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31 Days to More Effective Compliance Programs

Day 1 | What 2020 Brought To Compliance Programs


2020 was a very significant year for every compliance practitioner and compliance program. Not only was it the year with the single highest anti-bribery fine ever but there were significant enforcement actions, fines and penalties assessed against corporations coupled with a large number of individual prosecutions. Yet, perhaps most significantly, there were two noteworthy releases of information by the federal government which directly impacted compliance professionals. In June, the Department of Justice (DOJ) released its 2020 Update to the Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs – Guidance Document (2020 Evaluation) was released. It should be mandatory reading for every Chief Compliance Officer (CCO), compliance practitioner and professional or any other person interested in the latest thinking of the DOJ on what constitutes a best practices compliance program.
The second release was the DOJ and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released the updated A RESOURCE GUIDE TO THE U.S. FOREIGN CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT SECOND EDITION (2020 FCPA Resource Guide). This was a most welcomed update to the seminal and original FCPA Resource Guide, released in 2012 and widely recognized as the single best volume on the FCPA. Some of the key changes for the compliance professional include the following.
This clearly mandates that once an allegation or even suspicion comes to the attention of compliance, it must be properly triaged, your investigation protocol should kick in with a detailed and effective investigation that is completed in a reasonable time and provide a response to the investigative findings. Moreover, an investigation is not the ending point and should be followed with a robust root cause analysis.
The 2020 Resource Guide is a most welcomed document from the DOJ and SEC. It brings forward the top FCPA and compliance resource from the past decade into this decade. The 2020 Update continues the DOJ communication to the compliance community about its expectations for a best practices compliance program.
Three Key Takeaways

  1. The 2020 Update brings business intelligence to compliance.
  2. The key theme is continuous monitoring and continuous improvement.
  3. The 2020 FCPA Resource Guide emphasized the importance of root cause analysis.
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FCPA Compliance Report

Bonus Edition-Everything Ethics


Today I have a special year end episode where I am interviewed by Kevin Foster for his show Everything Ethics, which he has graciously allowed me to cross-post. It is a free flowing conversation about ethics with some compliance thrown in. It was a ton of fun to visit with Kevin. You can check out more about Kevin and his ethics trainings on the Resources below.
Resources
J. Kevin Foster LinkedIn Profile
Business Ethics Advisors

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The Affiliated Monitors Expert Podcast

What is Ethical Culture and Why Does it Matter


In this episode Jay Rosen, VP of Business Development for Affiliated Monitors, Inc. begins a five-part exploration of corporate culture.  Corporate culture exists in the space between what an organization professes and what it does. It is important to pay attention to corporate culture as disconnects in this reality can be quite costly. Today, we consider what is ethical culture and why does it matter.
Highlights include:

  • An exploration of the question “what is corporate culture”?
  • Corporate culture is the way things really arein an organization and the way things really work.
  • There may be more than one culture in an organization and there might well be multiple subcultures in a company.
  • M&A due diligence around culture is critical.
  • What different kinds of cultural systems could impact a company?
  • Why is having a “speak up” culture a key indication of a strong ethical culture?
  • How can an organization hold its employees throughout the organization accountable?
  • Why must there must be an alignment between what top management says and the company’s core values to have an effective culture?

For more information see Jay’s blog post What is Ethical Culture and Why Does it Matter? on Corporate Compliance Insights.
For more information on Affiliated Monitors, Inc. check out their website here.

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Daily Compliance News

December 31, 2020-Lay ‘Em Off edition


In today’s edition of Daily Compliance News:

  • SEC may get its disgorgement back. (NPR)
  • Alaska Airlines to clamp down on emotional support animals. (NYT)
  • GE lays off thousands, CEO gets $47MM bonus. (WaPo)
  • Petrobras receives $45MM from with Vitol. (Reuters)
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Compliance Into the Weeds

Who Should Oversee and Manage the Hotline


Compliance into the Weeds is the only weekly podcast which takes a deep dive into a compliance related topic, literally going into the weeds to more fully explore a subject. Today we consider the question of who in an organization should oversee a hotline. Once that decision is made, who should manage the hotline. Some of the issues we consider are:

  • Why the Audit Committee on the Board should oversee the hotline.
  • It should be written into the Audit Committee’s Charter.
  • The hotline manager must have the independence to investigate any issues raised and they must have the competence to do so.
  • Why the Compliance Function should oversee management of the hotline.

Resources
For more information see Matt’s blog post in Radical Compliance:
Who Should Run the Hotline?

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Daily Compliance News

December 30, 2020-Zero Paid edition


In today’s edition of Daily Compliance News:

  • $76MM paid to hotel-$0 paid to workers. (NPR)
  • PPE corruption in UK. (FEE)
  • Fraud furlough dilemma in UK? (BBC)
  • Bomber exposes communications risk. (WSJ)
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EMBARGOED!

EMBARGOED! Episode 20: Top 10 Stories of 2020

On the final EMBARGOED! episode of 2020, Brian and Tim present their Top 10 sanctions and export controls stories of the year (in Lightning Round fashion). There are no winners and losers here, but the list includes: Huawei, sanctions targeting China, expanded MEUser/MEUse restrictions, the maximum pressure campaign against Iran, TikTok and WeChat EOs, disappearing Russia, U.S. v. Sadr, ExxonMobil v. OFAC, efforts to undercut the so-called Troika of Tyranny, and the state of OFAC enforcement.

Subscribe! * Apple Podcasts * Spotify *  Amazon Music  * Google Podcasts * Stitcher
Questions? Contact us at podcasts@milchev.com.
EMBARGOED! is not intended and cannot be relied on as legal advice; the content only reflects the thoughts and opinions of its hosts.
EMBARGOED! is intelligent talk about sanctions, export controls, and all things international trade for trade nerds and normal human beings alike, hosted by Miller & Chevalier Members Brian Fleming and Tim O’Toole. Each episode will feature deep thoughts and hot takes about the latest headline-grabbing developments in this area of the law, as well as some below-the-radar items to keep an eye on. Subscribe for new bi-weekly episodes so you don’t miss out!
Timestamps:
0:10 Introduction and Roadmap
The Top 10 Sanctions and Export Controls Stories of 2020
5:50 Huawei (FPDP Rule and CFO Meng Wanzhou)
9:05 Sanctions targeted at China (Hong Kong/Uyghurs, statutes/EOs)
14:10 Military End User/Military End Use restrictions
19:30 Has Iran pressure been maxed out?
25:04 TikTok/WeChat EOs
29:57 Disappearing Russia (will it be back on the radar in 2021?)
35:50 Throwing out the Sadr conviction in SDNY
44:15 ExxonMobil v. OFAC (“fair notice” for all!)
53:12 Continued focus on the “Troika of Tyranny” (Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua)
57:23 OFAC enforcement (or lack thereof)
1:03:53 Honorable mentions
1:08:45 Final Thoughts

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12 O’Clock High-a podcast on business leadership

Year End Wrap Up


Richard Lummis and I are back for another episode of 12 O’Clock High, a podcast on business leadership. Today, we end this most unusual year of 2020 with our annual wrap up and look forward into 2020. We consider where have we been over the past year with our Presidential series, some of our favorite episodes and why researching Theodore Roosevelt was almost as much fun as recording the podcast series on leadership lessons from TR and we conclude with where we might head in 2021 and a sneak peek at our February month of leadership lessons from Oscar-winning best pictures.

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Daily Compliance News

December 29, 2020-Vaccines and Bank Fraud edition


In today’s edition of Daily Compliance News:

  • Do tariffs increase corruption? (WSJ)
  • How will that merger work out? (WSJ)
  • Will Covid-19 lead to bank fraud? (WSJ)
  • Trump Administration appeals order on TikTok. (CNN.com)
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The Ethics Experts

Episode 044–Adam Balfour


Giovanni welcomes Adam Balfour, Vice President and General Counsel for Corporate Compliance and Latin America for Bridgestone Americas.  In this episode, Gio and Adam talk leadership, parenting, and the merits of sincerity within your organization.