Michael Volkov examines a troubling backslide in corporate governance: the quiet movement of chief compliance officers back under the general counsel after years of progress toward direct CEO reporting lines. Michael explains why the CCO’s reporting structure is the single clearest signal a company sends about the value it places on compliance — shaping whether compliance influences business strategy at the design stage or is...

In the compliance world, no news is not good news. Let me ask you a question every CCO should be asking right now: Are your employees actually reporting and using your hotline to report legitimate concerns? Too many compliance officers look at a quiet hotline and breathe a sigh of relief. No calls, no complaints. Must mean everything’s fine. I’m here to tell you that’s...

Michael Volkov examines how artificial intelligence is transforming internal investigations — and what the Justice Department now expects from companies navigating this new landscape. Michael breaks down DOJ’s updated Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs, which directs prosecutors to scrutinize how companies assess AI risks, whether compliance functions have adequate access to data and analytics resources, and what controls prevent the reckless misuse of new technologies....

The root of every strong compliance program is a strong culture. I say this on every episode, and I’m going to keep saying it. Culture is the single most important control that your compliance program builds. It’s at the heart of every compliance program—not the policy binder, not the training module. Culture. Here’s what the research really shows: companies with strong ethical cultures perform better...

In this episode of Corruption, Crime and Compliance, Michael Volkov talks with Aaron Nicodemus, editor-in-chief of Compliance Week, about the state of the compliance profession and the findings of Compliance Week’s latest “Inside the Mind of the CCO” survey. They discuss a troubling reversal in reporting lines, with more compliance officers now reporting through general counsel rather than directly to CEOs or boards after several...