Welcome to my site. I have spoken and been the keynote speaker for many conferences, including the ABA, ACC, ACFE, IIA, and IMA to name a few. I have designed customized training for the board, senior leadership, legal, compliance, internal audit, and others for some of the world’s largest organizations.
“I have had the pleasure to hear Jonathan Marks speak on a number of occasions. …most recently at a Fraud conference sponsored by the Long Island Institute of Internal Audit. Jonathan gave a dynamic and engaging half day presentation on fraud in financial reporting. He engages his audience with his expertise and knowledge of risk management, fraud and internal audit. His ability to share his experiences in fraud investigations over the past thirty years coupled with his interactive approach with his audience made for a compelling and memorable presentation.” Chief Audit Executive
If you are interested in booking me for your next event or need customized training, please email me with the date or dates, location and address of presentation, the audience make-up, the subjects you would like covered, and the duration of the talk or training.
I have provided you with some Selected Training Programs (See below) and please peruse my blog posts for some additional topics and ideas. Keep in mind I speak and provide training on most anything related to governance, risk, and compliance, with a focus on fraud and forensics.
I will do my best to get back to you quickly.
Thank you!
Jonathan T. Marks, CPA, CFF, CITP, CGMA, CFE and NACD Board Fellow
Selected Training Programs
Management Override of Internal Controls
The risk of management override of internal controls to commit fraud exists in any organization. When the opportunity to override internal controls is combined with powerful incentives to meet accounting objectives, senior management might engage in fraudulent financial reporting. This session will examine management override, focusing on the differences between the override of existing controls versus other, more prevalent breakdowns. It will also explore actions to help mitigate the threat of management override, approaches to auditing for management override and the psychology behind management’s override of controls. You Will Learn How To:
- Identify red flags of management overriding controls
- Ascertain an approach to auditing for management override
- Assess the latest trends and research regarding management override of controls
- Develop a better fraud risk assessment that highlights areas and gatekeepers that might have a greater chance of overriding controls.
Operationalizing Compliance – Master Class with Tom Fox, Esquire
The Master Class developed by Tom Fox, provides a unique opportunity for any level of FCPA compliance practitioner, from the seasoned Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) and Chief Audit Executive (CAE), Chief Legal Counsel (CLO), to the practitioner who is new to the compliance profession.
If you are looking for a training class to turbocharge your knowledge on the nuts and bolts of a best practices compliance program going forward, this is the class for you to attend. Moreover, as I limit the class to 20 attendees, you will have an intensive focus group of like-minded compliance practitioners with which you can share best practices. It allows us to tailor the discussion to your needs. Mary Shirley, an attendee at the recent Boston Master Class said, “This is a great two-day course for getting new folks up to speed on what matters in Compliance programs.”
Tom Fox is one of the leading commentators in the compliance space partners with Jonathan T. Marks to bring a unique insight of what many companies have done right and many have done not so well over the years. This professional experience has enabled him to put together a unique educational opportunity for any person interested in anti-corruption compliance. Simply stated, there is no other compliance training on the market quite like it. Armed with this information, at the conclusion of the Doing Compliance Master Class, you will be able to implement or enhance your compliance program, with many ideas at little or no cost.
The Doing Compliance Master Class will move from the theory of the FCPA into the doing of compliance and how you must document this work to create a best practices compliance program. Building from the Ten Hallmarks of an Effective Compliance, using the questions posed from the Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs and the FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy as a guide, you will learn the intricacies of risk assessments; what should be included in your policies and procedures; the five-step life cycle of third-party risk evaluation and management; tone throughout your organization; training and using other corporate functions to facilitate cost-effective compliance programs.
Highlights of the training include:
- Understanding the underlying legal basis for the law, what is required for a violation and how that information should be baked into your compliance program;
- What are the best practices of an effective compliance program;
- Why internal controls are the compliance practitioners best friend;
- How you can use transaction monitoring to not only make your compliance program more robust but as a self-funding mechanism;
- Your ethical requirements as a compliance practitioner;
- How to document what you have accomplished;
- Risk assessments – what they are and how you can perform one each year.
You will be able to walk away from the class with a clear understanding of what anti-corruption compliance is and what it requires; an overview of international corruption initiatives and how they all relate to FCPA compliance; how to deal with third parties, from initial introduction through contracting and managing the relationship, what should be included in your gifts, travel, entertainment (GTE) and hospitality policies; the conundrum of facilitation payments; charitable donations and political contributions, and trends in compliance. You will also learn about the importance of internal controls and how to meet the strict liability burden present around this requirement of FCPA compliance.
Ethics and Governance Training
This session will cover how ethics is key to good governance and how governance fits into your anti-fraud program. Moreover, we will explore the components of a Sample Code of Ethics, the cost of ethical lapses, organizational situations that encourage bad behavior, the new ethics paradigm, and how to spot a moral meltdown.
Corporate Governance During a Crisis
We also discuss leading practices in crisis management and present several scenarios allow the participant(s) to work though mock crisis scenarios. For example, in your first week at your company, you just received information about an alleged massive fraud and you are now in a crisis. In this session, members of the audience will play different roles within the company (members of the board, legal department, managers, etc.) to have a discussion, including:
- What type of crisis plan do you have, if any?
- What to do and how to formulate a plan of action?
- Who to call first, how to prioritize tasks, and where to prioritize resources?
- Who (internal and external players) to get involved and when to get them involved
- What data is needed when a crisis hits?
- How to prepare for the media and when to reach out?
- How to communicate with customers, vendors and suppliers, regulatory agencies, and other parties?
Fraud Risk Assessment Process and Guidance
Many professionals struggle with developing a fraud risk assessment that is meaningful. We discuss the objectives of a fraud risk assessment, the components of a fraud, and key considerations for developing an effective assessment. Then we explore the sources of risk, the fraud risk universe, and some of the key components of the assessment. Lastly, we walk through the key steps in the assessment process and walk through a sample fraud risk assessment that considers COSO’s Principle 8, which contains considerably more discussion on fraud and considers the potential of fraud as a principle of internal control.
FCPA (Bribery and Corruption): Building a Culture of Compliance
This session covers why compliance is important and the new guidance issues by the DOJ. We also explore current regulatory enforcement trends, whistleblowers Under Dodd-Frank, the U.S. Federal Sentencing Guidelines, risk-based third-party due diligence, way to thwart an investigation, differences and similarities between the FCPA and the U.K. Bribery Act, successor liability, and provides the participant with a proven 13-Step Action Plan.
Fraud Investigations
Knowing what to do when an allegation of fraud is presented is critical. Failing to understand the process could jeopardize the ability to prosecute wrongdoers. This session discusses why investigations are important, inherent risk and exposures, the types of investigations: internal and independent, board considerations, triaging an allegation, investigative challenges, and keys to running a successful investigation, and why root cause analysis should be considered after completing the investigation.
Third Party Risk Management and Oversight
Third party risk is the biggest nemesis when it comes to FCPA violations. This session discusses the key components of a compliance program and why it needs to be evolving to meet the business and compliance challenges, which are constantly occurring across the globe. We explore the latest DOJ guidance on the evaluation of corporate compliance programs. We build our discussion on the foundation of the key steps to be included in a third-party risk management program and cover some of the red flags of agents and consultants.
Putting the Freud in Fraud: The Mind Behind the White Collar Criminal
To properly fight corporate fraud we need to understand how a fraudster’s normal differs, so executives, managers and board members can develop more effective anti-fraud programs that take into account the behavioral and environmental factors that are common in cases of white-collar crime. By establishing an environment in which ethical behavior is expected — and by understanding how white-collar criminals look at the world differently — it is possible to begin closing the gaps in internal controls, develop a proactive fraud risk assessment and response program and significantly reduce the financial and reputational risks associated with fraud.
In this session, we take a closer look at the personality traits of individual perpetrators of massive fraud.
- Discuss the basics of profiling and identifying elements of behavior common among white-collar criminals.
- Discover what role company culture plays in the commission of fraud.
- Hear cutting-edge ideas and methods to help detect and deter fraud.
Fraud Overview
This session is a “nuts and bolts” discussion about fraud and responding to fraud in an effort to reduce the incidence of fraud and white-collar crime. We go into the characteristics of fraud, who commits fraud, the fraud triangle and Pentagon™, the components of fraud, the regulatory environment & the focus on increased personal responsibility, internal controls to deter and detect fraud, and anti-fraud programs.
Triaging a Whistleblower Allegation
As corporations continue to adopt whistleblower programs, many find themselves struggling to manage burgeoning caseloads. As a result, serious internal fraud investigations can be delayed (with mounting losses) while less consequential complaints are being investigated. The lack of a timely, systematic and repeatable process for evaluating and prioritizing whistleblower tips, which can also expose an organization to increased regulatory risk. While there is no single, “right” method for following up on whistleblower complaints, this session discusses Why Investigating allegations or tips are important, why timeliness matters, investigation challenges, and provides the participant with a sample approach.
Skepticism: A Primary Weapon in the Fight Against Fraud
What happens when we don’t ask why? Professional skepticism occurs when those responsible for fighting fraud take nothing for granted, continuously question what they hear and see and critically assess all evidence and statements. This session we discuss the role of independent reviewer or inspector, particularly of your own assumptions, whether you are placing undue weight on prior risk assessments or discounting evidence inconsistent with your expectations, and pressures placed on you to truncate procedures or make unwarranted assumptions to beat time constraints.
Root Cause Analysis
The regulators are expecting more today and want to know that your remediation efforts are not treating the symptoms), but rather the root cause(s).
Root cause analysis is a tool to help identify not only what and how an event occurred, but also why it happened. This analysis is a key element of a fraud risk management program and is now a best practice or hallmark of an organizations compliance program. When able to determine why an event or failure occurred, it is then possible to recommend workable corrective measures that deter future fraud events of the type observed. It is important that those conducting the root cause analysis are thinking critically by asking the right questions (sometimes probing), applying the proper level of skepticism, and when appropriate examining the information (evidence) from multiple perspectives.
This program is designed to introduce the common methods used for conducting root cause analysis and to develop an understanding of how to identify root causes (not just causal factors) using proven techniques. In addition, we will demonstrate how to initiate a root cause analysis incident exercise and work with senior management, legal, compliance, and internal audit on an appropriate resolution. We also introduce the “spheres” acting around the “meta model of fraud” and how to use those “spheres” in the root cause process. Finally, this program will present the “three lines of defense”, which provides the audit committee and senior management with a better understanding where the break downs occurred.
