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Urban myths for accountants

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27th Aug 2010
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As the summer limps to a close and the nights draw in, Carol McLachlan looks at those chilling tales of professional woe.

An urban myth is an apocryphal, second-hand story, told as true and just plausible enough to be believed, about some horrific, embarrassing, ironic or exasperating series of events that supposedly happened to a real person. It's likely to be framed as a cautionary tale - and let's face it, our profession is rife with them. From tax loops to arithmetic enigmas to the oddity of the individual, we've got them all.

If you're not sure whether the story you're hearing is one of these, look out for the following characteristics:

  • It's a narrative
  • It's alleged to be true
  • It's just plausible enough to be believed
  • Its veracity is unproven
  • It's of spontaneous (or indeterminate) origin
  • It varies in the telling
  • It's likely to take the form of a cautionary tale
  • It circulates by being passed from individual to individual, either orally or in written form
  • It's attributed to putatively trustworthy second-hand sources
  • Finally, it may not be false!

Big Four folklore
There are too many Big Four fairytales circulating to count, but I'll share my favourite one below. It's rather chilling, but alleged to be true... although aren't they all?

Once upon a time there was a brand new graduate trainee. On his first day in the field, he was sent to a portacabin on an industrial estate to report for duty. He joined a team of six who'd already been working on the audit for two weeks. Keeping himself to himself, doing what he was told, he kept his head down and got on with his work. Nobody bothered him, not the team, nor the office.

It was only at the end of the fourth day when he was checking in with a fellow trainee on the phone and he mentioned the name of the audit that he realised something wasn't quite right. "What do you mean you're on the Widget and Digit audit?" his friend questioned. "That's not one of our clients. I know for a fact that they're audited by another firm, my dad's a shareholder."

Oh the shame! Our poor auditor had joined the wrong Big Four team and had been beavering away for the wrong firm for the best part of the week. He didn't notice, but then neither did anyone else in the team. Our hapless hero slunk off during lunch break, never to be heard from again.

Have you heard any funny/interesting accounting urban myths recently? Share your chilling tales below.

 

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By Albert Camus
27th Aug 2010 18:14

Big Four folklore

The story of the family company accounts that were dealt with by the 1 year in grads, reviewed and signed off by the firm that were sent out with the wrong company name and number on always sounded just about creditable and always amused me.

Albert Camus

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By Trevor Scott
27th Aug 2010 18:33

The balance sheet that didn't balance

Such a set of financial statements had been returned to the practice, the head partner was utterly dismayed at how such a thing could happen. However, given the standards one favoured member of staff was permitted to get away with I wasn't too surprised. As she was on holiday I was given the job of resolving the balance sheet that didn't balance, only to learn that the notes were inadequate with some numbers missing all together, but the worst was to learn that the trial balance didn't balance either and I couldn't even figure out how some P&L figures had been arrived at. The revised financial statements were considerably different and the head partner took legal advice before submitting them, which turned out to be wise considering the consequences...and the then JMU visit.

When the staff member returned to the office she made a quick visit to the head partner, didn't say anything to anyone and then stayed in her office for a week. 

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Mark Lee headshot 2023
By Mark Lee
31st Aug 2010 10:30

Did he become senior partner?

 My favourite such story was told to me many years ago and I think it fits your criteria Carol.

On his first day on an audit a raw junior calls his senior over to explain that he thinks he's uncovered a fraud. The senior tells him to stop trying to be clever and to get on with his work.  The junior reluctantly does as he is told. When he later sees the assistant manager he tries to explain his suspicions but is again given short shrift. More certain of his ground though he calls the audit manager back in the office. The manager isn't pleased to be disturbed and asks if the junior has spoken to anyone on site. He then refuses to listen further and tells the junior to get on with his work.

The junior is annoyed that no one will listen to him. He calls the audit partner who is astonished to receive such a call but listens to the junior and asks if he has brought his concerns to the attention of the senior or managers on the job. The partner nevertheless listens to the junior and immediately plans a visit to the site. There he examines the file of purchase invoices that gave the junior cause for concern. The partner agrees the junior's assessment of the situation. A long standing fraud is later identified and the police are called in.

What evidence had the audit junior identified?

He was ploughing through a file of purchase invoices and noted that every month one of the invoices had no folds in it. In those days all invoices arrived by post and were folded to fit in (what we now call) A6 sized envelopes. The junior concluded, rightly, as it turned out, that the invoices without folds had been generated on site./ It transpired that payment of the sums charged by the false invoices had in fact gone to a director's private bank account.

Legend has it that the junior concerned went on to become senior partner of a big 8 firm (as they were at the time).

Mark

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By taxhound
03rd Sep 2010 10:56

Wrong audit

When I worked in the tax department of a big 4 firm, I was sent out to review the tax on an audit being carried out at another accountant's premises.  I was shown into  a room and, whilst no one looked familiar, was not too surprised as we worked in a big office and other offices were involved in the audit too.   Also, I was quite new to the firm.

It was only about 5 minutes rather than 4 days before I discovered I was in the wrong room - two audits were going on in that office at the same time, but I had unpacked my bag by then and was ready to get going. 

Just goes to show what is lacking in big 4 firms - familiarity amongst staff anyone?

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By hclairesavage
15th Sep 2010 15:24

creditors circularisation.....

........... some years ago the office audit junior in my Big Six firm was put in charge of mailing out the circularisation letters, which in those days included a pre addressed return envelope. He mailed them out in the prepaid envelopes so we got them all back the next day! I still laugh about it now some twenty years later. 

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