With more than a decade of experience in leading performance audits, forensic audits, and process improvement initiatives, Leslie specializes in the prevention, detection, and investigation of occupational fraud through innovative technologies. Prior to joining Withum, she spent nearly a decade at the U.S. Government Accountability Office conducting performance and forensic audits to develop recommendations to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of program operations government-wide. She also served as one of the agency’s certified adjunct faculty, instructing staff agency-wide on the principles, processes, and theories behind the Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS), also known as the “Yellow Book.”
Leslie has also served as an instructor and facilitator for a wide variety of classes on topics such as GAGAS audit design, evaluation of audit evidence, audit quality assurance procedures, fraud detection and prevention, cybersecurity and information technology, data analytics, psychology of white collar criminals, interviewing techniques for auditors and investigators, principles of effective feedback for supervisors, and process improvement in the workplace.
She is the D.C.-Metro area’s leading private instructor on the use of IDEA in audit, investigative, and reporting applications. She is recognized as a thought leader on fraud and security topics by the Business Learning Institute and is a doctoral student at George Washington University studying Human and Organizational Learning, with an emphasis on change management techniques in support of increased organizational ethics and effective training methodologies for the compliance profession.
Leslie holds Bachelor’s degrees in Accounting and in Finance; she holds a Master’s degree in Digital Forensics and Cyber Investigations. She is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), a Certified IDEA Data Analyst (CIDA), and is certified by the SAS Institute as a Base Programmer for SAS 9. She is a member of the International Association for Education in Ethics, the Academy of Management, the Academy of Human Resource Development, the American Educational Research Association, and the Society for Judgment and Decision Making.