Seneca College RED 2020 - 27

Banking on a dream

PHOTO: IAN PATTERSON

Pursuit of fraud compels Vivienne Lutwama

" WHEN I WAS 16, my high school basketball coach asked me
what I wanted to do, " Vivienne Lutwama says. " I wasn't
sure, but I knew it had to be something that was unique. "
Her coach mentioned that she was dating a forensic
accountant and Ms. Lutwama took notice. Call it a slam
dunk of serendipity.
" I've always been inquisitive with an investigative
mindset, and since my favourite subjects in high
school were accounting and math, it piqued my interest
immediately. "
Born in Swaziland, Ms. Lutwama spent her formative years at boarding school in South Africa and
later completed an undergraduate degree in financial
accounting at the University of Cape Town.
Despite receiving job offers from accounting firms
like KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC),
Ms. Lutwama knew she wanted to pursue her dream,
but that decision would require leaving home because
there were no specialized programs in forensic
accounting offered locally.
" My options were Canada, Europe or the U.S., " she

says. " Canada was the only one that my parents felt
comfortable with. "
After coming to Canada in 2011, Ms. Lutwama
worked as a financial analyst for two years and saved
enough money to pay for her tuition as an international
student. She applied to the eight-month Fraud Examination & Forensic Accounting program in 2013 and
quickly realized its advantages.
" My professors were really knowledgeable and
connected to the industry, which was important
because forensic accounting is very niche. I also think
the practical nature of my courses made forensic
accounting even more interesting because everything
was relevant to the space I wanted to work in. "
Her fondness for the program remains unchanged.
She has returned to Seneca several times as a guest
speaker at various program-specific events.
After graduating with high honours and an industryrecognized credential, Ms. Lutwama began her forensic
accounting career in 2015 at PWC Canada.
In 2018, she moved to RBC where she is the Director
of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Compliance
Audit Oversight. She provides guidance on money
laundering prevention frameworks and strategies
to various internal stakeholders around the globe. She
ensures those stakeholders' existing processes and
controls are set up and running in compliance with
applicable regional laws and regulations.
An avid puzzle hobbyist and volunteer, Ms. Lutwama
leads a monthly mentorship circle in her spare time.
Her suggestions for aspiring forensic accountants is
to " know your stuff, get the relevant designations and
be truly passionate. "

I've always been
inquisitive with
an investigative
mindset

RED

2020

Seneca College RED 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Seneca College RED 2020