“We are incentivizing companies to help police themselves and make the investments in corporate compliance that help achieve a good corporate culture.”
— Kenneth A. Polite, United States Department of Justice, Assistant Attorney General
This week, explore key strategies corporations can use to navigate the government investigation process. Learn why the Trade Compliance Officer is the person of the year and why the Trust Officer is rising. We also consider new incentives offered by the Department of Justice (DOJ) for companies to self-report wrongdoing.
Cooperation Standards in Government Investigations: Practical Tips
In today’s fast-paced digital environment, corporations increasingly face government investigations into their business practices. These investigations can be lengthy and costly, and cooperating is not always a guarantee for a better outcome. However, if corporations are proactive and have a plan in place, they can mitigate the impact of these investigations and increase the chances of a successful outcome. This article explores guidelines from the DOJ and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and provides practical strategies for corporations to navigate this process. Companies can better protect themselves and minimize the impact of a government investigation by staying informed and considering the methods outlined in this article.
Person of the Year: The Trade Compliance Officer
Reflecting and focusing gratitude on accomplished individuals under challenging circumstances is important. This article recognizes the Trade Compliance Officer as the Corruption, Crime & Compliance’s Person of the Year. Looking back on the last few years, organizations have faced unprecedented challenges, beginning with the pandemic. Following recovery from the economic disruptions and personal dislocations resulting from COVID-19, corporations were immediately challenged by the global response to Russia’s invasion and disruption to their global supply chains. Trade compliance officers have always played an essential role in mitigating compliance risks. However, last year quickly elevated the importance of trade compliance controls and the value of trade compliance programs and controls to a company’s overall risk profile.
Justice Department Offers New Incentives for Companies to Self-Report Wrongdoing
The DOJ is expanding its leniency policies to persuade companies to take one of the most significant risks when dealing with the government: reporting their misconduct to prosecutors. The Justice Department won’t prosecute companies that disclose wrongdoing if they fully cooperate with investigators and fix the underlying problems, including any shortcomings in their compliance programs. The DOJ sees the decision to self-report to prosecutors as a reflection of how seriously a corporation takes compliance and ethics. Firms that don’t meet those standards and are not repeat offenders but still report their wrongdoing could still get a reward in the form of lower fines.
Chief Trust Officer Rising
According to research conducted by Deloitte, trustworthy companies outperform their competitors by up to four times, 88% of customers who highly trust a brand have repurchased from that brand, and 79% of employees who highly trust their employer feel motivated to work. Trust is a dominant business issue. “While trust is becoming more widely acknowledged as a business driver, we’re generally not seeing clear lines of ownership or accountability, regardless of whether that responsibility falls to a Chief Trust Officer (CTrO) or is embedded in the job of another C-suite executive,” observes Samantha Parish, a principal with Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP. This environment—where trust increasingly needs to be nurtured, valued, and measured—is ripe for the rise of the Chief Trust Officer position.
