Chief compliance officers are heroes.  They labor every day to advance a company’s ethics and compliance program without much recognition, with few resources, and with well-known gaps in their programs. CCOs live by a credo – they risk-rank and prioritize all their activities (hopefully) on an ongoing basis.  It is a job similar to our cats and dogs chasing their own tails – they will...

In yet another major compliance development, the Justice Department announced the adoption of a new policy to credit effective compliance programs in resolving criminal cartel prosecutions against corporations.  Since the 1990s, the Antitrust Division’s policy regarding corporate compliance programs was generally fixed given the ability of companies to seek benefits under the leniency program.  In this respect, the first reporting company would earn immunity and...

Webinar: Achieving an Effective Compliance Program: DOJ and OFAC Guidance, Best Practices and Industry Trends June 25, 2019, 12 Noon EST SIGN UP HERE The compliance industry is evolving. Recent DOJ and OFAC Guidance are just one influence. At the same technology and innovative strategies using data analytics are quickly eclipsing government guidance, especially in the area of compliance program monitoring, testing and auditing. Companies...

At the outset, I have to apologize for the title but during my morning bike ride I usually come up with blog posting titles. But moving past the trite title, I have a point to make. It starts with a hypothetical – a CEO is supposed to introduce a company’s new code of conduct at a company event. Everyone attends – in person or virtually...

I recently wrote an article for Corporate Compliance Insights, “Top 5 Mistakes Chief Compliance Officers Make (And How to Avoid Them).  Here is a link to the article. Thank you to Corporate Compliance Insights for its support!!

We all know that a compliance program without business buy-in is, by definition, an ineffective compliance program. The level of business support ranges from “mouthing” support to full-fledged embrace and ownership of compliance program controls. By “mouthing” support, I am referring to business staff who say they understand compliance, use the right words reflecting an understanding of compliance issues, but they fail to attend to,...

An effective compliance program is built on internal coordination and relationships. Applying the Justice Department’s terminology, an effective compliance program is one that is operationalized. At first glance, you may think this is something new. It is not. The Justice Department’s adoption of the term “operationalized” is meant to distinguish between a compliance program that exists on paper versus a compliance program that is implemented...

Returning to the FCPA Pilot Project requirements for timely and appropriate remediation, the Justice Department added three new elements, one of which reinforces the CCO “independence” requirement. The two other elements for an effective ethics and compliance program focus on the qualifications and compensation of compliance officers. First, with respect to the structure of the company’s compliance program, the Justice Department listed the reporting structure...

A company that does not back up its words with deeds is doomed to suffer compliance and cultural breakdowns. When a company commits to building a culture of trust and integrity, the company has to keep its word. This is not a hard principle to follow. Yet, we hear all too often about company’s leaders who commit to compliance in words and promises of commitment...