Compliance Perspectives

By Adam Turteltaub

The 2019 European Compliance and Ethics Institute began with a riveting address by Drago Kos, Chair of the OECD Working Group on Bribery. The OECD has played an enormous role in the anti-corruption efforts, setting standards that countries commit to, and holding them to public account if they fail to meet their obligations.

After his talk, he took the time to record a podcast in which he shared some of the key points covered in his longer keynote address.  These include:

* Only half of the OECD members have been active in anti-corruption enforcement, but there has been an increase

* Rising nationalism has come with increased indifference to international standards and efforts, including the fight against corruption globally and domestically

* High trust, he believes, leads to less corruption: to fight corruption you must first build trust

* The OECD is working on revisions to its 2009 recommendations for combatting bribery, and this will include a public comment opportunity

* The latest series of country reports shows some progress but also serious deficiencies

Listen in for his insights, concerns, and warnings.

By Adam Turteltaub

A few months ago the threat of ransomware – and some actual cases – was sending chills of fear through hospitals, municipalities and the business community.

Since then reported ransomware incidents have decreased substantially, but that doesn’t mean the threat is gone completely, warns John Riggi, the Senior Advisor for Cybersecurity and Risk for the American Hospital Association and a veteran of the FBI.  In fact, he explains in this podcast, it remains a real risk, but just one of many risks out there.

Supply-chain related attacks remain an issue, for example.  Remember when the Target system was infiltrated by hackers who came in through the HVAC provider’s connection to Target’s system?  That is still a potential problem, even extending to medical devices plugged into networks at healthcare providers.

Another threat to watch out for:  business email compromises, in which a cyber adversary impersonates an individual with payment authority in the organization.  He or she then sends instructions to an employee to wire funds, ostensibly to a vendor, but in reality to the criminal.

So how do we help prevent these issues?  According to John training is critical.  Employees need to know what to watch for and, in the case of payments, know when to stop and call someone to confirm the instructions.

Likewise, employees need to better understand the risks posed by lost files, flash drives and laptops.

But, in the healthcare arena, most importantly they need to understand that patient care also means caring for patient data.

Listen in to learn more.

By Adam Turteltaub

A few months ago the threat of ransomware – and some actual cases – was sending chills of fear through hospitals, municipalities and the business community.

Since then reported ransomware incidents have decreased substantially, but that doesn’t mean the threat is gone completely, warns John Riggi, the Senior Advisor for Cybersecurity and Risk for the American Hospital Association and a veteran of the FBI.  In fact, he explains in this podcast, it remains a real risk, but just one of many risks out there.

Supply-chain related attacks remain an issue, for example.  Remember when the Target system was infiltrated by hackers who came in through the HVAC provider’s connection to Target’s system?  That is still a potential problem, even extending to medical devices plugged into networks at healthcare providers.

Another threat to watch out for:  business email compromises, in which a cyber adversary impersonates an individual with payment authority in the organization.  He or she then sends instructions to an employee to wire funds, ostensibly to a vendor, but in reality to the criminal.

So how do we help prevent these issues?  According to John training is critical.  Employees need to know what to watch for and, in the case of payments, know when to stop and call someone to confirm the instructions.

Likewise, employees need to better understand the risks posed by lost files, flash drives and laptops.

But, in the healthcare arena, most importantly they need to understand that patient care also means caring for patient data.

Listen in to learn more.

By Adam Turteltaub

Tomell Ceasar has spent the last 10 years working in compliance and governance roles in Dubai, both for local and multinational companies.  In that time he’s seen a lot of change in compliance programs.

For one, he notes in this Compliance Perspectives podcast, the job used to be a lot lonelier.  Until about five or six years ago there weren’t many other compliance professionals.

Since then the compliance profession, and compliance programs, have grown dramatically in the region, and with it has come a change in corporate cultures.  Gift giving and lavish entertainment, for example, have been reined in as part of an effort to meet international norms.  And compliance programs are the norm, rather than the exception.

Listen in as he explains how the transformation is continuing to unfold, the cultural issues that still exist, and the ongoing importance of training in the region.

By Adam Turteltaub

Tomell Ceasar has spent the last 10 years working in compliance and governance roles in Dubai, both for local and multinational companies.  In that time he’s seen a lot of change in compliance programs.

For one, he notes in this Compliance Perspectives podcast, the job used to be a lot lonelier.  Until about five or six years ago there weren’t many other compliance professionals.

Since then the compliance profession, and compliance programs, have grown dramatically in the region, and with it has come a change in corporate cultures.  Gift giving and lavish entertainment, for example, have been reined in as part of an effort to meet international norms.  And compliance programs are the norm, rather than the exception.

Listen in as he explains how the transformation is continuing to unfold, the cultural issues that still exist, and the ongoing importance of training in the region.

By Adam Turteltaub

By Adam Turteltaub

A merger or acquisition is an expensive proposition for an organization and one that is rich in both business and compliance risks.  That’s particularly true for the healthcare industry, with its substantial regulatory burden and constant change.

Shirley Qual and Andrea Ekeberg at UnitedHealthcare will be sharing their expertise on M&A compliance risk at the 2019 HCCA Compliance Institute.  In this podcast they explain that successful compliance risk management begins with getting a seat at the table and persuading the business team that compliance can bring value to the conversation.  Specifically, we can help them to prioritize and identify risks before the deal closes.

Once the deal is done, it’s time for compliance to go back to the seven elements of a compliance program and assess whether they are present at the acquired entity.   Also, it’s essential to find out if they have a risk assessment, and what it says. Then, Shirley and Andrea suggest, look into past enforcement actions and how the entity has responded.

Listen in to learn more about how to manage the compliance role during a merger or acquisition.  And don’t miss them at the 2019 Compliance Institute.

By Adam Turteltaub

By Adam Turteltaub

A merger or acquisition is an expensive proposition for an organization and one that is rich in both business and compliance risks.  That’s particularly true for the healthcare industry, with its substantial regulatory burden and constant change.

Shirley Qual and Andrea Ekeberg at UnitedHealthcare will be sharing their expertise on M&A compliance risk at the 2019 HCCA Compliance Institute.  In this podcast they explain that successful compliance risk management begins with getting a seat at the table and persuading the business team that compliance can bring value to the conversation.  Specifically, we can help them to prioritize and identify risks before the deal closes.

Once the deal is done, it’s time for compliance to go back to the seven elements of a compliance program and assess whether they are present at the acquired entity.   Also, it’s essential to find out if they have a risk assessment, and what it says. Then, Shirley and Andrea suggest, look into past enforcement actions and how the entity has responded.

Listen in to learn more about how to manage the compliance role during a merger or acquisition.  And don’t miss them at the 2019 Compliance Institute.

By Adam Turteltaub

With a constant stream of enforcement actions related to the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), it can be difficult to read the tea leaves and discern the patterns.

Laura Perkins of Hughes Hubbard & Reed is co-author of the firm’s Annual FCPA & Anti-Bribery Alert, which gives her perspective on what all those individual cases are pointing to.  In this episode of the Compliance Perspectives Podcast she reports that the biggest trend in 2018 was the growth in international enforcement and cooperation in anti-bribery laws.   More and more it’s not just the US Department of Justice (DOJ) or the UK Serious Fraud Office prosecuting on its own.  Enforcement authorities from across multiple jurisdictions are working together.

A second trend is a significant increase in individual enforcement actions.  The DOJ seems to have made good on its word to focus on the people, not just the companies they work for.

Listen in as she discusses these trends, the pace of prosecutions, the state of the DOJ’s Pilot Program, and how GDPR is affecting internal investigations.

By Adam Turteltaub

With a constant stream of enforcement actions related to the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), it can be difficult to read the tea leaves and discern the patterns.

Laura Perkins of Hughes Hubbard & Reed is co-author of the firm’s Annual FCPA & Anti-Bribery Alert, which gives her perspective on what all those individual cases are pointing to.  In this episode of the Compliance Perspectives Podcast she reports that the biggest trend in 2018 was the growth in international enforcement and cooperation in anti-bribery laws.   More and more it’s not just the US Department of Justice (DOJ) or the UK Serious Fraud Office prosecuting on its own.  Enforcement authorities from across multiple jurisdictions are working together.

A second trend is a significant increase in individual enforcement actions.  The DOJ seems to have made good on its word to focus on the people, not just the companies they work for.

Listen in as she discusses these trends, the pace of prosecutions, the state of the DOJ’s Pilot Program, and how GDPR is affecting internal investigations.

By Adam Turteltaub

Sydney Finkelstein is the Steven Roth Professor of Management at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.  In addition, he is the author of 20 books, including Why Smart Executives Fail, Think Again and SUPERBOSSES:  How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent.  And, if that wasn’t enough, he is the host of his own podcast series:  SydCast.

He took some time to sit down for the Compliance Perspective Podcast to share some deep and actionable insights.

In our conversation we discuss:

* The common causes of business and compliance failures, both start with human frailty

* How to overcome the natural resistance to limits being set

* Developing talent on your compliance team: think like a teacher

* Building a compliance department that will survive your departure

* What to expect from the next generation of business school grads. Relax, it’s good news.

Listen in to gain these and other insights from a top business school professor.