What Would You Do?
When we are faced with an ethical issue, it is difficult to distinguish between right and wrong. For example, taking a kick back or a bribe to clean up books in a manner that pass an audit. There are situations which are not completely black and white, and which create an ethical dilemma.
Accounting is a profession that thrives in honesty and transparency, not to say professionalism and respect for privacy, or maintaining a high level of confidentiality. Aside from that accounting as a profession is complex, it is not always as straightforward as we would like it to be, but we can be transparent about our demeanor.
Businesses will always try to hide certain parts of their books to auditors because they have to, not because they want to. And as far as auditors go, transparency but rational is also important, not rationalization of fraud. It is not necessary to deem a business incompetent based on factors that are irrelevant or minimal.
Sometimes we encounter situations that are complicated, but we must break them down and recognize what is important to an audit or a tax return and factors that are outside the norm or policies implemented by the Internal Revenue Service.
We are not the friend of the client, we are their accountant and as auditor roles go, we are a professional looking for errors, and not participants in their business. Now that this is clear, it is necessary to maintain a level of neutrality in which we are not biased nor veered in any direction, only making decisions based on facts.
As I recall during the pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci kept a cool head during a tragic moment in history around the world. Everyone was affected but Dr. Fauci focused on the data that was provided by medical staff and other counterparts to have the least casualties.
In one way or another, we can learn that keeping a neutral, transparent and unbiased demeanor can provide outcomes that are relevant and forthcoming for the audit. An ethical demeanor is necessary for the performance of duties in the accounting and auditing profession, even when the direct elements are not clear because two wrongs do not make a right and right is sometimes not as uncomplicated as we want it to be.