We often hear about the “essential” elements of an effective ethics and compliance programs. It is natural for professionals to define specific elements of an ethics and compliance framework. This is an important way to...more
We can all remember those instances of matchmaking in our past — we were confident our friends, if they met each other, would fall in love and even get married. We believed that these two separate friends were “meant” for...more
We live in a challenging time — yes, another profound grasp of the obvious. From my narrow perspective, there are two significant trends occurring at the same time — people are angry and more willing to express their anger...more
Corporate culture is all the rage now, meaning it is an often used topic to signal commitment, sensitivity to issues of employee concern, and an awareness of governance trends. In practice, as we all know, culture is not...more
You know companies face a new and aggressive enforcement regime when shorthand terms, such as “greenwashing,” are adopted prior to the implementation of comprehensive regulations governing disclosure of climate change issues...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission is quickly raising the stakes for global companies. Along with these new regulatory requirements, the risk of enforcement multiply, especially when it comes to corporate disclosure...more
Chief compliance officers rely on several important sources for feedback — internal data and communications (reviews with board, senior managers, employees); and benchmarking against comparable organizations. An internal...more
This is a topic that every compliance professional has to address in one form or another. Chief compliance officers are so busy that they often cannot even take the time to tackle this difficult issue. This is a real...more
You can always count on LRN. No ifs, ands or buts, LRN continues to issue the highest-quality and most meaningful research and guidance on ethics and compliance programs. LRN digs in to ask the hard questions, measures...more
Compliance professionals are used to internal struggles for influence and resources. Chief compliance officers have devoted years and years to justifying the need to elevate and empower the compliance function. For years,...more
For some reason, many companies do not include Ethics in the title of the CCO but expect the CCO to assume responsibility for a company’s ethical culture. Well, it is high time for companies to confirm this important...more
Frankly, this is a topic that requires more than a single blog-post. Books and podcasts can be organized around this topic with helpful ideas and guidance. In this respect, I will try to synthesize some important ideas that...more
As we enjoy the remainder of the summer and get ready to launch into a new fall season (no, not football) but a time for renewal and recommitment, this may be a good opportunity to examine and analyze your own compliance...more
As Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart eloquently opined in Jacobellis v. Ohio (1964), on the legal definition of obscenity, “I know it when I see it.” This same test applies to other issues as well — when it comes to an...more
There are lots of sources for compliance guidance — prosecutors, regulators, compliance organizations, and many others have set forth important and valuable guidance for the design and implementation of an effective ethics...more
OK, I admit it. I have been — and continue to be– hyper-focused on the proper role and responsibilities for Chief Compliance Officers. Not that I see any cause for alarm, but it is easy to lose focus in the sea of so-called...more
Let me paint a picture for you. It is not pretty. Unfortunately, this picture occurs all too often in the corporate governance landscape. ...more
Let me start with yet another profound grasp of the obvious — leadership requires many important interpersonal and intellectual capabilities. I do not intend to list the important ones right now but leadership requires an...more
It is hard to follow all the news, events and political trends across the globe. To the regular observer, the ability to identify, measure and respond to evolving risks has become more chaotic and near impossible. Risks are...more
CCOs, by definition, are careful and deliberate. It comes with the profession. As risk managers, CCOs are skilled in identifying, assessing and acting in a risk environment....more
6/30/2022
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Certification Requirements ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corporate Governance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
White Collar Crimes
The new DOJ Certification requirements certainly raise a number of new issues and risks for senior management and chief compliance officers. In Part I of this series, I outlined the specific language and the Plea Agreement...more
6/29/2022
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Certification Requirements ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Global Market ,
Plea Agreements ,
White Collar Crimes
The Department of Justice continues to respond to the compliance community’s concerns about the new certification requirement adopted as part of the Glencore FCPA enforcement action. DOJ has adopted this new requirement to...more
6/28/2022
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Certification Requirements ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Corporate Governance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Plea Agreements ,
Statutory Violations
NAVEX recently released its annual Hotline and Incident Management Report. Given NAVEX’s strong position in the hotline service market, NAVEX has access to a large volume of reporting data. As a result, its annual report is...more
In a homecoming speech, DOJ’s Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite gave a rousing speech to a room full of compliance professionals at the annual Compliance Week meeting in Washington, D.C. AAG Polite, who has served as...more
While I have devoted the first two postings to outlining all the downside risks of third-party management and threats to overall organization resiliency and operations, it is important to consider the positive upside of...more