This week I am exploring a five-part series on compliance as seen through the lens of Winnie the Pooh and the characters who live in the Hundred Acre Wood. In this Part 3, we consider perhaps the most beloved character (other than Pooh himself) Eeyore and use him to explore the differences in compliance and corporate legal.
Eeyore is described as an “old grey donkey”. Eeyore has a poor opinion of most of the other animals in the Forest, describing them as having “No brain at all, some of them” and “only grey fluff that’s blown into their heads by mistake” (from chapter 1 of The House at Pooh Corner). Eeyore’s favorite food is thistles. He lives in the southeast corner of the Hundred Acre Wood, in an area labeled “Eeyore’s Gloomy Place: Rather Boggy and Sad” on the map in the Winnie-the-Pooh book. He has a stick house therein called The House at Pooh Corner. Pooh and Piglet built it for him after accidentally mistaking the original house that Eeyore built for a pile of sticks. On Eeyore’s birthday, he is given an empty honey jar from Pooh for keeping things in, a popped red balloon from Piglet to keep in the pot, and a note from Owl. (Eeyore’s birthday was originally celebrated by University of Texas students in Austin and is now a worldwide phenomenon.)
Eeyore expects misfortune to fall upon him, accepts it when it does, and rarely even tries to prevent it. He is known for saying “Thanks for noticin’ me” and “Ohhh-kayyy”. His grumpiness is best shown in an encounter with Piglet, who cheerfully bade him, “Good morning!” Eeyore responded, “Well, I suppose it is…for some.” Yet, Eeyore is capable of great compassion. Most interestingly, he has a great friendship with Tigger.
I use Eeyore as an introduction to the differences in the compliance function and the legal department in the corporate world. When I initially went in-house, it was made clear to me that the role of the in-house department in the company I worked for was to protect the company. When I became a General Counsel (GC), I took that role to heart and felt like I was the company’s lawyer (even if the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) felt like I was his lawyer). But as Donna Boehme pointed out, there are distinct differences in approaches to compliance from practicing law. She said, “one thing is clear – the two functions have very different mindsets, mandates and priorities.” She notes that the legal department’s mandate is to “advise and protect the company.” The compliance mandate is much broader.
The bottom line is that while you may want an Eeyore in the corporate legal department, just saying no; that is not something you want in compliance. The job of compliance is not to protect the company at all costs. Instead, it is to prevent, detect and remediate any compliance issues that arise. You cannot do that by simply saying No. Yet, just like Eeyore, the corporate legal department can be a valuable adjunct to the compliance function if an internal investigation occurs and you want to maintain your corporate privilege.
Join me tomorrow when I take a look at Piglet and the role of payroll in compliance.