Vonya Global, 150 N Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL (2026)

05/30/2026

Here we go again... another alleged embezzlement case is making headlines; this time involving a finance executive accused of stealing $4.5 million from her employer over a six-year period through unauthorized corporate credit card charges.

According to reports, the alleged spending included:
• Luxury clothing and personal expenses
• Vacations and car payments
• Approximately $150,000 in gambling charges

The individual reportedly served as both Director of Finance and later Vice President of Finance.

For boards of directors, this case raises an important governance question:

How could unauthorized spending continue for six years without detection?

While the facts are still allegations, cases like this often point to breakdowns in fundamental financial oversight.

What should boards be asking management?

1. Who reviews executive and finance department credit card activity?
Corporate card charges, especially for finance leadership, should be independently reviewed with supporting documentation and clear business justification. Seniority should never exempt someone from scrutiny.

2. Are there meaningful controls over corporate card spend?
Boards should understand whether:
• Spending limits exist
• Merchant category restrictions are enabled
• Exception reporting flags unusual transactions
• Personal expenses are systematically identified and investigated

3. Is there sufficient segregation of duties within finance?
When finance leaders can initiate transactions, oversee reconciliations, and influence reporting, control gaps can emerge quickly. Independent oversight is essential.

4. Are expense and card reconciliations independently reviewed?
Unauthorized activity lasting years often suggests reconciliations became a routine exercise rather than a true detective control.

5. Is the audit committee receiving meaningful fraud-risk reporting?
Boards should expect visibility into high-risk areas such as executive expenses, procurement cards, cash disbursements, and unusual spending patterns.

The governance lesson here is simple: Fraud risk increases when oversight decreases, particularly around trusted finance leaders.

Strong organizations do not rely on trust alone. They rely on transparency, independent review, and controls that work regardless of title or tenure.

Woman faces decades behind bars

05/26/2026

AI adoption is moving faster than most organizations’ ability to govern it; and that creates a significant opportunity (and responsibility) for Internal Audit.

Sikich published an important article written by Jesse Laseman on how Internal Audit can provide meaningful assurance over AI as organizations rapidly embed it into business processes. The message is clear: while AI may be new, the core principles of risk assessment, governance, controls, and independent assurance are not.

What stood out to me is the practical focus on:
• Understanding how AI is actually being used across the organization (including “ghost AI”)
• Performing risk-based assessments around bias, privacy, cybersecurity, and accountability
• Evaluating governance, data quality, model reliability, and compliance expectations

The gap between perceived control and actual AI oversight is widening in many organizations. Internal Audit is uniquely positioned to help close that gap before risks become more difficult to manage.

A worthwhile read for Internal Auditors, CAEs, and risk leaders thinking about how to evolve assurance strategies alongside emerging technology.

IA teams must strengthen AI governance

05/13/2026

"Whatcha gonna do, brother..."
Another alleged embezzlement case is making headlines, this time involving an accountant accused of diverting nearly $900,000 from a "high-profile individual" who may or may not be Hulk Hogan.

The allegations include:
• Misappropriation of funds through an accounting services business
• Authority to sign on behalf of the victim
• Activity occurring over multiple years before detection

For boards of directors, this case is a reminder of an uncomfortable truth:

Financial often starts with trusted access.

When one person has the authority to initiate, approve, and conceal transactions, the risk of fraud increases dramatically, especially when oversight becomes informal.

What should boards be asking ?

1. Who has signing authority and how is it monitored?
Authority over disbursements should never exist without oversight. Dual authorization thresholds, periodic reviews of authorized signers, and independent monitoring are foundational controls.

2. Are third-party accountants and bookkeepers subject to the same controls as employees?
Outsourced finance personnel often operate with significant system access and trust. Boards should understand how management validates their activities, access rights, and deliverables.

3. Are bank reconciliations truly independent?
An independent review of reconciliations is one of the simplest but most effective fraud detection controls, particularly when someone has payment authority.

4. Is there segregation of duties in cash disbursements?
No one person should be able to authorize payments, process transactions, reconcile accounts, and maintain accounting records.

5. What monitoring exists for unusual transactions?
Recurring payments to unfamiliar vendors, transfers to related accounts, or reimbursement anomalies should trigger scrutiny.

The lesson for boards is straightforward: trust is not a control. Strong means building financial processes that remain effective even when highly trusted individuals are involved.

Bookkeeper facing serious charges

05/13/2026

I've already posted the announcement, but I thought it was worth reposting because of what it means for the Sikich Internal Audit practice.

With Sikich’s acquisition of Jefferson Wells, we are expanding what we can bring to Chief Audit Executives and risk leaders navigating increasingly complex environments.

What does this mean for internal audit clients?

✅ Expanded capabilities across internal audit, risk, compliance, SOX, IT audit, data analytics, and specialized advisory services

✅ Deeper industry expertise across financial services, technology, energy, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, and other highly regulated sectors

✅ Broader geographic reach and scale to support organizations nationally and globally through co-sourcing, outsourcing, and project-based internal audit needs

✅ Greater access to specialized talent to address emerging risks, regulatory expectations, cybersecurity, operational resilience, and transformation initiatives

Most importantly, it strengthens our ability to deliver practical, high-quality internal audit solutions that help organizations manage risk and create value.

Excited for what’s ahead and to welcome our Jefferson Wells colleagues to the Sikich team.

The Next Chapter for Internal Audit

05/05/2026

A former IRS agent was just charged in a $12M!!! embezzlement scheme at a New Jersey fuel company. The details are a textbook case of internal control breakdowns.

According to reports, the individual allegedly:
• Created fake “expense” reimbursements
• Transferred funds directly from company accounts to personal accounts
• Operated in senior finance roles (CFO/Controller) over multiple years

This wasn’t a sophisticated cyberattack. It was a prolonged failure of fundamental controls.

So what likely went wrong?

1. Lack of segregation of duties
One person (the fraudster) appears to have had control over expense approval, payment processing, and account access. That’s a structural flaw. No single individual should control the full transaction lifecycle.

2. Weak expense reimbursement controls
Fake reimbursements suggest:
• No independent review of supporting documentation
• No validation of business purpose
• Possibly no enforcement of approval thresholds

3. Inadequate bank and cash controls
Unauthorized transfers going undetected over years points to:
• Weak or nonexistent independent bank reconciliations
• No review of unusual or related-party transactions
• Lack of dual authorization for transfers

4. Overreliance on trust (especially in long-tenured employees)
This is common in closely held or family-run businesses. Tenure and title replaced verification.

5. Lack of monitoring and anomaly detection
Repeated fraudulent transactions should have triggered:
• Trend analysis on reimbursements
• Exception reporting
• Periodic internal audit or forensic review

Fraud at this scale rarely happens because controls don’t exist, it happens because they aren’t enforced, monitored, or independently verified. Strong governance isn’t about assuming the worst in people. It’s about designing systems that don’t rely on trust alone.

former IRS agent allegedly stole $12 M

05/01/2026

HOT OFF THE PRESS!
Some news stories are bigger than others and this one is pretty big. I'm looking forward to welcoming my friends at Jefferson Wells to the Sikich family!

Latest acquisition announced today

04/29/2026

The feeling is definitely mutual Richard! It was great seeing a bunch of long-time friends.

Grateful to be part of the Sikich team

04/23/2026

Sikich has poll position at the annual seminar. Come see us if you're attending (you won't be able to miss us!) - we'll be giving away some cool stuff.

There is still time to register

04/21/2026

As the song lyric says: "Don't stop thinking about tomorrow... it will soon be here... Yesterday's gone."
That was exactly my thought when I read this article. Tomorrow is here! This article is worth the read, you'll either be impressed with the advancement of technology, or if you're like me, you'll be a little fearful.

From the article: "Chinese companies are pushing ahead with the development of robot technologies for both civilian and MILITARY uses."

Autonomously running half-marathon

04/17/2026

I'm excited to share that Sikich has officially acquired Burwood Group, a Chicago-based IT consulting and integration firm.

This is more than a growth milestone; it’s a meaningful step forward in how we serve our clients.

Organizations today are navigating increasingly complex environments shaped by cloud transformation, cybersecurity risks, and the rapid acceleration of AI. With this acquisition, Sikich strengthens its ability to not only advise on these challenges, but to design, build, and operate the underlying technology environments as well.

By bringing together deep expertise in infrastructure, cloud, and managed services with Sikich’s established strengths in audit, risk, and advisory, we are now positioned to deliver more integrated, end-to-end solutions, from strategy through ex*****on and ongoing operations.

The result: stronger alignment between technology and risk, more scalable solutions, and better outcomes for our clients.

I'm looking forward to what we’ll build together.

Acquisition enhances service delivery

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