ACPEN Signature: 2022 Business Fraud Update and Managing the Risk of Fraud

David L. Cotton, CPA, CFE, CGFM Related seminars and products

Chairman of Cotton & Company LLP

Dave Cotton is founder and Chairman Emeritus of Cotton & Company, Certified Public Accoun­tants, headquartered in Alexan­dria, Virginia.  Cotton & Company was founded in 1981 and has a practice concentration in assist­ing Federal and State agencies, inspectors general, and government grantees and contractors with a variety of govern­ment program-related assurance and advisory services.  Cotton & Company has performed grant and contract, indirect cost rate, financial statement, financial related, and performance audits for more than two dozen Federal inspectors general as well as numer­ous other Federal and State organizations, programs, activities, and functions.  In April 2022, Cotton & Company became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sikich LLP. 

Cotton & Company’s Federal agency audit clients have included the U.S. Government Accountability Office, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Transportation Command, U.S, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Capitol Police, U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. Bureau of Prisons, Millennium Challenge Corporation, U.S. Marshals Service, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Cotton & Company also assists numerous Federal agencies in preparing financial statements and improving financial management, accounting, and internal control systems.

Dave received a BS in me­chanical engineering and an MBA in management science and labor rela­tions from Lehigh University in Bethle­hem, PA.  He also pursued gradu­ate studies in accounting and auditing at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.  He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), and Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM).

Dave served on the Advisory Council on Government Auditing Standards (the Council advises the United States Comptroller General on promulgation of Government Auditing Standards—GAO’s yellow book).  He served on the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) Anti-Fraud Programs and Controls Task Force and co-authored Managing the Business Risk of Fraud: A Practical Guide.  He served on the American Institute of CPAs Anti-Fraud Task Force and co-authored Management Override: The Achilles Heel of Fraud Prevention. Dave is the past-chair of the AICPA Federal Accounting and Auditing Subcommittee and has served on the AICPA Gov­ernmental Accounting and Auditing Com­mit­tee and the Government Technical Standards Subcom­mittee of the AICPA Profes­sional Ethics Execu­tive Commit­tee.  Dave chaired the Fraud Risk Management Task Force, sponsored by COSO and ACFE and is a principal author of the COSO-ACFE Fraud Risk Management Guide.  Dave is currently co-chairing a task force to update the COSO-ACFE Fraud Risk Management Guide.  In May 2022, Governor Glenn Youngkin appointed Dave to the Virginia Board of Accountancy.

Dave served on the board of the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants (VSCPA) and on the VSCPA Litigation Services, Professional Ethics, Quality Review, and Governmental Accounting and Auditing Committees.  He is a member of the Association of Government Accountants (AGA) and past-advisory board chairman and past-president of the AGA Northern Virginia Chapter and past Vice Chair of the AGA Professional Ethics Board.  He is also a member of the IIA and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

Dave has testified as an expert in governmental accounting, auditing, and fraud issues before the United States Court of Federal Claims, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals, and other administrative and judicial bodies. 

Dave has spoken and written frequently on cost accounting, professional ethics, and auditor fraud detection responsibilities.  He has been an instructor for the George Washington University masters of accountancy program (Fraud Examination and Forensic Accounting), and has instructed for the George Mason University Small Business Development Center (Fundamentals of Accounting for Government Contracts). 

Dave was the recipient of the ACFE 2018 Certified Fraud Examiner of the Year Award (“presented to a CFE who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in the field of fraud examination …  based on their contributions to the ACFE, to the profession, and to the community”); AGA’s 2012 Educator Award (“to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the education and training of government financial managers”); and AGA’s 2006 Barr Award (“to recognize the cumulative achievements of private sector individuals who throughout their careers have served as a role model for others and who have consistently exhibited the highest personal and professional standards”).

Vincent M. Walden, CPA, CFE Related seminars and products

Managing Director Forensic Technology: Regulatory & Compliance Intelligence

Alvarez & Marsal Disputes and Investigations, LLC

Vincent Walden is a Managing Director with Alvarez & Marsal’s Disputes and Investigations in New York. He specializes in forensic data analytics, continuous controls monitoring, information governance and legal discovery services. His primary area of concentration is in providing leading technology perspectives on both proactive compliance programs and reactive investigations.

With more than 25 years of investigative and legal technology experience, Mr. Walden has extensive experience in anti-fraud and surveillance analytics, anti-bribery and corruption compliance monitoring, sanctions and trade compliance monitoring, and anti-trust compliance monitoring. He also has deep insights in using leading technology approaches to artificial intelligence and proprietary anti-fraud behavioral algorithms.

Prior to joining A&M, Mr. Walden spent 14 years at Ernst & Young’s Forensic & Integrity Services Practice in Dallas, New York and Atlanta, where he most recently served as a Partner for the past eight years. Before EY, he worked at KPMG and Arthur Andersen. During his career, he also served as President and CFO of a privately-funded Internet company, which was subsequently sold to a Fortune 500 Company.

As an industry thought leader, Mr. Walden sits on Compliance Week’s Advisory Board and is featured in many publications including Internal Auditor Magazine, Compliance Week, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review and The Economist. He is a regular columnist for FRAUD Magazine and writes about anti-fraud innovation. As part of COSO’s Anti-Fraud Task Force, Mr. Walden co-authored its “Fraud Risk Management Guide”, which was released in September 2016. He also hosts a bi-weekly podcast show, “The Walden Pond”, which focuses on compliance innovation.

Mr. Walden earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California. He completed the Harvard Leadership Program at Harvard Business School, and is also a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Fraud Examiner. Mr. Walden volunteers as the President of The Association of Certified Fraud Examiner’s Education and Research Foundation, which provides academic scholarships to students and anti-fraud research to qualified recipients. 

Kevin M. Rockecharlie, CISA Related seminars and products

Principal

CohnReznick

Kevin M. Rockecharlie, CISA, is a Principal at Cohn Reznick, LLC in Dallas, TX. Kevin has more than 19 years of experience providing professional IT audit and consulting services to a wide range of industries. Kevin has worked with both public and private companies, and he also has extensive experience with SOX 404 compliance. Kevin helps his clients understand how IT and accounting work together. Prior to joining the firm, Kevin held industry positions at Accenture, Alcatel-Lucent and Dell Computer.

Paul E. Coggins, JD Related seminars and products

Paul Coggins, JD, is a partner at Locke Lord LLP, where he co-chairs the firm’s national White Collar Criminal Defense and Internal Investigations practice. Paul served as the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas from 1993 to 2001.  He received his B.A. in Political Science from Yale University and both a B.A. and a Diploma in Law from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, before graduating from Harvard Law School. Paul is a former radio host, a published author, a frequent speaker, and is involved in numerous public service organizations.

Paul’s most recent novel (Sting Like a Butterfly) was released in March 2020, and a sequel (The Eye of the Tigress) will be released in August of 2021.

Katherine Miller, JD Related seminars and products

Assistant

United States Attorney Northern District of Texas

Katherine Miller is an Assistant United States Attorney and Chief of the Economic Crimes and Public Corruption Section in the Dallas Office of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas.  

She has handled primarily criminal white collar matters for over seventeen years as a federal prosecutor.  She previously served as an Assistant District Attorney in North Texas following several years of private practice at a Dallas firm.  She earned her undergraduate degrees from Southern Methodist University and her law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. 

Andi McNeal, CFE, CPA Related seminars and products

Director of Research

Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Global Headquarters

Andi McNeal, CFE, CPA, is the Director of Research for the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, where she oversees the development and production of educational materials related to the prevention, detection, and investigation of fraud. She is co-author of the ACFE Occupational Fraud: A Report to the Nations, a biennial report on the costs and effects of occupational fraud, as well several other anti-fraud benchmarking reports. She is a frequent speaker on anti-fraud and leadership topics, and she has authored numerous articles for publications such as the Journal of Accountancy, CPA Journal, Internal Auditor, and Fraud Magazine.
 
Prior to joining the staff of the ACFE, she worked as a Certified Public Accountant at a regional accounting firm in Jacksonville, Florida, where she performed audit, tax, and consulting services for small business clients. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Flagler College and a Master of Accountancy degree from the University of North Florida, and she is a past recipient of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ Excellence Award.