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Trekking Through Compliance

Trekking Through Compliance: Episode 52 – Five Cross-Cultural Compliance Lessons from “The Omega Glory”

As compliance professionals, we often talk about global organizations “boldly going” where few have gone before, into new markets, unfamiliar territories, and diverse cultures. But what happens when the culture you find is fundamentally different, yet disturbingly familiar? Star Trek’s “The Omega Glory” is one of the original series’ most controversial and fascinating explorations of cross-cultural misunderstanding, bias, and the search for common ground.

For the modern compliance officer, “The Omega Glory” is more than just a Star Trek curiosity. It’s a primer on the perils and potential of cross-cultural communication and a reminder that misunderstanding and ethnocentrism can undermine even the most well-intentioned mission.

Lesson 1: Don’t Assume Your Culture’s Symbols or Values Are Universal

Illustrated By: The Yangs hold these objects sacred but have lost the original meaning, reciting “freedom” and “justice” without understanding them.

Compliance Lesson: In global business, it is all too easy to assume that your organization’s symbols, policies, and values are understood the same way everywhere. What feels like common sense or “best practice” at headquarters may mean something entirely different or nothing across cultures.

Lesson 2: Recognize and Overcome Ethnocentrism—Your Way Is Not the Only Way

Illustrated By: Captain Tracey rationalizes his betrayal by viewing the Comms through his biased lens and refuses to see value in the Yangs’ ways.

Compliance Lesson: Ethnocentrism, the belief that one’s own culture is superior or “normal,” is a common barrier to cross-cultural compliance. Like Tracey, corporate leaders may favor one culture’s approach to ethics, risk, or problem-solving, dismissing others as backward or inefficient.

Lesson 3: Find the Universal, but Honor the Local

Illustrated by: Kirk translates a seemingly parochial value into a universal principle, bridging the cultural gap.

Compliance Lesson: While symbols, language, and rituals may differ across cultures, there are often shared ethical aspirations—fairness, trust, respect, and justice—that can unite global teams. The challenge is to articulate these universals in a way that honors local realities.

Lesson 4: Listen Actively and Engage with Curiosity

Illustrated By: Kirk doesn’t just lecture; he listens, observes, and asks questions—even when the answers are uncomfortable or surprising.

Compliance Lesson: Effective cross-cultural communication begins with active listening and curiosity, rather than assumptions or pronouncements.

Lesson 5: Bridge Divides with Shared Purpose, Not Just Rules

Illustrated By: In the episode’s climax, Kirk reframes the “rules” as a call to unity and understanding.

Compliance Lesson: Policies and procedures are essential, but they’re not enough to build absolute alignment across cultures. What endures is shared purpose: a vision that transcends division and speaks to the aspirations of every group in your organization.

To Truly Go Boldly, Build Cross-Cultural Bridges

“The Omega Glory” is a sometimes messy, always provocative meditation on the risks and rewards of cross-cultural engagement. For compliance professionals, it serves as a reminder that communication isn’t just about translation or policy deployment; it is about building bridges.

Resources:

Excruciatingly Detailed Plot Summary by Eric W. Weisstein

MissionLogPodcast.com

Memory Alpha

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Blog

The Compliance Guide to Designed Intelligence: Part 2 – Rethinking Governance for the Age of AI

Yesterday, I began a two-part review of the article “What Is a Designed Intelligence Environment?” in which authors Michael Schrage and David Kiron examine how enterprises must rethink their intelligence and compliance strategies to survive and thrive in the new world of AI-rich operations. I found their insights for compliance professionals both practical and transformative. Previously, we considered what is Designed Intelligence. Tomorrow, we take a deeper dive into what it means for compliance.

For decades, we have approached compliance through policies, procedures, and periodic reviews, trusting that careful planning and diligent oversight would guide us through the challenges of regulatory change and operational risk. However, the rise of artificial intelligence has forever altered this equation. Now, the decisions that shape our organizations are made not just by people, but by increasingly autonomous machines and systems that learn, adapt, and interact in ways that can outpace human comprehension.

This new reality demands a new approach to compliance, one that goes beyond enforcing existing rules and begins to architect the very environments in which human and machine intelligence operate. The article “What Is a Designed Intelligence Environment? ” offers a timely and robust framework for this challenge. Rather than treat AI as just another tool in the compliance toolbox, it urges us to rethink how knowledge, reasoning, and governance are structured across the enterprise. For the compliance professional, this shift is as profound as it is practical: our mission is no longer to control risk but to orchestrate intelligence itself.

Five Key Takeaways for the Compliance Professional

1. Observability Over Prediction: Embrace Real-Time Monitoring

Traditional compliance programs often rely on the classic cycle of predict, plan, execute, and measure. However, as the article emphasizes, Stephen Wolfram’s principle of computational irreducibility suggests that in highly complex, AI-rich environments, outcomes cannot be predicted; they must be observed as they occur. This is not a theoretical point; rather, it is a practical call to action for compliance.

In a world where both human and machine agents make critical decisions, compliance leaders need to build systems that provide real-time visibility into these interactions. The case of the pharmaceutical R&D pipeline illustrates this vividly: instead of forcing premature rankings of drug candidates, the company built a computational observatory, allowing emergent patterns to drive decision-making. For compliance, this means investing in tools and processes that enable continuous monitoring, immediate detection of anomalies, and dynamic feedback loops, moving from static after-the-fact audits to active, ongoing oversight.

2. Semantic Formalization: Make Compliance Computable

If your compliance program still relies on lengthy policy manuals and inconsistent training, it’s time to elevate it. The article introduces the concept of semantic formalization, defining key business and compliance concepts in a manner that enables both humans and machines to execute and reason with them. This isn’t just data management; it’s about ensuring every stakeholder and system shares a common, computable language for compliance.

For example, a multinational retailer struggling with customer experience (CX) consistency turned things around by building a semantic kernel, a shared ontology for complaints, resolutions, and metrics. Compliance teams must similarly formalize definitions for key terms, including risk, conflict of interest, and reporting obligations. This creates a foundation where both human and AI agents can interpret and act on compliance requirements, ensuring consistency, auditability, and scalability.

3. Translate Between Multiple Realities

Every department, human expert, and AI system in your organization “computes” reality differently. Financial models assess risk through simulations, operations utilize failure analysis, and AI identifies statistical correlations. The article’s exploration of real space, the idea that these are not just different perspectives but fundamentally different computational rule sets, changes the compliance game.

Instead of forcing alignment through top-down mandates, compliance officers must become expert translators and orchestrators of change. The aerospace design review case proves the point: rather than punishing disagreement between engineers and AI, leadership created a real mediator, mapping and reconciling the underlying rules of each party. Compliance professionals should develop frameworks and protocols to make these internal logics explicit, resolve conflicts, and coordinate decision-making without imposing artificial consensus.

4. Do Not Simply Deploy Smarter Tools, But Architect Intelligence Environments

Throwing advanced AI or analytics at compliance problems is not enough. The article argues forcefully that intelligence, whether human or machine, must be designed into the very infrastructure of the enterprise. Most organizations still treat intelligence as an emergent property of tools, rather than an intentional product of environment design.

For compliance, this means working proactively with IT, legal, and operational leaders to design systems where intelligence (learning, reasoning, and adaptation) is orchestrated by default. Real-time observability, semantic formalization, and rule-based mediation must be built into the core of your compliance framework, not added as afterthoughts. This approach enables faster, higher-quality decisions, reduces systemic risk, and enhances organizational agility.

5. From Enforcer to Orchestrator: Redefine the Compliance Role

The most important takeaway is the redefinition of what it means to be a compliance professional in the era of AI. The future of compliance is not just about enforcing standards and conducting audits; it is about orchestrating intelligence across human and machine systems. This means guiding the translation between different rules and perspectives, architecting environments for safe collaboration, and ensuring ethical execution in a world of real-time, adaptive agents.

Compliance officers must expand their skill sets by learning the basics of AI, systems engineering, and data science, developing fluency in semantic modeling, and building cross-functional relationships with technology and business leaders. By leading the design of intelligence environments, compliance professionals can become strategic partners in innovation, not just gatekeepers of risk.

As we enter a new era defined by AI, the compliance profession finds itself at a crossroads. The systems we govern are no longer straightforward, linear, or purely human—they are dynamic, adaptive, and built from the collaboration between people and machines. The article “What Is a Designed Intelligence Environment? ” makes clear that our old tools—checklists, policy manuals, and after-the-fact audits—are no longer sufficient for the task ahead. Instead, we must build environments where intelligence itself is orchestrated, monitored, and governed by design.

This transformation is not about abandoning the core values of compliance, integrity, transparency, and accountability; it is about embracing new methods to uphold them in a complex world. We must shift from prediction to observability, from description to formalization, and from enforcement to orchestration. We must learn to translate and mediate between diverse ways of thinking and design infrastructures that enable human and machine intelligence to flourish safely and ethically.

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Blog

Crossing the Cultural Divide: Five Compliance Lessons from Star Trek’s “The Omega Glory”

As compliance professionals, we often talk about global organizations “boldly going” where few have gone before, into new markets, unfamiliar territories, and diverse cultures. But what happens when the culture you find is fundamentally different, yet disturbingly familiar? Star Trek’s “The Omega Glory” is one of the original series’ most controversial and fascinating explorations of cross-cultural misunderstanding, bias, and the search for common ground.

When Captain Kirk and the Enterprise crew encounter a planet locked in a centuries-long war between two factions, the Yangs and the Comms, they discover not only echoes of Earth’s past but also a profound challenge: how to understand, engage, and communicate across seemingly insurmountable cultural divides.

For the modern compliance officer, “The Omega Glory” is more than just a Star Trek curiosity. It’s a primer on the perils and potential of cross-cultural communication, and a reminder that misunderstanding and ethnocentrism can undermine even the most well-intentioned mission.

Today, we explore five cross-cultural compliance lessons, backed by memorable scenes, that resonate for today’s global organizations.

Lesson 1: Don’t Assume Your Culture’s Symbols or Values Are Universal

Illustrated By: When Kirk and company finally realize that the Yangs are a “parallel” of Earth’s Yankees, complete with a tattered American flag and a distorted version of the U.S. Constitution, the moment is both poignant and unsettling. The Yangs hold these objects sacred, but they have lost the original meaning, reciting “freedom” and “justice” without understanding their true significance.

Compliance Lesson: In global business, it is all too easy to assume that your organization’s symbols, policies, and values are understood the same way everywhere. What feels like common sense or “best practice” at headquarters may mean something entirely different or nothing across cultures.

Effective cross-cultural communication starts with humility. Don’t take for granted that core values, codes of conduct, or even compliance “hot words” will be universally understood. They may be recited back, as the Yangs do with the Pledge of Allegiance, but without real comprehension or application. Translate, not just in terms of, but conceptually, your compliance values and policies for each culture. Use local examples and context. Verify understanding through discussion, rather than just distributing documents.

Lesson 2: Recognize and Overcome Ethnocentrism—Your Way Is Not the Only Way

Illustrated By: Captain Tracey, the stranded Federation captain, throws in his lot with the Comms, convinced their culture’s “discipline” and “order” make them superior. He rationalizes his betrayal by viewing the Comms through his biased lens and refuses to see value in the Yangs’ ways.

Compliance Lesson: Ethnocentrism, the belief that one’s own culture is superior or “normal,” is a common barrier to cross-cultural compliance. Like Tracey, corporate leaders may favor one culture’s approach to ethics, risk, or problem-solving, dismissing others as backward or inefficient.

Such bias blinds organizations to local realities, breeds resentment, and undermines buy-in for compliance programs. Actual cross-cultural effectiveness requires cultural intelligence: the ability to recognize, adapt to, and respect differences. Provide cross-cultural training to compliance teams and business leaders. Encourage self-reflection on cultural biases and challenge assumptions about what constitutes the “right” and “wrong” ways of operating.

Lesson 3: Find the Universal, but Honor the Local

Illustrated By: Kirk’s breakthrough comes when he helps the Yangs recognize that the Constitution’s words—“We the People”—apply to everyone, not just their tribe. He translates a seemingly parochial value into a universal principle, bridging the gap between cultures.

Compliance Lesson: While symbols, language, and rituals may differ across cultures, there are often shared ethical aspirations —fairness, trust, respect, and justice —that can unite global teams. The challenge is to articulate these universals in a way that honors local realities.

Compliance communication should strike a balance between global standards and local flexibility. It’s not enough to declare “one policy, everywhere.” Instead, ask: How do our core principles show up in this culture? How can we adapt while staying true to our values? Co-create codes of conduct, training modules, and communications with local input. Make space for culturally relevant examples, stories, and illustrations that bring compliance to life.

Lesson 4: Listen Actively and Engage with Curiosity

Illustrated By: Throughout the episode, the Enterprise crew must decode the Yangs’ language, symbols, and intentions. Kirk doesn’t just lecture; he listens, observes, and asks questions—even when the answers are uncomfortable or surprising.

Compliance Lesson: Effective cross-cultural communication begins with active listening and curiosity, rather than assumptions or pronouncements. Before launching new policies or investigating potential misconduct, take time to learn local perspectives. Listen for what’s not being said. Recognize when confusion or resistance may mask deeper concerns.

In a compliance context, this means building trust, asking open-ended questions, and showing respect for cultural differences even when it challenges your assumptions. Use listening tours, focus groups, and confidential interviews to gather local insights before implementing global compliance initiatives. Train compliance professionals in active listening and culturally sensitive questioning.

Lesson 5: Bridge Divides with Shared Purpose, Not Just Rules

Illustrated By: In the episode’s climax, Kirk calls both the Yangs and the Coms to embrace the true meaning behind their sacred words, not as tribal weapons, but as a foundation for peace and shared future. He reframes the “rules” as a call to unity and understanding.

Compliance Lesson: Policies and procedures are essential, but they’re not enough to build absolute alignment across cultures. What endures is shared purpose: a vision that transcends division and speaks to the aspirations of every group in your organization.

When compliance is positioned as a partner in building something greater – a fair workplace, a sustainable business, and a respected global brand – it resonates beyond checklists and codes. People will rally around shared meaning, not just mandates. In your cross-cultural compliance communications, highlight stories of global teamwork, shared victories, and how living your values advances business and personal success. Move from “you must” to “we can, together.”

To Truly Go Boldly, Build Cross-Cultural Bridges

“The Omega Glory” is a sometimes messy, always provocative meditation on the risks and rewards of cross-cultural engagement. For compliance professionals, it’s a reminder that communication isn’t just about translation or policy deployment; it is about bridge-building.

As your organization grows, diversifies, and explores new frontiers, remember: the actual test of your compliance program is not how well it works at headquarters, but how deeply it connects across every culture you serve. The Enterprise crew learned that words matter only when lived out by all people. For compliance, that’s the only path to lasting, meaningful impact.

Resources:

Excruciatingly Detailed Plot Summary by Eric W. Weisstein

MissionLogPodcast.com

Memory Alpha

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Compliance Tip of the Day

Compliance Tip of the Day – Rethinking Corporate AI Governance Through Design Intelligence

Welcome to “Compliance Tip of the Day,” the podcast where we bring you daily insights and practical advice on navigating the ever-evolving landscape of compliance and regulatory requirements. Whether you’re a seasoned compliance professional or just starting your journey, our aim is to provide you with bite-sized, actionable tips to help you stay on top of your compliance game. Join us as we explore the latest industry trends, share best practices, and demystify complex compliance issues to keep your organization on the right side of the law. Tune in daily for your dose of compliance wisdom, and let’s make compliance a little less daunting, one tip at a time.

Today we consider how enterprises must rethink their compliance strategies to survive and thrive in the new world of AI-rich operations.

For more on this topic, check out The Compliance Handbook, a Guide to Operationalizing your Compliance Program, 6th edition which was recently released by LexisNexis. It is available here.

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Trekking Through Compliance

Trekking Trough Compliance: Episode 51 – Breaking Barriers: Five Compliance Communication Strategies from ‘By Any Other Name’

There may be no better pop culture exploration of compliance communication under pressure than Star Trek’s “By Any Other Name.” This episode, from Star Trek: The Original Series, places the crew of the Enterprise under the control of the Kelvans, alien beings with immense power, cold logic, and a total misunderstanding of what it means to be human. To survive, Kirk and his crew must out-communicate and outwit their captors, relying on every tool in their communication toolkit.

For the compliance professional, “By Any Other Name” offers a master class in the nuances of compliance communications, what works, what fails, and why the human element can never be discounted. Today, we explore five compliance communication lessons from this Star Trek classic.

Lesson 1: Know Your Audience—Tailor Your Message

Illustrated By: The Kelvans initially communicate only through blunt, logical directives. Their attempts at control falter because they don’t understand human motivation.

Compliance Lesson: Compliance messages cannot be one-size-fits-all. The Kelvans’ failure to adapt to their audience is a mistake compliance professionals should avoid.

Lesson 2: Use Storytelling and Emotion—Facts Alone Don’t Move People

Illustrated By: Kirk and his crew realize the Kelvans, now in human form, are struggling with unfamiliar emotions and senses.

Compliance Lesson: Compliance is not just about rules and policies; it is rather about influencing behavior.

Lesson 3: Active Listening and Feedback Loops—It’s Not Just About Talking

Illustrated By: While under Kelvan control, the Enterprise crew quietly listens, observes, and learns. They pay attention to subtle cues, the Kelvans’ confusion, discomfort, and shifting attitudes.

Compliance Takeaway:

Too often, compliance communication is a one-way street: policies are announced, emails are sent, training is assigned. But honest communication is two-way. Kirk’s ability to adapt is rooted in active listening, a skill compliance teams must master.

Lesson 4: Adapt Communication Styles Under Pressure—Agility Matters

Illustrated By: Kirk and company adapt rapidly, sometimes using humor, occasionally confrontation, sometimes empathy, to keep lines of communication open and exploit cracks in Kelvan unity.

Compliance Lesson: The best compliance communicators are agile: they adjust tone, content, and delivery to fit the moment.

Lesson 5: Build Trust and Relationships—Compliance is Ultimately Human

Illustrated By: In the end, the crew’s success comes not from outgunning or outwitting the Kelvans through brute force, but from forging relationships.

Compliance Takeaway:

All the policies and training in the world are ineffective without trust.

Final ComplianceLog Reflections

“By Any Other Name” is a Star Trek episode about boundaries—between worlds, cultures, and even species. For the compliance professional, it’s a reminder that communication is our own Universal Translator: it connects people, overcomes obstacles, and paves the way for shared understanding.

Resources:

Excruciatingly Detailed Plot Summary by Eric W. Weisstein

MissionLogPodcast.com

Memory Alpha

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Blog

Universal Translators: Compliance Communication Lessons from ‘By Any Other Name’

If you have been around the compliance world long enough, you have heard the refrain: “It all comes down to communication.” Whether you are launching a new code of conduct, rolling out an anti-bribery initiative, or navigating the choppy waters of a compliance investigation, your message, how it is crafted, delivered, and received, often determines your success.

There may be no better pop culture exploration of communication under pressure than Star Trek’s “By Any Other Name.” This episode, from Star Trek: The Original Series, places the crew of the Enterprise under the control of the Kelvans, alien beings with immense power, cold logic, and a total misunderstanding of what it means to be human. To survive, Kirk and his crew must out-communicate and outwit their captors, relying on every tool in their communication toolkit.

For the compliance professional, “By Any Other Name” offers a master class in the nuances of compliance communications, what works, what fails, and why the human element can never be discounted. Today, we explore five compliance communication lessons from this Star Trek classic.

Lesson 1: Know Your Audience—Tailor Your Message

Illustrated By: The Kelvans, led by Rojan, initially communicate only through blunt, logical directives. They expect total obedience from the Enterprise crew, failing to appreciate the crew’s emotional and cultural complexity. Their attempts at control falter because they don’t understand (or even attempt to understand) human motivation.

Compliance Lesson: Compliance messages cannot be one-size-fits-all. The Kelvans’ failure to adapt to their audience is a mistake compliance professionals should avoid. Employees come from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and generations; each absorbs messages differently. What motivates a finance executive in London may not resonate with a front-line worker in Houston or a vendor in Mumbai.

Effective compliance communication requires deep knowledge of your audience, their roles, their pressures, and their “language.” Avoid legalese and boilerplate. Instead, translate compliance requirements into practical, relevant, and relatable guidance. Segment your compliance communications. Use examples, languages, and platforms tailored for different employee groups and geographies. Regularly solicit feedback to ensure your message is landing as intended.

Lesson 2: Use Storytelling and Emotion—Facts Alone Don’t Move People

Illustrated By: Kirk and his crew realize the Kelvans, now in human form, are struggling with unfamiliar emotions and senses. Scotty, McCoy, and Kirk use humor, stories, and emotional appeals—not just facts—to disrupt the Kelvans’ cold logic. Scotty, famously, distracts one by sharing stories over drinks; McCoy pushes another to experience irritability and frustration.

Compliance Lesson: Compliance isn’t just about rules and policies; it’s about influencing behavior. Facts and regulations are essential, but they rarely inspire change on their own. Human beings respond to stories, emotions, and narratives. Scotty doesn’t just explain; he engages. Kirk doesn’t just threaten; he empathizes.

For compliance professionals, this means using storytelling, scenarios, and case studies in your communications. Connect compliance to employees’ values, experiences, and aspirations.

Incorporate real-world examples, ethical dilemmas, and stories, successes, and failures into your training and communications. Show how compliance makes a positive impact, not just what rules to follow.

Lesson 3: Active Listening and Feedback Loops—It’s Not Just About Talking

Illustrated By: While under Kelvan control, the Enterprise crew quietly listens, observes, and learns. They pay attention to subtle cues—the Kelvans’ confusion, discomfort, and shifting attitudes. Kirk’s plan only succeeds because he listens actively and adapts his approach based on feedback and changes in the Kelvans’ behavior.

Compliance Lesson: Too often, compliance communication is a one-way street, where policies are announced, emails are sent, and training is assigned without follow-up. But honest communication is two-way. Kirk’s ability to adapt is rooted in active listening, a skill compliance teams must master.

Effective compliance programs create channels for feedback and respond to what they learn. This can be achieved through hotlines, surveys, focus groups, or informal conversations when employees see that their input leads to change, they become more engaged and are more likely to trust the compliance function. Establishing feedback loops for every major compliance communication is also crucial. Track participation, collect questions, and respond publicly to common concerns. Use what you learn to refine your message and program continually.

Lesson 4: Adapt Communication Styles Under Pressure—Agility Matters

Illustrated By: Throughout the episode, the crew is under intense stress. Their regular routines are disrupted, and the stakes are existential. Yet Kirk and company adapt rapidly, sometimes using humor, occasionally confrontation, sometimes empathy, to keep lines of communication open and exploit cracks in Kelvan unity.

Compliance Lesson: In crises, such as investigations, enforcement actions, or cyber incidents, your standard communications playbook may not be practical. Employees will be anxious, distracted, or fearful. The best compliance communicators are agile: they adjust tone, content, and delivery to fit the moment.

This may involve more frequent updates, simpler language, or a more empathetic tone. It may also require new channels such as video messages from leadership, town halls, or direct conversations with affected teams. Develop a crisis communication plan as part of your compliance program. Practice scenario planning: How will you communicate if the unexpected happens? Build templates and train your team in flexible, adaptive messaging.

Lesson 5: Build Trust and Relationships—Compliance is Ultimately Human

Illustrated By: In the end, the crew’s success comes not from outgunning or outwitting the Kelvans through brute force, but from forging relationships. They appeal to the Kelvans’ newly awakened humanity, earning trust, and ultimately persuading Rojan to abandon conquest in favor of collaboration.

Compliance Takeaway:

All the policies and training in the world are ineffective without trust. Compliance communication is not just about transmitting information; it’s about building relationships, credibility, and psychological safety. Employees must believe that compliance is there to help them succeed, not to police or punish.

Trust is built over time, through transparency, consistency, and authenticity. It is maintained by owning up to mistakes, sharing “the why” behind decisions, and treating employees as partners in compliance. Empower compliance champions in every business unit. Provide them with the tools and support they need to model ethical behavior, answer questions, and cultivate a culture of trust. Regularly spotlight these champions and celebrate examples of “doing the right thing.”

Final ComplianceLog Reflections

“By Any Other Name” is a Star Trek episode that explores boundaries between worlds, cultures, and even species. For the compliance professional, it’s a reminder that communication is our own Universal Translator: it connects people, overcomes obstacles, and paves the way for shared understanding.

In our world, the stakes are just as high. The “aliens” we face may not come from Andromeda, but from new markets, new regulations, or emerging technologies. To navigate these challenges, compliance professionals must master the art and science of communication.

So, as you chart your course through your organization’s next compliance initiative, remember that it is not just what you say, but also how you say it, who you say it to, and how you listen, that makes all the difference.

Resources:

Excruciatingly Detailed Plot Summary by Eric W. Weisstein

MissionLogPodcast.com

Memory Alpha

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Daily Compliance News

Daily Compliance News: July 22, 2025, The I-9 Hell Edition

Welcome to the Daily Compliance News. Each day, Tom Fox, the Voice of Compliance, brings to you compliance-related stories to start your day. Sit back, enjoy a cup of morning coffee, and listen in to the Daily Compliance News. All, from the Compliance Podcast Network. Each day, we consider four stories from the business world, including compliance, ethics, risk management, leadership, or general interest, relevant to the compliance professional.

Top stories include:

  • What is the cost of culture of silence at NASA? (WSJ)
  • Corruption tainting Milan skyline. (Bloomberg)
  • Companies stuck in ‘I-9 hell’ of paperwork. (FT)
  • Credit Suisse flagged Sanjeev Gupta for corruption, but the bank ignored it. (Bloomberg)

You can donate to flood relief for victims of the Kerr County flooding by going to the Hill Country Flood Relief here.

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Word of the Week

Word of the Week with Kenneth O’Neal – The Power of Ambition: Lessons from Historical and Modern Leaders

Each week, Kenneth O’Neal discusses a word which describes a principle or value of the Qualities of Success. We suggest that you use the Word of the Week in your thoughts, deeds, and actions. You might currently possess the quality and desire to develop it to a higher level.  You could replace a bad habit with a good habit. Write an action step and use it daily to develop the Quality in your life. In this episode, Kenneth discusses the word – Ambition.

In this episode, Rick and Kenneth explore the theme of ambition, highlighting its significance and how it drives personal growth, vision, and innovation. They look at figures such as Alexander the Great, Abraham Lincoln, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk. The discussion also explores the role of integrity in guiding ambition to create a positive legacy. Abraham Lincoln’s life and leadership exemplify the blend of ambition, purpose, and integrity. The speaker encourages listeners to align their ambition with their deepest values and to serve a greater cause, highlighting that true ambition involves serving others. The episode concludes with a call to action to rise with purpose, embrace integrity, and lead with humility.

Key highlights:

  • Word of the Week: Ambition
  • Abraham Lincoln’s Legacy
  • Questions for Self-Reflection
  • Call to Action: Serve with Integrity

Resources:

KRONEAL Consulting

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Innovation in Compliance

Innovation in Compliance – The Power of Accountability and Team Culture with Gina Cotner

Innovation comes in many areas, and compliance professionals need to be ready for it and embrace it. Join Tom Fox, the Voice of Compliance, as he visits with top innovative minds, thinkers, and creators in the award-winning Innovation in Compliance podcast. In this engaging episode, Tom Fox sits down with Gina Cotner, the founder and CEO & Founder of Athena Executive Services, to explore the importance of team culture and accountability in corporate settings.

Cotner delves into her professional background and the organic development of a strong team culture at Athena. She emphasizes the critical role of accountability as a cultural standard and provides actionable insights for leaders on how to instill this within their organizations. Key takeaways include the significance of consistency, the balance between compassion and accountability, and the role of follow-up as a leadership tool. With real-world examples and practical advice, Cotner provides a comprehensive guide to building and maintaining a high-performing, accountable team.

Key highlights:

  • Gina Cotner’s Professional Background
  • The Importance of Team Culture
  • Accountability in High-Performing Teams
  • Misunderstandings About Accountability
  • Building a Culture of Accountability
  • Consistency and Psychological Safety
  • Follow-Up as a Leadership Tool
  • Compassion in Leadership

Resources:

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Red Flags Rising

Red Flags Rising: S01 E20 – China, AI, and Export Controls – Facing a Moment of Truth

Mike and Brent follow-up on Episode 19’s discussion of “stack sweeps” with a discussion of the current “moment of truth” facing trade compliance teams dealing with high-probability, catch-all enforcement risks as explained in their recent WorldECR (Issue No. 141, July/August 2025) and Dow Jones Risk Journal article, “Anticipating the moment of truth: how to prepare for ‘high probability’ catch-all enforcement.” Specifically, they discuss the recent decision by the U.S. to allow (licensed) sales of certain advanced integrated circuits to China (00:42), their WorldECR/DJRJ article and how the Bureau of Industry & Security (BIS) guidance of May 13, 2025, which emphasized the “high probability” standard and catch-all provisions of the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR), inspired the article (or at least inspired Tom Blass of WorldECR to ask us for an article) (07:10), how the underlying catch-all provisions are not “new” as of May 13, 2025 (10:26), how compliance teams can’t “zero-risk” export controls risk and need to adopt risk-based approaches (12:17), the relevance of the “inchoate” offenses under the EAR, i.e., aiding, abetting, conspiracy, evasion, acting with knowledge, and misrepresentations (13:21), the limitations of end-use and end-user certificates under the May 13, 2025 policy and guidance documents (14:47), their thoughts on the reportedly pending “50% rule” for the Entity List (18:32), the impact of the ability of malign actors, political parties, and military-intelligence actors to exercise influence even without shareholdings (19:25), why the most risky counterparties are those not on the Entity List (20:49), and the three key takeaways in their WorldECR/DJRJ article (24:09). They conclude with another installment of Brent Carlson’s “Managing Up” segment (30:28).

Resources:

WorldECR

Brent LinkedIn

Mike LinkedIn

Mike & Brent’s “Fresh Looks” Series