The Great European Compliance & Ethics Institute 2018

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By Patricia Carretero, CCEP

First of all, I would like to demonstrate my appreciation and gratitude to the organisers, speakers and colleagues for sharing such a great and useful experience. The level has been simply top of the line!

I learned a lot, and I consolidated no fewer beliefs. My only complaint is that you need to choose among excellent topics/speakers since it is organised in tracks and it´s impossible to attend all the sessions. Difficult to pick up!!

Some learned lessons:

1.- Corporate Responsibility and Liability: A Global Perspective; U.S., UK, and EU. Gabriel L. Imperato, CasselOdell Guyton, and Robert Bond.

  • No matter which country/legislation you are talking about, in a great part of them now, and in the near future for others, corporate responsibility and liability is/will be a reality.
  • The existence and effectiveness of the organisation compliance program and the efforts to implement an effective compliance program is the key.

2.-Organisational Ethics: Making the Intangible Tangible. Sally March and Jane L. Mitchell.

Standards for compliance programs acknowledge the importance of an ethical culture, but what is it?

Thinking and sharing among the participants about What elements or features should have an ethical company?  What feelings and signals do you perceive when you are in an ethical organisation? And in a not ethical one? Once you identify the elements, features, signs, even the feelings, you can assess them in order to measure if there is a real culture of compliance.

3.-Compliance Investigations: Opening the Can of Worms. Gerry Zack, and Anna Cook.

  • You need expertise and thorough preparation for conducting an investigation. Many things are in play.
  • We do not investigate people; we investigate processes.
  • When one noncompliance has been identified, data analytics can be useful in finding others

4.-The Lowdown on Data Security Post-GDPR: Hear Firsthand from Experts on How You Can Reduce Your Risk. Jonathan Armstrong and Mike McLaughlin.

  • Everything comes from Article 6, principle f (GDPR):

processed in a manner that ensures appropriate security of the personal data, including protection against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage, using appropriate technical or organisational measures (‘integrity and confidentiality’).”

so…

  • Keep data secure.

5.-Building a World Class Compliance Program on a Limited Budget. Casper Venbjerg Hansen.

  • Know the business: Build an efficient and effective compliance program that is tailored to the needs and risk appetite of the specific company.
  • Think long-term: remember that an equal amount (and sometimes more) resources to conduct training, to implement the procedures and then monitor and audit the level of compliance.
  • Make it easy for your colleagues to comply with policies and procedures. This ensures a better likelihood of acceptance and compliance with the program.

6.- Building a Global Compliance Training Program: 3 Multinationals Share Their Insights. Matt Plass, Peggy Dolin-Brunel, Nichole Pitts, and Britta Luescher.

It is clear that building and effective E&C program is a challenging task but what is even more clear is that top-level professionals are courageously fighting and doing their best to accomplish this task. Sharing experience and ideas is critical.

7.- Foundations and Culture of Compliance Programs: A Global Perspective. Sheryl Vacca, David S. Lane, Kirill Boychenko, and Letitia Adu-Ampoma.

Ethics and Compliance has come to stay, to some places first, and to others later.

You must take into account the culture and the differences in each country, even in each region, to be successful.

8.- Building Effective E&C Programs Globally: The Value of Independent Assessments and Evaluation. Eric Feldman and Thomas Topolski.

  • Ethical Culture is a foundational internal control without which all other controls are bound to fail.
  • A successful businessman engaged with an ethics and compliance vision is not only possible but is also the future. Brilliant Thomas Topolski.

9.- Fight Against Corruption: Comply or Settle the French Way. André Bywater, and Maria Lancri.

The corruption prevention obligation is a reality for companies in European countries. France has taken an ambitious step forward with Sapin Law II, and it won’t be the only European country to go down this challenging road.

10.- Wonders of Spaceflight and Its Risks: Lessons from the Space Shuttle Program. Dr Garrett Reisman.

  • The importance of free and open communication.
  • The importance of encouraging dissent.

11.- Best Practices for Multinational Companies Conducting Cross-Border Investigations and Due Diligence. Ann Sultan, and Patrick Garcia.

Borders unite sometimes and divide others times; even both things can happen at the same time. Risk assessment is a key.

12.- Mergers & Acquisitions: Managing Corporate Compliance Through Integration and Organizational Change. Jacki Cheslow, and Julian Pierro.

  • The importance of the compliance´s role from the very beginning, from due diligence to real integration.
  • How meaningful the relationships are. Take care of people and win hearts and minds.
  • Respect cultural differences
  • Shared values are the key
  • Don’t dictate – be flexible

13.- Millennial is a Dangerous Word: How to Address Bias & Stereo­types in relation to Compliance & Ethics. Susan Du Becker, and Laura M. Ellis.

  • Maybe too anxious about how to deal with millennials?
  • Every Generation is the Same, but Different.
  • For them, also it is important to do the right thing.
  • I loved millennials at the moment I met Laura M. Ellis.

14: – “Do as I Say, but Not as I Say…” The Importance of Consistent Compliance Messaging Across the Organization. Kyle Lewis, Compliance Operations Manager, LafargeHolcim.

Now we know how to improve our “gimme high five” among many other important things.

15.- Design for Compliance: Making Compliance Understandable for Employees. Ricardo Pellafone. I admire so much his vision and approaches, always making the difficult easy.

When designing E&C training, focus on:

  • Utility, not decoration.
  • Behaviour, not entertainment.
  • Problem, not format.

The event was great, the topics helpful and trendy and people the best!

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