On February 15, nineteen Accountancy majors participated in the 6th Annual Douglas Millett Forensic Accounting Case Competition. Student teams were asked to research and identify public firms that were exhibiting warning signs of fraud and suspicious business activity, develop at least one theory for how a potential fraud could be perpetrated, propose alternative explanations for the observed pattern of red flags, and detail how they would investigate the situation to reach a conclusion. Companies students analyzed included TransDigm (aerospace industry), Six Flags, and Tesla. All five teams delivered high-quality presentations in front of a panel of forensic accountants.
The winning team comprised Aaron Dutt, Ian Young, Hannah Ragland, and Megan McGee (photo above, L-R, with Professor Jon Grenier on left).
In second place was the team composed of Andrew Iurato, William Distin, Michael Hazel, and Jess Bierman.
Accountancy senior Ian Young has taken part in the competition for the past three years. He said, “While I find all areas of accounting interesting, I find forensic accounting to be fascinating. People go to enormous lengths to con others out of their money, but if you know where to look, there are always red flags present with these fraud schemes. I want to learn how to identify these red flags to help prevent myself and others from falling prey to fraud.”
Jess Bierman described the experience as a valuable way to display what she has learned throughout her accounting education. “We reached out to professionals in the aerospace industry who knew about the suspicious activity of TransDigm to get more information. Additionally, we reached out to our professors for insight on the process we should be taking to investigate; Dr. Jon Pyzoha was a big help with this as he taught me about different auditing techniques to target the red flags discovered,” she shared. “Once we had finished our research, we practiced to make sure our presentation was not going to be too long and thought of possible Q&A questions we could be asked.”
Michael Hazel added, “By collaborating [with teammates] on a high level throughout the competition, we were able to leverage our diverse knowledge bases, competencies, and perspectives to formulate more compelling arguments than any of us could have devised on our own. Participating in this competition has been one of the most rewarding experiences I have had during my time here at Miami. I would highly recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity to sign up!”
Retired Accountancy Professor Jim Krause, Association of Certified Fraud Examiners Southwest Ohio Chapter President Amanda Malusky Krauss, and VML Associate Director of Digital Experience Strategy Laura Borel served as judges for the competition.
We are grateful to donor Mike Millett, who sponsored the case competition in memory of his brother Douglas Millett.
Photos by Jay Murdock