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Procurement Fraud Trends

Date(s): Oct 29, 2018
Time: 8:15AM - 4:30PM
Registration Fee: $299.00
Cancellation Date: Oct 22, 2018
Location: JOHN M. KEEL LEARNING CENTER
City: Austin
Parking Info:

Parking for SAO, Professional Development courses is in Garage B (1511 San Jacinto Blvd.). The Garage signage may read 1511 San Jacinto or Garage B. The elevator in Garage B is not reliable. If you are unable to walk the stairs, please contact the professionaldevelopment@sao.texas.gov for alternate parking arrangements. Handicapped parking is free at the meters around the downtown area.

A course coordinator will Email you a parking permit prior to the course start date. A permit must be displayed or you will be ticketed.


Course Description

The rise in contract and subcontract (supply chain) management and the outsourcing of goods and services has created an increase in procurement related fraud, which can occur at any stage of the contracting and subcontracting process. Appropriate controls, fraud prevention strategies and proper bidding processes are necessary in the fight against fraud. This course will teach you the best practices for preventing, detecting and investigating contract, procurement and subcontracting fraud.


Potential CPE Credits: 8.0
Govt Hours: This class meets 8.0 hours of the 24-hour requirement for governmental CPE under Government Auditing Standards (yellow book), in most cases.
Technical Hours: This class meets 8.0 CPE credits of technical training in compliance with Texas Admin. Code Rule 523.102.

Instruction Type: Live
Experience Level: ALL
Category: Auditing

Course Objectives

 

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

  • Determine if a Procurement scheme violates legal statutes or civil laws
  • Identify the red flags of bribery and corruption
  • Reduce the risk of vendor fraud
  • Develop an investigation plan to respond to suspected procurement fraud

 

Course Outline

Overview of The Procurement Process 

Discuss the phases of the procurement process while you review contracting and payment systems. Also, learn the differences between government and private purchasing and subcontracting/supply chain management procedures.                 

Fraud in Procurement Without Competition
Learn about the common schemes in the sole-source contracting process, including employee purchases for personal use or resale, and purchases that fall below a threshold limit. 
Evaluation of Procurement Policies
Examine how public and private procurement policies and procedures allow for the opportunities for fraud.           

Legal Elements of Procurement Fraud
If you discover a procurement scheme, how do you know if it is illegal? Has the perpetrator committed a crime? Discuss the legal statutes that are most commonly used to prosecute procurement schemes. You will also learn what civil laws may allow for litigation directly against the perpetrator and how qui tam actions may be pursued.        

Performance Schemes
Once the contractor begins performing the work, a whole host of new fraud schemes open up. This session will cover schemes involving defective pricing and non-conforming goods and services. 

Collusion Among Contractors
Bid-rigging occurs in many different forms. This session will focus on those schemes in which prospective bidders team up against the contracting entity to submit false bids and inflate prices.                 

Bribery and Corruption
Unfortunately, the payment of bribes and kickbacks occurs more often than you might think. But although they are common, they are often hard to detect and prove. Discover the most common types of corruption schemes and provide insight into how to catch them.          

Vendor and Subcontractor Management
Organizations need to take specific steps to reduce the risk of vendor fraud. This section covers vendor due diligence, managing via contracts, conflicts of interest and right to audit.

Detection and Prevention
Procurement schemes can be difficult to detect and prevent, partly because these schemes can take on various forms, occur in any stage of the procurement process and tend to take place over a long period. Examine ways to detect the schemes and also tailor proactive procurement fraud detection and prevention programs to the specific risks within an organization.         

Collusion and Bribery Involving Contractors and Subcontractors
Many schemes involve collusion, price fixing, and bribery between the contractor and one or more subcontractors involved in the delivery of goods and services.  Examine how to detect these schemes. 

Collusion Between Contractors and Employees
Many schemes involve collusion between the contractor and one or more employees of the contracting entity. Explore recognition and bid tailoring schemes. These schemes can be very costly if they are not stopped early.            

Investigating Procurement Fraud
One of the first responses to suspected procurement fraud is to develop an investigation plan. Learn methods of collecting information, conducting interviews and performing an analysis.


Instructors

Jeffery White

Jeffery A. White, C.P.M. is the President and Executive Principal Consultant for J.A. White & Associates, Inc. He is a successful executive with a blend of over twenty five years of subcontracting, contracting, project management, and financial experience in both the private and public sectors. His experiences include CPSR consulting, supplier financial management, procurement compliance training, purchasing policy/procedures for governmental agencies, manufacturing plants, service organizations, and hundreds of suppliers across the U.S. and Canada.


Jeffery is a former adjunct professor at Pennsylvania State University’s Lancaster and Harrisburg campuses. He is currently a consultant/instructor with The George Washington University (Washington, DC), teaching courses in the subcontract management, project management, and contracting programs. Jeffery has published numerous articles in professional purchasing-related publications such as Electronic Buyer’s News, NAPM Insight, Purchasing Today, and NAPM InfoEdge.


He is a noted international speaker for The National Association of Purchasing Management (NAPM), the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP), the National Contract Management Association (NCMA) and other purchasing organizations, having presented topics at International Conferences, satellite seminars, and affiliate dinner meetings.


Jeffery’s work with NAPM on the development and teaching of the web-based course, “Fundamentals of Purchasing”, in 1999 earned him the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) 1999 Education Award of Excellence for Technology-Based Education Programs.


Additional Information

TAC Rule 523.142(g) requires the CPE Sponsor to monitor individual attendance and assign the correct number of CPE credits. Participants will be asked to document their time of arrival and departure in compliance with this Rule. Additionally, attendance will be monitored throughout the day and CPE certificates will reflect actual attendance of each participant.

If you are making travel plans to come to Austin, we recommend making "refundable" air and hotel reservations or waiting until 14 days before the class to actually book your reservations. Courses are occasionally canceled or rescheduled due to low enrollment. We determine whether a course has enough participants 16 days prior to the course date. If we cancel or reschedule, we will email the participant and his or her billing contact no later than 14 days before the original class date.

The course coordinator will contact you with parking information. Handicapped parking is free at the meters around the downtown area.

Vending machines with Coca-Cola products and various snack items are available. There is also a refrigerator and microwave in our coffee bar area. Feel free to bring in your own drinks and food if you prefer.

You might want to bring a light sweater or jacket, as room temperatures vary.

To see answers to our Frequently Asked Questions, visit http://www.sao.texas.gov/training/faq.html.