lavylilly:
Let's remember that a company where an accountant could be fired on the spot is a one-man company, therefore all these verify stuff may not work. If the accountant had delayed the payment, leading to loss of a major customer, he would still have lost his job. In such an organization, the one-man is the ultimate decider in every transaction, therefore the only real control that works there is confirm from him in all situations, even if by telephone call.

I have worked in one such company before in which the CEO expected instant adherence to his oral instructions, though he would authorise the transaction post-implementation. If the accountant insists on a written or verifiable authorisation before implementation, he would be fired on the spot

KillamanJoe:
It's an unfortunate incident. I plead with everyone to learn from this. Because the MD should know that there is no way the accountant will make that transfer without someone giving the go ahead. Always ask for confirmation, something similar almost happened to me in my former work place but I thank God for my xiaomi mi 6. I recorded the phone call and played for my boss. Then. He still blamed me but at least I had proof.

lavylilly:
Let's remember that a company where an accountant could be fired on the spot is a one-man company, therefore all these verify stuff may not work. If the accountant had delayed the payment, leading to loss of a major customer, he would still have lost his job. In such an organization, the one-man is the ultimate decider in every transaction, therefore the only real control that works there is confirm from him in all situations, even if by telephone call.

I have worked in one such company before in which the CEO expected instant adherence to his oral instructions, though he would authorise the transaction post-implementation. If the accountant insists on a written or verifiable authorisation before implementation, he would be fired on the spot

Threesha:
An accountant lost his job the other day.

Here is what happened:

The Head of Operations walked in and asked the accountant to transfer a large payment to a vendor immediately.

He highlighted that it was critical that the transfer take place urgently or the company would lose a deal.

The HoO further said that the MD/CEO was aware of the transaction and that she would be devastated if the company lost the sale because of untimely payment.

So, on the instruction of the Head of Operations, our young accountant initiated the payment.

It was eventually discovered that there was a major issue with that supplier since they did not deliver the products. An internal review revealed that there were major reservations about working with that supplier. Indeed, the MD was taken aback about why the payment was made to such a problematic supplier.

The accountant was summoned to explain why he processed the payment and said it was per the HoO's instructions. The HoO strongly responded that he had never given such an order.

The accountant was sacked on the spot for negligence because there was no documentary evidence that he followed the HoO's directions.

While many things could have been managed better with adequate processes and controls in place, that is not the point of the story.

Yes, our accountant was a victim of unfortunate circumstances, but when you understand the type of atmosphere you operate in, you must take extra precautions to protect yourself.

1. Always require written or other recorded evidence for all transactions.

2. Verify whatever information you are provided to act on. Even if it comes from the MDs themselves. "Trust but verify." It is difficult to verify without documentation.

3. Finally, impose a system in which "nothing is urgent." There must be some processing time involved. That is the time when you calmly go over all the pertinent information and documents linked to what is on your desk. People use "urgent" and chaotic situations to commit all sorts of folly.

The above may be difficult to implement, especially in weak-control environments (read: one-man businesses), but they are necessary for your peace of mind.

Who can say? You could be the catalyst for change.

Threesha:
An accountant lost his job the other day.

Here is what happened:

The Head of Operations walked in and asked the accountant to transfer a large payment to a vendor immediately.

He highlighted that it was critical that the transfer take place urgently or the company would lose a deal.

The HoO further said that the MD/CEO was aware of the transaction and that she would be devastated if the company lost the sale because of untimely payment.

So, on the instruction of the Head of Operations, our young accountant initiated the payment.

It was eventually discovered that there was a major issue with that supplier since they did not deliver the products. An internal review revealed that there were major reservations about working with that supplier. Indeed, the MD was taken aback about why the payment was made to such a problematic supplier.

The accountant was summoned to explain why he processed the payment and said it was per the HoO's instructions. The HoO strongly responded that he had never given such an order.

The accountant was sacked on the spot for negligence because there was no documentary evidence that he followed the HoO's directions.

While many things could have been managed better with adequate processes and controls in place, that is not the point of the story.

Yes, our accountant was a victim of unfortunate circumstances, but when you understand the type of atmosphere you operate in, you must take extra precautions to protect yourself.

1. Always require written or other recorded evidence for all transactions.

2. Verify whatever information you are provided to act on. Even if it comes from the MDs themselves. "Trust but verify." It is difficult to verify without documentation.

3. Finally, impose a system in which "nothing is urgent." There must be some processing time involved. That is the time when you calmly go over all the pertinent information and documents linked to what is on your desk. People use "urgent" and chaotic situations to commit all sorts of folly.

The above may be difficult to implement, especially in weak-control environments (read: one-man businesses), but they are necessary for your peace of mind.

Who can say? You could be the catalyst for change.

sofeo:
Might be the accountant's first time working in such environment.

That's where experience matters at times.

Oduduwa707:


OP, you got this piece from Linkedin without even bothering to site the source. This is pure fraud as susceptible to most Nigerians. You stole someone else's intellectual property without their consent or at least crediting them. You're indeed very MADDD!

The writer is a very good friend of mine as we attended college ~20 years ago. Threesha, you're a thief!

Threesha:
it was stated on the post, I don't know why it was removed. Next time, always find out before jumping to conclusions.

Oduduwa707:


OP, you got this piece from Linkedin without even bothering to site the source. This is pure fraud as susceptible to most Nigerians. You stole someone else's intellectual property without their consent or at least crediting them. You're indeed very MADDD!

The writer is a very good friend of mine as we attended college ~20 years ago. Threesha, you're a thief!

mactoni91:
Any careless instruction from my superiors should be directed to me via mail(documented)...

I could remember when i was still working fir one XYZ organisation. The maintenance department sent a vendor to come fix somethings.

Obviously, the vendor overly inflated the job price.

When the time for me issue a job completion form to the vendor, i refused signing for the inflated price.

Na so vendor call our Maintenance Dept for HQ.

Some guys from our Maintenance department started calling me via phone to sign.

I told them to send me a mail instructing me to sign for the inflated price. ( They stopped calling)

Last Last the vendor renegotiated and 30% was what we paid.

lavylilly:
Let's remember that a company where an accountant could be fired on the spot is a one-man company, therefore all these verify stuff may not work. If the accountant had delayed the payment, leading to loss of a major customer, he would still have lost his job. In such an organization, the one-man is the ultimate decider in every transaction, therefore the only real control that works there is confirm from him in all situations, even if by telephone call.

I have worked in one such company before in which the CEO expected instant adherence to his oral instructions, though he would authorise the transaction post-implementation. If the accountant insists on a written or verifiable authorisation before implementation, he would be fired on the spot

EdoBoy90:
Inexperienced accountant.


My people know me. since I knew the kind of people Nigerians are, I no dey mouth talk. Send on WhatsApp or email official with your signature.

CountVersailles:

This is true until the one man tells you he didn't give you the same instruction he called ten minutes earlier about. Doing anything as serious as sending huge sums of money to vendors or clients without express written instructions (which should also be backed up with a phone call) is unacceptable in any organization, whether one man or not. In fact, that one man will respect you more as an accountant if you insist on documentary evidence each time before carrying out any instructions. Working without instructions will lead to diasaster soon enough for that one man to fire you regardless. Lesson: always request documentary evidence EVERY SINGLE TIME!

Baronthecelebri:
The accountant should arrange boys and pay the man visit

Jaaqofalltrade:
Doing the right thing is always important. The accountant messed up big time. I doubt they would have sacked him for doing the right thing. Even if it happened that way, he would have held his head up high and even use such evidence to get another job fast.

My 2cent

KillamanJoe:
It's an unfortunate incident. I plead with everyone to learn from this. Because the MD should know that there is no way the accountant will make that transfer without someone giving the go ahead. Always ask for confirmation, something similar almost happened to me in my former work place but I thank God for my xiaomi mi 6. I recorded the phone call and played for my boss. Then. He still blamed me but at least I had proof.