The role of corporate governance in addressing the factors contributing to commercial crime in large organisations in South Africa

Abstract

Organisations today face the pervasive problem of commercial crime. The losses suffered result in reduced profitability, diminished shareholders' returns, loss of growth opportunities and, in certain instances, even threaten the sustainability of the organisations. Despite dedicated investigation units and courts, specific legislation and enhanced awareness and monitoring in organisations in South Africa, commercial crime still abounds. Establishing the key drivers of commercial crime will enable organisations to better evaluate their risks and to understand how practising good corporate governance can assist in this regard. Qualitative research using exploratory methods was utilised firstly to establish the key drivers of commercial crime; and secondly, to assess the role of corporate governance in addressing these drivers. A total of 13 semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with management and executive leadership in a diverse range of organisations to explore this topic. A further seven interviews were conducted with experts in the field of forensic investigation and corporate governance, whose insights were used to test the initial findings by process of triangulation. The insights gleaned formed the basis of the data that was analysed to produce the findings in this research. The research found both internal and external drivers of commercial crime and identified common themes, despite the diverse nature of the organisations researched. Collusion between employees as well as financial distress due to the current economic climate, were found to be amongst the key drivers. It was found that corporate governance does in fact play a critical role in addressing these drivers, and thereby making organisations more conscious and proactive to address commercial crime; however, poor or inadequate implementation of corporate governance standards weakens the effectiveness thereof. The reality that corporate governance is not legislated contributes to the haphazard manner in which it is applied in different organisations. Lastly, corporate governance needs to be supported by an ethical culture in order to serve its purpose, and this is neglected by certain organisations. The findings from the triangulation exercise supported the above findings.