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Great Women in Compliance

Great Women in Compliance: Jane Norberg – What’s New with Whistleblowing

In today’s episode, Lisa Fine speaks with Jane Norberg, a partner at Arnold & Porter. Jane is also the former Chief of the Office of the Whistleblower at the SEC, and she is one of the people who built that office into what it is today, both as Chief and before that, Deputy Chief. She is one of the leading voices on the whistleblower process, and an advisor to organizations in building best practices for organizations to address concerns.

In March, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced a pilot program to compensate whistleblowers who report “significant corporate or financial misconduct” of which the DOJ was not aware. Jane talks about the SEC program and how it has succeeded. She also explains the similarities and differences between the not-yet-enacted DOJ program and the SEC program. Jane provides her perspective and insight as to why she thinks there is a delay from the DOJ as the initial 90 days have passed and how funding, staffing and other factors may contribute.

Jane and Lisa also discuss the SEC reporting process, how tips come in globally from over 100 countries, and the importance of the Whistleblower program to deter and stop wrongdoing.  This goes along with the statistics that indicate that 80% of whistleblowers raise concerns internally, most frequently to the person’s manager most often go to management, not to the Ethics and Compliance teams or the helplines. To that end, Jane provides practical advice to make sure that E&C teams are providing the right training for managers to identify issues and raise them appropriately.

Supporting ethical decision-making is critical for every organization, but providing training to those who may hear concerns is a key component of that. While practitioners think about this for company culture, Jane provides insight on the larger picture of how our internal work is related to the larger scope of whistleblower reporting.

Topics Include:

  • Jane’s integral role as Chief of the SEC Office of the Whistleblower
  • The DOJ pilot whistleblower program and the SEC program and the distinctions
  • Global Impact of the SEC Whistleblower Program
  • Practical advice for E&C professionals building and managing hotlines

Resources

Join the Great Women in Compliance community on LinkedIn here.

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FCPA Compliance Report

FCPA Compliance Report – Carrie Penman with Insights from The SEC’s Office of The Whistleblower Annual Report

Welcome to the award-winning FCPA Compliance Report, the longest-running podcast in compliance. In this episode, Tom Fox welcomes back Carrie Penman from Navex with insights from the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower Annual Report.

Carrie Penman is a seasoned compliance professional and writer with a profound understanding of the surge in whistleblower reports and concerns in the SEC’s office. Penman’s perspective on the topic is that the significant rise in whistleblower tips being reported to the SEC is due to high-profile cases where whistleblowers have received substantial financial awards, which has raised awareness among employees and encouraged them to utilize the whistleblower program.

She also notes a decrease in internal reporting on accounting-related issues, suggesting that organizations should further examine this trend. Penman emphasizes the importance of addressing retaliation issues and fostering a culture that encourages internal reporting. She advocates for training first-line managers and supervisors to properly handle and escalate whistleblower reports, viewing the increase in whistleblower reports as a long-term issue that requires a multi-pronged effort and cultural change within organizations. Join Tom Fox and Carrie Penman on this episode of the FCPA Compliance Report to delve deeper into this topic.

Key Highlight:

  • Increase in Whistleblower Tips and Rewards
  • The Discrepancy Between Internal and External Reporting
  • The Crucial Role of First-Line Managers and Supervisors in Addressing Employee Concerns
  • Building a robust culture of speaking up

Resources:

Carrie Penman on LinkedIn

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Tom Fox

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