all levels should implement diversity programs and include an anti-bias statement in their ethics or code of conduct. The support for diversity can easily be overlooked if anti-fraud professionals do not take overt actions to recognize the possibility of unfairness and have protocols in place for prevention.

How do you advocate for these values in your own workplace?

These values are active in my workplace; however, I play a role to make them effective by promoting trust among the colleagues I work with, challenging unfairness wherever I see it and ensuring that my own hiring practices are equitable. As I indicated earlier, diversity is a remedy to limit the results of bias and inequity. The latter may always exist; therefore, DEI must be judicious. It must be well thought out to include a path for every level of the organization. Lower echelon employees seem to have less access to DEI programs.

What advice do you have for others in the anti-fraud profession who want to create a more diverse, equitable and inclusive work environment?

Thank you for this question. This will be the easiest one to answer, but maybe the hardest for many to implement: Show respect to everyone; always be fair, even at your own peril; and do something to help someone else.

ACFE members have access the free webinar where Washington recently appeared as a panelist.

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