Uncover critical blind spots in your purchasing process and implement robust governance controls to detect, prevent, and eliminate costly procurement fraud before it drains your budget.
Procurement fraud continues to be one of the most financially damaging and operationally disruptive risk areas for organisations, often evolving faster than the controls designed to contain it. From billing fraud and bid rigging to kickbacks, conflicts of interest, and shadow procurement practices, weaknesses in procurement ecosystems can silently accumulate into significant losses over time.
This course examines how these schemes operate in practice, where organisations are most exposed—particularly within vendor master data, split purchases, and sole-source approvals—and how governance gaps create opportunities for abuse. It also explores the emerging dimension of AI-enabled procurement fraud, including synthetic vendors, deepfake invoices, and automated manipulation of procurement workflows.
Participants will gain a practical understanding of what effective procurement governance looks like, including stronger segregation of duties, enhanced vendor due diligence, and robust contract performance monitoring. The course also highlights the evolving role of audit in using spend analytics, vendor master integrity reviews, and real-time red-flag dashboards to detect and prevent procurement-related fraud.
Key Topics Discussed:
Chief Audit Executive | Governance, Risk & SOX Leadership | AI & ESG Integration
Nirpendra (“Nick”) Ajmera is a global audit and risk leader with over 20 years of experience strengthening governance, controls, and decision-making across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. His work spans utilities, telecommunications, manufacturing, IT, logistics, and the public sector, where he has built and led internal audit, SOX, and enterprise risk management functions in complex, asset-intensive environments. In his role as Chief Audit Executive within a major public-sector utility, he leads risk-based audit activities and partners with senior leadership to reinforce governance, enhance accountability, and support organizational performance. His career highlights include leading risk governance during billion-dollar M&A transactions, establishing enterprise-wide audit and risk programs from the ground up, and guiding organizations through transformation and operational change. He has worked across four continents, collaborating with diverse teams and navigating varied regulatory landscapes. Nick is known for his hands-on leadership style, strong ethical discipline, and practical, business-focused approach to strengthening controls and anticipating risk. His thought leadership has been featured in Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors, Kaplan, InternalAudit360, MYCPEONE, New York Weekly, CEO Weekly, Business Today, India Today, and Hindustan Times, reflecting his commitment to advancing the profession through clear and accessible insights. He holds the CA (India), CIA, CISA, and CFE designations, combining deep technical expertise with strategic insight. Outside of his professional work, he writes on internal audit, controls, and governance, and mentors professionals in audit, finance, and risk, supporting their career development with a focus on confidence and integrity.
