Alan I. Blass, CFE, CPA, has led an impressive career over more than four decades in the anti-fraud industry in both the public and private sectors. He currently has his own practice that specializes in forensic accounting and litigation support services in New York and South Florida. He has also served as the president of three different ACFE chapters. “Being active in local chapters has given me the opportunity to meet fellow CFEs in my community,” he said. “I had the opportunity to meet many wonderful people, including chapter members, speakers, educators and students. They are all my community-shared network.”

I have always enjoyed the challenge of following the money and unraveling the fraud scheme; the more sophisticated and unique the better. Forty-two years later, I still love my work, meeting other investigative professionals and discussing my profession.

After practicing for about 28 years, I decided to open my own Forensic Accounting practice. I had developed relationships with attorneys in the private and public sectors and a lifetime of opportunities to develop my skills in marketing, financial investigations, report writing and testifying as an expert witness.

Being respectful to your clients, responsive to their requests, managing client expectations, always giving your best effort and being fair with your billing is the recipe for success. And, of course, you must develop a reputation of always achieving the best possible results for clients and being great to work with.

When I am called to the witness stand, I just have a couple of minutes to develop a positive rapport with the judge and jury. This is true for all testifying expert witnesses, but forensic accountants have a special challenge. Many people, including judges, think that accountants are boring, and many people are not comfortable with numbers. They are fearful that the forensic accountant’s testimony will be a painful ordeal — I can read it on their faces. I must speak in plain language, while not being condescending. My advantage is that there is nobody in the courtroom who is more familiar with the accounting evidence, issues or calculations than I am. When I tell people that one of my favorite experiences is the cross-examination, they tell me that, perhaps, I should get out more.

When fraud and tragedy collide

I am especially proud of my work monitoring the cost of the deconstruction of the World Trade Center in the aftermath of 9/11. It was certainly the most high-profile matter that I ever experienced; it was surreal.

By that point, I had spent most of my career working in lower Manhattan, and I had a colleague who lost his life in the disaster. The work environment at Ground Zero and the public interest was like nothing I had ever experienced — requiring regular reporting to, and meeting with, governmental officials. The contractors initially appeared to be there for altruistic reasons, so I was surprised that many contractors deliberately falsified billing at a time like that.

Paycheck distributions revealed that there were many no-show employees — some of whom were related to organized crime families. Employee benefits and insurance costs were often charged at rates in excess of the contractor’s actual costs. Contractors also charged for equipment that was either never on-site or no longer operational. They literally towed equipment to the site and charged Blue Book rates until our team began doing daily tours of the work site.

The contractors insisted on being reimbursed for their equipment at the Blue Book daily rates rather than weekly or monthly rates. They refused to continue working if anyone dared to discuss adjusting the equipment rates. Unbelievably, certain contractors stole some of the pieces of twisted metal that had been part of the Twin Towers, apparently to be sold as morbid souvenirs.

After several months, all contractor trucks were finally required to have GPS monitoring so that they could be tracked. Lower Manhattan felt like a graveyard for several years. All New Yorkers were in mourning. That horrific event will never be forgotten, but, thankfully, the community is vital again.

Starting out on your own

The success of a small professional practice always depends upon your ability to gain the confidence of clients, the quality of your work, your case results and your professional reputation. Every case and every client requires your complete attention and should be treated as your most important. I would recommend that CFEs who have the entrepreneurial spirit and would like to go out on their own should work to improve certain professional and personal attributes.

You should gain technical skills, earn the appropriate credentials, hone your writing skills and seek expert witness testimony experience. You also need to have fundamental business skills like being highly organized, knowing how to network and market yourself, feeling comfortable with public speaking and being an active participant in your community. You should also manage client expectations and have flexibility with your time since you can never be late or miss a deadline. While doing all of this, always remember to devote enough time to enjoy it with the people that you are doing it all for.

Connecting with the ACFE community

I am so appreciative to the ACFE for a great career, great training, and, perhaps most importantly great professional colleagues. I served as the president of the New York City Chapter in 2012 and 2013, after several years of serving in other positions. In 2014, I moved to South Florida and began participating with the South Florida Chapter. By July 2017, I became the South Florida chapter president and served until June 2019.

While serving as the president of the South Florida Chapter, I learned that CFEs in South Florida Counties, other than Miami-Dade County, were significantly underserved. We tried a couple of events in Boca Raton in Palm Beach County, which were remarkably successful. There were hundreds of CFEs in the counties north of Miami-Dade, including Broward, Palm Beach and Martin counties.

So, with the help of the ACFE and a few new Palm Beach County Chapter officers, and the encouragement of the South Florida Chapter, we opened the Palm Beach County Chapter in just a few weeks, held elections, achieved nonprofit status and enjoyed our first event. We already have 40 members, most of whom I have never met before.

I have been privileged to be a member of the ACFE since 1992. My boss and early mentor, the Chief Investigative Auditor for the New York City Department of Investigation, Marvin Putterman, first told me about the ACFE and advised me to join the organization. I took his advice because I respected his judgement. I did not realize that it was advice that would change my life forever. I soon learned about the world-class fraud training and professional comradery.

I knew that I was a part of an organization dedicated to fraud fighting. I particularly enjoyed the multidisciplinary approach of the ACFE since investigations are most successful when professionals with a variety of skills and experiences join forces.

As my career progressed, my CFE credential became invaluable by giving me great credibility in marketing my services, report writing and providing expert testimony. I continue to enjoy speaking about forensic accounting career opportunities with students and new CFEs. I enjoy giving back and I encourage others to do the same.

Outside the office

My wife Rochelle and I enjoy going to arts and crafts fairs, the beach, theater, concerts and almost anything that allows us to enjoy Florida’s beauty and great weather. I enjoy reading nonfiction, well researched books, especially history and politics. I am a fanatical, die-hard New York Mets fan, demonstrated by my license plate frame, car floor mats, key chain and almost anything that has a Mets logo on it. My kids are still blaming me for not raising them as Yankees fans. And, of course, I enjoy spending quality time with family and friends. I am very proud that four of my six grandchildren live in Israel, which gives us plenty of incentive and opportunity to travel abroad. I am lucky to have two local grandsons who I get to spoil often. I am blessed.

ACFE membership is open to individuals of all job functions, industries and levels of experience who are interested in the prevention, detection and deterrence of fraud. Our mission is to support you by providing access to the knowledge, resources and training you need to do your job now and at every stage of your career.

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