Checks and Balances!
I will make this blog a little shorter than normal, we have just had a budget and we’re heading towards the busiest time of year. In the Accountancy sector, everything depends on checks & balances. Checks and balances began in Ancient Rome. Yes way back then! Why? The short story was about stopping any person […]
I will make this blog a little shorter than normal, we have just had a budget and we’re heading towards the busiest time of year.
In the Accountancy sector, everything depends on checks & balances.
Checks and balances began in Ancient Rome. Yes way back then!
Why?
The short story was about stopping any person from gaining too much power.
Absolute power = undesirable outcomes.
Remember Nick Leeson, a derivatives trader who single-handedly destroyed Barings Bank in 1995.
It’s a perfect example of absolutely no checks and balances. Or one person having too much power.
“Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing,” says Warren Buffet.
Wise words.
In Rome, the legislature had a system of checks and balances. To ensure that citizens were taxed fairly. Taxes couldn’t be increased above a fixed rate.
They couldn’t be imposed unfairly.
No one likes to be overcharged.
In the modern world as in Ancient Rome, we all need checks and balances.
HDUK are offering Microsoft Azure customers a free-of-charge audit. We grab our oversized Sherlock Holmes magnifying glass and forensically look for overcharging.
On average people have seen a 26% saving.
“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?”
Which means “Who will guard the guards themselves?”
Oversight and accountability.
Checks and balances.
What worked in the past also works now.
Sometimes we need a little help to catch the oversight.