Double Dipping and Time Theft — What Happened in My Own Business

We’ve covered some wild stories in this series — theft, fraud, mismanagement, and missed profits — but now it’s time to turn the spotlight on my own business.

Because yes… even a fractional CFO with decades of experience can miss the signs.

Here’s how time theft and client deception snuck into my company — and what I learned from it.

📈 Growing Fast — and Letting My Guard Down

As Alchemy Accounting grew past the $1M mark, I was focused on scaling, hiring, and delivering results for clients.

We were busy. We were profitable. But I made a critical mistake: I didn’t install strong enough checks and balances around my team’s time reporting.

I trusted my people. And I didn’t want to micromanage.
But trust without verification? That’s a leak waiting to happen.

🕐 The First Red Flag: Rising Labor Costs

As a service-based business, our labor percentage is a key metric.

When it started to creep above 40%, I knew something was off.
Either:

• Team members were logging more hours than they should
• Client work was out of scope
• Or… someone was stealing time

Spoiler: It was all three.

🧍‍♀️ The Jana Situation: A Masterclass in Manipulation

One team member, Jana, managed a client file directly.

That client happened to know me personally, so I trusted the relationship.
One day I noticed the client hadn’t paid recent invoices — but Jana was still logging hours.

When I checked in with the client, she casually said:

“Oh! Jana told me you said it was okay to just pay her directly.”

Except I didn’t.

So not only was Jana getting paid directly by the client, but she was also billing us for the same time.

Double dipping.

Stealing.

⌛ Then Came Glen…

Another team member, Glen, resisted tracking her time, saying it felt like micromanaging and that she was in a management role.

But she was contracted for 25 hours per week.

When I pulled her timesheets over three months, I discovered she had logged a full week’s worth of unworked hours.

It added up slowly — 2 hours here, 4 hours there — but by the end, we had paid for time that simply never happened.

🧠 Why This Happens (Even to Good People)

Let’s be honest — most business owners aren’t trained to spot these patterns. And many employees don’t even see it as “stealing.”

• “I’ll make it up later.”
• “I was thinking about work even if I wasn’t logged in.”
• “They won’t notice.”

But when you multiply this behavior across multiple people, across multiple months — the numbers add up fast.

🛠️ The Fix: Systems Over Sentiment

Here’s what I implemented in my own company:

• Audit logs vs. timesheets: We compare software access times to reported hours.
• Scope reviews: We check each client file regularly for out-of-scope work.
• Separate AR & client service: Business owners shouldn’t chase overdue payments — someone else should.
• Weekly financial visibility: Labor cost reports by client, by team member.

✅ Key Takeaway:

If it can happen in my business, it can happen in yours.

There’s no shame in missing it.
But there’s power in catching it — and fixing it before it drains you dry.

Ready to Audit Your Own Team, Tools, and Time Tracking?

Let’s do it together.
Book your Profit Protection Audit now.