It Pays to be a Fraud Fighter

GUEST BLOGGER

Bruce Dorris, J.D., CFE, CPA
ACFE Program Director

Every week, ACFE brochures, newsletters and magazines make their way across my desk. I often see quotes from members or course attendees that jump out at me and remind me of the reason we strive so hard to be the best association in the world dedicated to fighting fraud, stopping at nothing to reach that goal. While testimonials in our publications and quotes on our website do speak volumes about what we do, there is nothing like hearing a success story from someone face to face.

I was recently talking to an attendee at the Annual Fraud Conference in San Diego, and something she said really stuck with me. She took great pleasure in telling me how much she had learned and all the people she met at the conference, but then she stopped, and the conversation took a more personal tone. Like many before her, she had taken the time and used her personal funds to attend a CFE Exam Review Course in Chicago. She distinctly remembered me saying in class that half of the attendees present will not pass the CFE Exam — not because they can’t, but because they will go back home and not take the time to actually sit and take the exam. What was striking to me was what happened after the class and the way she described her trajectory as a new CFE.

She went from having just a “job” to a new career as a fraud examiner with a completely different company — with higher compensation, more benefits, the works. All of the work, studying and saving paid off…literally. She was able to achieve this because she set herself apart by dedicating the time and resources to obtain the best fraud credential in the world. It is a credential that showed her employer that she was serious about the anti-fraud profession. Success stories like that are awesome. It reinforces the principles that the ACFE was founded upon.

If you are not a CFE, I encourage you to take a look at it and seek out a new path for your professional life. If you are a CFE, use the 2010/2011 Compensation Guide to strengthen your current position, showing the value the marketplace holds for such a prestigious title.

Are you up for the challenge? Find out more about the CFE credential here.