The presence of fraud and corruption in construction can take many forms; from falsely representing the number of hours a contractor works, through to collusion when bidding for contracts or paying bribes to secure a contract. These inevitably increase costs and, in the case of bribes, inflate the contract price.
Business optimism in markets such as China, the UK and the US has risen markedly over recent months according to the Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR)[1]. And the most interesting aspect for me is the contribution of the real estate and construction sector to the brightening economic outlook.
Fraud is endemic in the construction industry. So much so that in many parts of the world it is seen merely as a ‘cost of doing business’. But this does not have to be the case. In a report released this week, ‘Time for a new direction – Fighting fraud in Construction’, we recommend a number of concrete steps companies can take to avoid becoming victims of fraud.
Reviewing the Q2 International Business Report (IBR[1]) results, I was pleased to see some good news for construction & real estate companies: Profitability expectations around the world are up. However, my optimism is tempered somewhat by recent news from China and it will be interesting to see how businesses react in Q3.