Challenge: A national labor union’s state affiliate’s Executive Director had been spending a considerable amount of money on outside consultants whose work product was never shared with others in the organization. In addition, the Executive Director had invested in high-risk securities that had lost the organization millions of dollars. These two factors, coupled with a notable decline in staff morale, made the national labor union increasingly concerned.
Solution: Having successfully worked with Calibre CPA Group in the past, the national union requested that Calibre conduct a comprehensive examination of the state affiliate’s financial activity and overall financial controls. Over the course of three weeks, the Calibre team interviewed multiple people including the Executive Director, finance personnel and third-party consultants. The team also examined the local affiliate’s general ledger, other financial documents and invoices submitted by the various consultants engaged by the Executive Director.
Result: After the examination process was complete, Calibre prepared a detailed report and presented it to the affiliate’s board. The team uncovered a number of areas where basic and required financial practices were not followed. These practices included the hiring of consultants without proper vetting, contracts or a specific scope of work and compensating vendors prior to receiving any deliverables. After the report was presented, the Executive Director of the state affiliate resigned and the national union took over control.