Tagged: risk management

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15 Nov, 2015

Resetting FCPA Prosecution Policies

Recent press reports suggest that the Justice Department is reconsidering its FCPA criminal prosecution policies, particularly with respect to corporate defendants. As reported, DOJ is considering defining and increasing corporate benefits from voluntary disclosures and cooperation. This re-evaluation appears to have been triggered by changes in the Criminal Division leadership. DOJ’s recent Yates memorandum imposed new and significant obligations on companies seeking credit for cooperation...

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28 Oct, 2015

Building a Due Diligence Infrastructure (Part IV of IV)

A due diligence infrastructure is designed to demonstrate a company’s good faith commitment to compliance with anti-corruption laws by: identifying corruption risks; and mitigating such risks to ensure that the company does not violate the law. A much simpler way to put it is – a company’s due diligence system is designed to negate any inference of intent to violate the FCPA. A due diligence...

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28 Oct, 2015

Due Diligence and Risk Priorities (Part III of IV)

Believe it or not, life principles can be used in compliance, especially in due diligence. I always tell my kids that life has a way of setting priorities. As you get older, life becomes simpler and your priorities become clearer. Now watch this transition – the same goes for due diligence, not the age part but the priorities part. Once you assemble information and data...

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26 Oct, 2015

Focusing on Due Diligence (Part II of IV)

He that can have patience can have what he will. – Benjamin Franklin Putting together an effective due diligence system requires patience. I freely admit that I am not a patient person, especially when it comes to ensuring ethics and compliance. By definition, however, effective compliance strategies require patience due to the scope and scale of the changes being implemented across a company. Due diligence is...

General

20 Oct, 2015

Business Ethics as an Effective Control

Integrity has no need of rules. – Albert Camus Corporate decision-making ignores important principles and sometimes, common sense. With the increase in corporate compliance programs, corporate boards and senior executives need to take a moment to address one important issue – the importance of creating an ethical culture. For some reason, corporate boards and leaders like to focus on the tangible aspects of ethics and...

General

31 Aug, 2015

Managing Threats to Corporate Reputations (Part II of III)

Most companies do not adequately manage their reputations and the risks to their reputations. Too many companies are focused on “crisis” management, which is just another way to respond to a reputational risk that has already occurred. Such a focus is not reputational risk management but is more accurately labeled as crisis management, a reactive strategy. Companies have to change their perspectives and focus proactively...

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30 Aug, 2015

Calculating the Incalculable: Reputational Damage (Part I of III)

Today I begin a three-part series on reputational damage. The first part tries to define the term “reputational damage;” the second part focuses on managing threats to a company’s reputation; and the final posting proposes creation of a senior risk manager in a corporate leadership team. If you ask CEOs and board members about the threats to a company resulting from a DOJ enforcement action,...