You recognized the treasurer as a former aide to Ernie Eggers, who was convicted of fraud several years ago

What will be an ideal response?

PROBLEM:Because the position of corporate treasurer involves managing cash and other financial assets, it is critical that the position be filled with someone of unquestioned commitment to integrity and ethical values. This question presents somewhat of a dilemma. Here are the two sides of that dilemma.

On the one hand, just because the treasurer worked for someone that turned out to be dishonest does NOT mean the treasurer is dishonest as well. Everyone should be judged on his or her own merits, not those of someone else. Therefore, you need to be careful not to assume automatically that the treasurer is dishonest.

On the other hand, the fact that the treasurer has been an aide to someone convicted of fraud should raise questions in your mind. You should approach all audits with the requisite skeptical attitude. That skeptical attitude should be heightened due to his past associations.

SOLUTION:Though you may not have specific information linking the corporate treasurer to the prior fraud, this information should indicate a need to examine carefully the corporation's human resourcestandards and personnel policies and practices with respect to hiring.