The Association has identified six broad areas of core competency for inspectors general and their senior staff. The Institute program’s five-day curriculum covers the following six core competency areas:

• Context of the inspector general function
• Ethics
• Legal issues
• Public management issues
• Investigating fraud, waste, and abuse
• Audits, inspections, and reviews

Overview of the Inspector General Function

• The history of the inspector general concept
• Typology of inspectors general: federal, state, and local
• The key factors, such as independence, responsibility, and authority

Ethics and the Inspector General

• The source of ethical standards
• The nature and role of ethics laws
• The practical application of ethical issues to the responsibility of inspectors general

Legal Issues

• How the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution impact the conduct of investigations and reviews by offices of inspectors general
• The impact of employment law on the conduct of investigations and reviews

Public Management Issues

• Current issues in public management and how they impact offices of inspectors general

Audit, Inspections, and Review

• The various approaches to audits, inspections, and reviews
• The skills required to manage the audit function and challenges to managing audits
• The standards applicable to audits, inspections, and reviews
• The importance of internal and management controls to audits, inspections, and reviews and sources of standards for controls
• The audit process and quality control
• The similarities and differences between audits and investigations

Investigating Fraud, Waste, and Abuse

• How to establish an effective investigative unit
• The source and limits of investigative authority and power
• The investigative process and management issues raised by investigations
• Approaches to investigations
• Standards for the conduct of investigations
• The similarities and differences between investigations and audits

Certified Inspector General Auditor® Curriculum

This Institute program is at the overview level and assumes knowledge of investigatory skills.

The Association has identified seven broad areas of core competency for inspectors general investigators. The Institute program’s five-day curriculum covers the following seven core competency areas:

• The investigative process
• Professional standards for conducting investigations
• Ethics in investigations
• Legal issues
• Procurement fraud and computer crime
• Investigative techniques
• Working with auditors

Course Learning Objectives and Program Content

Quality Standards for Investigations

• Knowledge and understanding the need for standards
• The importance of standards for investigations
• Knowledge and understanding the specific standards for investigations

Legal Issues in IG Investigations

• The legal distinction between administrative and criminal investigations
• The legal issues confronted by investigators
• Criminal versus administrative interviews
• Presenting cases to prosecutors and testimony in court

Interviewing Techniques

• Numerically quantifying a forensic interview to accurately predict truth or deception
• Understanding how to classify nonverbal behaviors indicative of truth and deception
• How truthful and deceptive suspects will differ in verbally answering specific questions
• How and why truthful and deceptive suspects will differ in their written behaviors

Report Writing

• Organizing and maintaining statements for investigative reports
• When to take statements and the type of required statements
• Preparation of proper case syllabus

Financial Fraud Investigations

• Indicators of potential fraud
• Critical processes for uncovering and investigating financial fraud
• Lack of internal controls in organizations

Computer, Forensic & Computer Data Analysis

• Understanding computer forensics support in the investigative process
• Protocols and procedures for handling and processing of computer evidence
• Identification of patterns of fraud, waste and abuse

Contract Procurement Fraud

• Recognition of procurement/contract fraud schemes
• Investigative steps required in investigations
• Available criminal, civil and administrative remedies

Employee Misconduct Investigations

• Examples of misconduct in public agencies.
• Identification of potential sources of information in misconduct.
• Avoiding investigative difficulties in misconduct.
• Case notification tactics.

Multi-Jurisdictional Investigations

• Importance of coordination and communication among federal, state and local authorities in IG investigations
• Presentment of significant multi-jurisdictional IG investigations

Coordination and Cooperation between Auditors and Investigators

• Coordination and communication between investigative and audit personnel
• Agency-specific responsibility and functions
• Joint projects between investigators and auditors

Ethics and IG Investigations

• Nature and role of ethics laws and standards
• The nexus between IG investigations and ethical issues.
• Ethics as second nature