Four Steps to Winning an Entrenched Fight
/
Tempers were escalating as was the loudness of the voices in the room. Each side of the table grew more recalcitrant and less willing to listen. Barry, the leader of one group, rolled his eyes and stood up to leave the room. A voice from the other side of the table said, “You know, you’re completely right on that issue.” Barry sat back down, ready to hear the other side out. The impasse had passed.
When you’re sure you’re right, it can be difficult to give an inch. It’s easy to get so entrenched that you’re no longer listening or engaging in a dialogue. If that happens, it’s time to get strategic. To make progress, follow these four steps.
Step 1: Look for something that you agree with
Telling someone that they’re right is disarming and works in your favor. Examine all of the points the person is making. There is almost certainly a place to find common ground.
Let’s say that you’re in a meeting in which management is pushing back on sending an ethics and culture survey to the company. They argue that it’s too expensive and that employees have compliance fatigue after taking the recent Code of Conduct training. In response, you could try something like:
I completely agree with you that we need to protect against compliance fatigue
You’re so right about preventing compliance fatigue
I love that you brought that up because we have to watch out for compliance fatigue
You’re so smart to focus on preventing compliance fatigue
These statements will catch them off guard. The phrase “off guard” is just that – the person lowering their guard, which gives you the opportunity to move to the next step.
Step 2: Avoid “but” - use “and” Instead
Once you’ve agreed with the adversary,
Read MoreWant People to Open your Emails Faster?
/Want people to answer your emails FASTER? Of course you do! Try this hack in your Wildly Effective Compliance Officer Tip of the Week.
Five Crucial Traits of Successful Compliance Entrepreneurs
/
Have you ever dreamed of being your own boss? Nearly everyone has. The freedom to choose your own hours, pick your projects, work when you want to work, and charge what you want to charge is a heady combination. But some people are better suited to the entrepreneurial life than others.
Compliance and Ethics is a fast-growing field, especially when the broader GRC (governance, risk, and compliance) and ESG (environmental, social, and governance) are brought into the mix. Now is a great time to join the ranks of entrepreneurs in our growing space. But do you have what it takes?
In honor of the publishing of Kirsten Liston, Joe Murphy and my new book, The Compliance Entrepreneur’s Handbook, here are five crucial traits of successful compliance entrepreneurs. Without these, it will be difficult to succeed.
Trait One: Tenacity
When I was 18, I spent a summer working as a receptionist for a paper company. I was having a hard time understanding the complicated communications system, but I stuck with it until I had it mastered. The manager called me “tenacious,” which was a word I had to look up. Since that time, tenacity has been my favorite word.
Tenacity involves being determined, especially when things are difficult. It involves pushing through hard times and cashflow crunches, as well times when you’re simply uninspired and don’t feel like getting out of bed.
Before starting your business, consider whether you’re committed to the six months to a year that it will likely take to become successful. Tenacity will be required.
Trait Two: Vision…
Read MoreHow do you stay visible when you're working remotely?
/Lots of us are going back to the office, while many others aren't - at least full time. Being remote can create challenges for promotions and visibility, but not if you take Amii Barnard-Bahn's excellent advice! Today in the E&C Expert Exchange.
Getting Along: Enterprise Risk and Compliance
/
This article first appeared on the Diligent Insights blog found here.
If you’re renovating your house, a general contractor is critical. He or she oversees the project and knows what needs to be done to execute the vision. But if the pipes aren’t fitted correctly, the general contractor may not see it until water seeps into the newly laid white oak floors. A general contractor is just that — general. They need the assistance of plumbers and electricians — specialists — to get a real view of the risks to the build.
The same is true in the relationship between enterprise risk (also known as integrated risk) and compliance. There’s currently a debate about whether compliance should be subsumed into a singular risk function. While compliance risk is part of a complete risk function, it needs to be separate and its risk assessment process independently managed.
Compliance Risk Is Distinct
Corporate compliance departments typically deal with a narrow, yet critical, set of risks. These include bribery, antitrust, trade compliance, data privacy, modern slavery, conflict minerals and/or money laundering. In short, the laws managed by compliance have enormous penalties when things go wrong. It’s not uncommon to see fines in the billions and the imposition of a corporate monitor for several years when companies act unethically. This subset of challenges needs its own department, budget and risk monitoring.
Five Best Practices
Enterprise risk management can easily work effectively with the compliance function to ensure compliance risk is understood and responded to appropriately. Here are five best practices to ensure smooth sailing…
Read MoreHow to Keep Whistleblower Reporting Internal ( to avoid the regulators!)
/
Four out of five. Last week, the Anti-Corruption Report quoted the former the Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower that four-fifths of 2020’s whistleblower awards went to people who reported internally before going to the regulators.[1] Whistleblowers consistently state that they reported externally when they felt ignored by the company. This means compliance officers need to do everything in their power to help whistleblowers to be confident in their choice to report.
Awards Going Up and Opportunities Expanding
Whistleblower awards continue to reach record heights. In October 2020, a whistleblower was awarded a record $114 million. The SEC’s press release stated, “After repeatedly reporting concerns internally, and despite personal and professional hardships, the whistleblower alerted the SEC and the other agency of the wrongdoing.”[2]
Under the US False Claims Act, $7.8 billion has been awarded to whistleblowers since 1986.[iii]
It’s not just America that’s in the whistleblower reward game. Canada, Korea, Ghana, and Slovakia have awards for certain whistleblowers, and the trend is likely to expand to other countries over time.[iv]
Tips to Keep Reports Internal
While there is no silver bullet for keeping all reports internal, there are numerous ways to ensure that whistleblowers feel heard and safe, thereby comforting them and saving the company millions (occasionally billions) in fines and lawyer fees. To a certain degree, it all comes down to communication – both with whistleblowers themselves, but also with the company. Here are some tips to keep reports internal.
Publish Your Data
Many companies are reluctant to publish statistics about their whistleblowing activities for fear that it will paint the company in a bad light. Nothing could be further from the truth. Forward-thinking companies often annually publish:
Total number of whistleblower complaints
Total percentage of complaints that were substantiated
Percentage of disciplinary actions take for substantiated reports, (e.g., 30% verbal warning, 50% written warning, 20% dismissed)
Year-on-year statistical changes
When these statistics are published, companies often use the opportunity to celebrate whistleblowers and to reinforce messages about the capacity to report anonymously and about confidentiality. Many would-be whistleblowers don’t report because they feel the company won’t do anything in response. By publishing statistics, employees can see that the company does respond to complaints. Trust comes from knowing that concerns are taken seriously and that action is taken against perpetrators. Transparency creates trust. Speaking of transparency…
Have the CEO Call…
Read MorePODCAST: How to Have a Wildly Successful Career in Compliance
/Here it is - my big international debut on the Compliance Reloaded Podcast! Compliance Reloaded is a German podcast and this is their FIRST ever English recording! In it, we discuss how to have a wildly successful career in compliance. You’ll find out:
How to use personal branding for yourself and your career
How to network effectively in a pandemic
How much of your life to share online
How to be an influencer without writing a single piece of thought leadership
You don’t want to miss this! Note - the first 30 seconds are in German, then the English discussion commences. Enjoy!
E&C Expert Exchange: Matt Kelly on the Most Important Skills for the Future
/Matt Kelly’s here talking about the MOST IMPORTANT skills the compliance officer of the future will need. Don’t miss this - what you need to know.
