Target Uses Corporate Alliance Program to Connect Faster and More Genuinely

PARTNER PROFILE

Today the ability to connect with people at any time and from any place seems easier than ever. A tap of a finger makes the time it takes to reach someone almost instantaneous. However, reaching someone is only half the battle. The dreaded blocked-out day on an Outlook calendar, family obligations and the ding of a new email can sometimes get in the way of many attempted connections. But, the investigative team at Target is using partnerships like the ACFE’s Corporate Alliance programs to become connected to others in their industry and get the insight they need to stay ahead of the curve.

“To be successful in fighting fraud, you need to have broad knowledge and have a diverse network both inside and outside of your organization,” said Gregg Patyk, CFE, Senior Manager of Target’s Global & Information Security Investigations. “The Corporate Alliance helps us attain those goals. It enables us to connect faster and more genuinely with other companies that have similar goals and mindsets.”

Since joining the Corporate Alliance program in 2011, Patyk and his team have been able to build relationships with other member companies, especially during face-to-face seminars. At the ACFE Global Fraud Conference in San Antonio, Texas, last June, Target representatives sat down with other members and discussed specific initiatives regarding whistleblowing reporting within large companies.

“Since the conference, we’ve received assistance that we could not have received anywhere else,” Patyk said. “Likewise, we reciprocated and helped another member company resolve some of their issues. In both examples, both of our companies were able to expedite the resolutions of each matter because of partnerships and information sharing. Building partnerships with other companies enables Target to learn what other companies are doing and how they are successful with their anti-fraud programs.”

However, Patyk said that as in any relationship, it isn’t just about sharing the successes and passing along what has worked. There is also value in sharing challenges and having those tough discussions about things that didn’t work. “Being part of a group that shares information freely is conducive to learning. For example, not every program and method we have tried in the past has worked. I think it is equally important to share failures along with the success stories, so we can learn together.”

In addition to building connections with other corporations, Target uses data analytics to remain proactive and forecast potential threats. But Patyk said that there is another crucial step that goes along with that analysis. “I believe using analytics is a secondary step in being proactive. To truly be proactive, you need to be well-informed and have the right skills, knowledge and information. We connect with our internal business partners on a routine basis to have a better understanding of their businesses. By building these connections ahead of time, it really helps when there is an issue because we’ll have at least a cursory, if not better, understanding of that part of the business and be viewed as problem solvers versus adversaries. Building partnerships, staying informed and being well-trained are the first steps in being proactive.”

Read more about how Target is staying one step ahead of fraudsters in the full article on ACFE.com.

10 Ways to Successfully Transition from Law Enforcement to Corporate Life

GUEST BLOGGER

Joseph Agins, CFE, Director, Ethics & Compliance Investigations
Apollo Group, Inc. 

Throughout my career in the corporate anti-fraud profession, I have had the opportunity to work with many former law enforcement professionals who transitioned into corporate security, fraud or investigative roles. Of course, there are many corporate roles where the training and skills gained in a law enforcement career are relevant and oftentimes desired. Often former law enforcement officers (LEOs) make a seamless transition into their new corporate roles and achieve much success, but not all seem to fare as well. I have witnessed the latter more times than I would ever have expected to, and I have long thought about why this is. Why is it that some seem to succeed and transition so easily and others don’t? I’m not sure I necessarily know the answer, but exposure to this for the last 16-plus years has given me some perspective. Here are some observations and tips from colleagues who have successfully made the transition to help you make yours.

1. Conduct an honest and detailed assessment of your knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) to determine if the KSAs are at the appropriate level for a role in the corporate sector. Some people think that just because they are in law enforcement they can make the jump to the private sector. That may or may not be the case. An objective assessment of KSAs should ideally be done several years before your separation/retirement date to allow for filling any identified gaps, including advanced college degrees, certifications and presentation skills.
2. Do your homework about a particular role and the company.
3. Speak to people who have made the transition to learn from their successes and failures.
4. Be prepared to relocate for the best opportunities, but also make sure you want to live in that area. If you are accustomed to living in NYC, will you be happy living in Arkansas?
5. There is a false belief that life is better in the private sector. Determine why you want to leave law enforcement. If you are not happy in your current role, what makes you think you will be happy in a new role?
6. Do not leave until it is a “stomach-heart-mind” process - in the “gut” (worn out, lost interest), you feel it (this is the right thing to do), and you think it through (you access the fiscal, lifestyle and other cost/benefits).
7. Expose yourself to the corporate world before transitioning.
8. Develop a strong résumé and/or curriculum vitae.
9. Embrace change and keep up with technology. Former LEOs who I've seen fail have been those who think they know all there is and do not make learning a continuous activity.
10. Do not jump to the first private sector opportunity just because it is the first job offer. Step back and fully assess if the new opportunity is best suited for you. Understanding that one size does not fit all is critical.

There will always be those who have a hard time adjusting to change. So, “law enforcement” and “corporate roles” aside, this is all primarily about understanding and successfully dealing with change. The change will be there regardless. It won’t be easy, and you will either get on board or you won’t. Those who refuse to accept the change and make necessary adjustments will have a tough road to hoe, while those who understand, expect, prepare and embrace change will have a path of much less resistance.

The CFE as IP Security Advisor: Raising consciousness, promoting balance

SPECIAL TO THE WEB

Robert Tie, CFE, CFP
Contributing Editor, Fraud Magazine

“Business is hell,” said U.S. Civil War Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman … well, not quite. “War is hell” were his actual words. But there’s ample reason to believe that this prototypical warrior took the dangers of the marketplace seriously.

As CFEs well know, fraud is one such peril. And if it happens in Silicon Valley or another of the world’s R&D capitals, billions in legitimate profits can disappear. It’s enough to make anyone nervous about their intellectual property (IP).

Sherman, who initially had left the army for a business career that ran from real estate to banking to law, all with limited success, later said that he could more easily lead 100,000 men in battle than manage land in a speculative market.

And it was true. He re-entered the U.S. Army when war broke out in 1861 and led his troops to victory in the South. Before that, however, he had suffered from stress-induced asthma during the 1850s real estate frenzy in San Francisco, where he managed the West Coast branch of a Missouri bank.

In the volatile business environment of the Gold Rush, California land was seen as the key to great wealth, and people resorted to any means — fair or fraudulent — to get it. Then, as now, it wasn’t easy to lead a business in a cutthroat competitive environment.

CURRENCY OF IDEAS

Fast-forwarding to the 21st century, we see that today’s commercial frenzies often are less about land and precious metal than they are about marketable new ideas. For example, when developed into innovative consumer electronics, the right brainstorm can generate more profit than many a gold mine.

“Consider the iPhone,” says Jonathan Turner, CFE, CII, a principal of Wilson & Turner Incorporated, an investigative consultancy headquartered in Memphis, Tenn. “Before it revolutionized cell phones, they all had pushbuttons. Now it’s hard to find one of those. That’s how valuable the touchscreen concept was.”

No one wonder, then, that Apple and other businesses investing heavily in R&D get the heebie-jeebies at the prospect of someone stealing the design of their latest product before the company can bring it to market. You might think the best response would be super-tight security.

“Think again,” Turner says. “Before a new consumer product goes on sale, the manufacturer needs to find out how typical customers react to it.”

Toy makers, six to eight months before Christmas, put early models in front of test groups of kids to see which ones they play with, he says. That feedback determines what will be in stores just before the holidays. Likewise, the New York and Detroit auto shows introduce “concept” cars with radically innovative, sometimes outlandish, features. Some of those elements turn out to be so popular among show attendees that manufacturers add them to the next generation of cars.

“Sure, that market intelligence is beneficial,” Turner acknowledges. “But getting it involves exposing your valuable new designs to outsiders. In the IP world, the competition is for ideas, and once they get out, it’s impossible to put them back in the bottle. Even if you’ve patented your concept, a competitor can create a product that does the same thing in a slightly different way and doesn’t intrude on your patent.”

FACETS OF RISK

Turner recalls two instructive incidents Apple might prefer to forget — after learning from them, of course.

In 2010 and again in 2011, Apple employees field-testing as yet unreleased new iPhones inadvertently left them in public places. Outsiders soon found, examined and discussed them at length not only in the media but in the design labs of Apple’s inquisitive competitors.

“Everyone asked why Apple let these devices be taken out of the laboratory,” Turner says. “The answer is you don’t know how well it’s going to work until you put it in the field. So Apple told its employees to test the new phones in a variety of environments where customers would use them. In doing so, however, Apple took the risk that its competitors would see the devices before they went on sale. Thanks to such premature exposure, competitors often swiftly introduce a similar product.”

Still, product development and marketing people take that risk because they think the “real-world” feedback is worth it, Turner notes. He adds, however, that information security teams — more mindful of risk than of reward — might reject this approach.

“Various internal constituencies often have very different views on IP — what to do, why and how to go about it,” Turner says. “This is a normal, rational conflict that every organization must learn how to mediate.”

THE RIGHT BALANCE

There are up to 30 different constituencies inside the typical business, Turner says — executive-level management, several categories of divisional or mid-level departmental leadership and 10 to 20 categories of rank-and-file employees in functional areas. Each of these groups has its own perspective on how to capitalize on and protect the organization’s IP.

“In many companies, the legal department’s role is to mitigate risk exposures, and the easiest way to do so is to say, ‘You can’t do that,’ ” he notes. “In contrast, the development group wants to put its products in front of as many people as possible to determine which design nuances can turn their ‘okay’ idea into a market breakthrough.”

Finding the right balance between these approaches requires accepting certain shortcomings to obtain what you perceive to be even greater advantages, Turner says. The typical trade-offs? If an organization wants to field-test its products, it has to sacrifice some IP security and vice-versa.

Read the rest of the article on Fraud-Magazine.com.