Audimation Services selected Paul Soos, manager of Anti-Fraud & AP Recovery Services for CBIZ Risk & Advisory Services, as the recipient of the 2013 IDEA User of Excellence Award. He is being recognized for using CaseWare IDEA® in innovative ways to proactively search for fraud, and for sharing his knowledge with others.

Paul Soos, CIA, CFE, CICA, began using IDEA when he joined CBIZ in 2006. As the national practice leader for the anti-fraud services group, Soos assists CBIZ clients with conducting anti-fraud reviews where he extensively uses data analytics to search for potential indicators of fraud in likely areas including accounts payable, accounts receivable, journal entries, travel and entertainment expenses and human resource information. He works with clients to identify high-risk areas, and develops specific tests based on risk profiles. Soos prefers IDEA over other available data analysis tools for its ease of use. He also likes IDEA’s ability to record and duplicate formulas and scripts, and its capacity to analyze an entire population of data rather than a sample.

“Paul Soos is an exemplary IDEA user,” said Carolyn Newman, president, Audimation Services. “He takes full advantage of technology, and is well known for pushing the boundaries of what analytics can do to prevent fraud, reduce risk, and save time. Another remarkable characteristic is Paul’s willingness to give back to others. He serves as a respected mentor to colleagues and fellow IDEA users, and shares his knowledge in a way that’s easy to understand.”

“While I had used other analytics tools in the past, I found IDEA significantly easier to use because it doesn’t require any programming knowledge,” said Soos. “It streamlines our work so we don’t have to start from scratch each time. With IDEA, we’re able to do things in a more efficient and comprehensive manner, which always pleases our clients.”

Soos typically runs a standard set of anti-fraud tests that apply to various types of businesses. He then develops industry-specific tests to help identify and limit the occurrences of fraud, waste and abuse. Prior to joining CBIZ, Soos served in audit and inventory control roles with the Scott Fetzer Company (a division of Berkshire Hathaway), Little Tikes and Norandex/Reynolds. Soos is an experienced public speaker on topics such as fraud, internal proactive anti-fraud platforms, data mining, p-card auditing and ethics. He is a designated IDEA champion within CBIZ and actively participates in the Central Ohio IDEA Users Group.

Soos will receive the award in November at the AICPA Forensic & Valuation Conference.