More organisations are now starting to look at how softer controls can influence the behaviour of their workforce to really help create an anti-fraud culture that is not simply process-driven but a mindset lived by the people who use these processes every day. So a key question is how best to deliver an effective solution to this soft approach to fraud prevention?
Of course creating any kind of culture within an organisation involves many factors but one key area that is growing in both scope and impact is training and awareness-raising.
While training has long been a staple of the fight against fraud, the content and delivery of that training continues to evolve to cope with more global and complex organisational structures. The key area of evolution has been driven by the technology that is needed to keep more complex organisations connected.
The movement of fraud and compliance training into digital spaces has run parallel to the general trend for both purely online and blended training solutions that are much more cost-effective than traditional classroom-based learning.
More recently, the drive to deliver real workplace application of new practices has replaced the discrete once-yearly e-learning module with more sustainable solutions such as flexible learning management systems, serious games, and digital forums and portfolios to track and support learners in applying the skills they have learnt.
The proliferation of mobile devices has also led to advancements in how training and awareness can become part of the day-to-day fight against fraud and corruption. High-risk employees out in the field are no longer at a distance from the company policies; instead with their mobile device always within reach they have a ready source of information, guidelines and training material.
Tablets are fast becoming a business necessity and with the introduction of 4G streaming delivering high quality training content to mobile devices will become even easier.
There is undoubtedly still a clear need for the delivery of face to face training, and there continues to be a demand for high-quality classroom courses, but the growth in the scope of digital training has allowed it to move beyond being merely a cost effective way to reach everyone in an organisation.
Now digital training is addressing how to achieve ongoing behavioural modification and cultural change, becoming a part of the workplace rather than a single event.
Concepts such as gamification incentivise learners to engage with content and measure their ability to apply concepts effectively, and enterprise mobile applications (applications distributed within a secure private system, rather than through the public app stores) can provide almost constant resources such as guidelines, decision trees, and whistleblowing hotlines.
As more organisations look to make lasting changes to the way they combat fraud, the role of learning technology in creating that change and promoting an anti-fraud culture will continue to grow.
The question now is how best to take advantage of opportunities presented by the developments in learning technology to combat fraud and how to tailor it to specific contexts.
