The Impact of Downsizing and Efficiency Measures on Anti-Fraud Resources

Authors

Marek Palasinski, Lancaster UniversityFollow

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to explore the impact of downsizing and efficiency measures on two key elements of operational performance - fraud detection and fraud reporting. Qualitative data were obtained from ethnographic observations of two major multinational insurance companies, which were already examined before the Global Financial Crisis, and subjected to an inter - and intra - business comparative analysis of anti - fraud resources. The paper points out a big discrepancy in opinions on the downsizing effects between junior staff and their supervisors. Whereas the latter present them as enabling the business to deal with suspicious claims more quickly, the former offer a contrastingly different view in which the constantly growing pressure often lea ds to suspicious claims getting approved. By validating the practical implications of a purposefully adapted version of resource - based theory, the paper illustrates the inviability of subjecting anti - fraud resources to the same levels of downsizing and efficiency as other business resources. Although the literature on the general negative impact of downsizing on the broadly - defined operational performance is growing, this is the first major study to examine its impact on insurance anti - fraud processes and illustrate their changes following the Global Financial Crisis.

Keywords

Efficiency Measures, Ethnography, Insurance Fraud

Publication Date

11-11-2013

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2013.1443

Recommended APA Citation

Palasinski, M. (2013). The Impact of Downsizing and Efficiency Measures on Anti-Fraud Resources. The Qualitative Report, 18(45), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2013.1443