Good morning and welcome back after what I hope was a restful Labor Day. Now you can have a little news as a treat to get you back into work mode on this short week.
Consulting and auditing major Deloitte has rolled out a tough new rule for its senior leadership under which partners and executive directors who skip their annual health check-ups will now face steep penalties. According to a report by Livemint, this move underscores the growing focus of India Inc on employee health and well-being.
According to the report, at a meeting called by its Partners Matters team (which handles HR issues) on Friday evening, Deloitte told its top 1,000 leaders that health compliance is no longer optional. Partners who fail to undergo their annual medical check-up will be fined ₹1 lakh ($1,100 USD) , while executive directors will pay ₹50,000 ($567 USD).
More buyout shops could soon enter the audit sector as firms and investors line up talks with regulators to discuss potential takeovers.
An audit firm approached the Financial Reporting Council in June about potentially changing its capital structure, according to data provided to Financial News in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. An investor approached the FRC in July about a similar change, the data also shows. At least six such moves have been made over the past two years.
Financial Reporting Council = their PCAOB. So all deals are getting run through the regulators before anything’s official, I guess?
A newly released report from RSM Australia is urging companies to pay attention to governance blind spots to catch early warning signs commonly linked to fraud, ethical lapses and other compliance risks.
Based on the findings, the five main signs of a workplace culture at high risk of fraud, corruption or misconduct included a lack of regularly updated fraud and corruption risk assessments, absence of a fraud and corruption control policy, inadequate enforcement of unacceptable conduct, no assigned ownership of fraud and corruption risks, and an ineffective whistleblower program.
“Toxic and dysfunctional workplaces are bad for business and there is a strong link between weak organisational culture and misconduct, fraud and compliance failures,” said Dan Hutchens, a partner in risk advisory.
CFOs are overwhelmingly coming from inside the house, an abrupt shift from last year, reports Fortune:
There’s a dramatic swing toward internal promotions for CFOs, with external hiring of finance chiefs down almost 50%. Data from executive search firm Crist Kolder Associates’s summer 2025 Volatility Report, shared with CFO Daily, which covers data from 667 Fortune 500 and S&P 500 companies, highlights this trend.
Through July 31, only 28% of CFOs were hired externally—a stark contrast to last year’s 10-year high, when 47% of CFO turnovers were filled by candidates from outside the organization.
Illinois has finally released its audited Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR).
The bad news: It’s for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023.
According to the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), states should release these reports within 180 days of the fiscal year’s end. Illinois blew past that deadline—releasing its 2023 report a staggering 774 days late, setting a new national record.
The delayed release of Illinois’ 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) left lawmakers and taxpayers without critical financial insights during key budgeting decisions. For instance, without access to audited financial data from the previous two years, Illinois still approved a record $55.2 billion budget for 2026, a $2 billion increase from the prior year. This lack of information risks overlooking hidden liabilities and revenue shortfalls.
Who’s gonna break that record next?
Virginia EMS should be getting better after an audit discovered things were pretty bad, reports local WRIC:
Nearly a year after an internal audit uncovered millions of dollars in fraud and mismanagement at Virginia’s Office of Emergency Medical Services (EMS), state health officials say the issues have been resolved, debts have been paid and new controls are now in place.
The 2024 audit revealed $33 million in unpaid debts and $4 million in fraudulent charges within the EMS office, including funds meant for local rescue squads and trauma hospitals.
Since the audit, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) has overhauled leadership, implemented stricter procurement rules and restored critical funding to local EMS providers.
See, this is why government audits are a very important part of the social fabric.
Dr. Hickey, who recently retired as a Captain in the U.S. Coast Guard, most recently served as vice provost for academic administration and formerly served as dean of the School of Leadership and Management at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.
Dr. Hickey has taught courses in financial accounting, managerial accounting, intermediate accounting, cost accounting, and federal budgeting. She is affiliated with the Association of Government Accountants and previously served as a reviewer for the Journal of Accounting Education.
Her research interests are in governmental financial reporting and accounting education.
Dr. Hickey has an MBA with a specialty in finance from Florida Atlantic University, and received her PhD in accounting from West Virginia University. Really makes you feel a bit lazy, doesn’t it?
This guy got promoted at his firm in Indiana and got a whole news story about it and everything. I really love these hyper-local stories, imagine how proud someone’s grandma is to see their baby’s career achievement in the paper? If that sounds like sarcasm I assure you it is not.
CLH, CPAs & Consultants has announced that Wyatt Stacy has been promoted to Senior Accountant in the firm. Wyatt initiated his career with CLH in 2022 as a staff accountant following his graduation from Valparaiso University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting.
Yeah, we knew. I may or may not have dabbled a bit in Vampire: the Masquerade in high school myself. Congrats, Wyatt!
The Treasury Department has given Axios a first look at the list of 68 jobs that qualify for a new tax deduction under the “no tax on tips” pledge in President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” You’re not on it, but you don’t make overtime anyway so it doesn’t matter.
And that’s it for this news brief. If you have a tip, have seen a story we should know about, or just want to talk you are always welcome to email or text with whatever it is, day or night. Why so many of you guys choose weekends to blow up my phone I’ll never know but it’s all good.
