When activist investors strike, there’s often a sequel, even if a company has worked to address their concerns. Boards and managements are often tempted to consider a matter closed, once they have engaged with an activist shareholder group, especially if they have made some concessions. While perhaps understandable, such an approach can backfire, say those […]
Karen Kroll
Posted inFrom the Archive
Empowering Middle Management to Carry the Compliance Message
Compliance professionals have come to appreciate the adage that “tone at the top”—the values espoused and acted upon by the senior management team—is critical in shaping an ethical corporate culture. What’s now becoming clearer is that while tone-at-the-top remains important, it alone isn’t sufficient to foster ethical behavior by all employees, especially when they’re scattered […]
Posted inUncategorized
Healthcare Reform: Prepare for a Reporting Onslaught
Contained within the many pages of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are numerous provisions outlining new disclosures required of nearly all companies. Among them: reporting the value of employees’ healthcare benefits on their Form W2s; providing employees with a summary of their benefits coverage and informing them of the health insurance exchanges; and […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Companies Lavishing Fewer Goodies on Top Executives
While many corporate officers continue to enjoy healthy compensation packages, the number and value of perquisites—including access to the corporate jet, payment of club dues, and no-interest loans—has dropped over the past few years. When benefits consulting firm Towers Watson compared the perks offered in 2013 to those in 2008 at about two-thirds of the […]
Posted inTechnology
e-Discovery in Multimedia Age
Not only the volume of information subject to e-Discovery is exploding; now the formats for that information are, too. So even as companies still struggle to pore through electronic libraries of text, e-Discovery of audio and video material is coming up fast. Reliable statistics are still hard to find—one IDC report from last year says […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Breaking Down the Walls of the Internal Audit Department
Internal audit departments are increasingly assessing an ever-expanding range of risks. Along with internal control, they’re also examining risks from IT, regulatory, fraud, and corruption, among others. Along with these new areas, however, comes a need for additional skill sets. To meet these demands, internal audit departments are adding expertise outside of traditional auditing skill […]
Posted inRisk Management
Compliance Professionals in High Demand
It’s a good time to be in the compliance profession. While many people may associate the term “hot jobs” with positions at hip Internet firms or careers as financial wizards, compliance professionals are a hot commodity. Sure, compliance may not be quite as sexy as Wall Street or Silicon Valley, but demand for experienced compliance […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Compliance Budgets Rising for Banks as Regulations Multiply
The onslaught of new regulations for financial institutions continues to make life challenging for compliance officers at banks, insurers, and other financial services firms. One sign of the toll regulation is taking on the U.S. financial firms is the lack of new entrants into the industry. According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., not a […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Cracking the Code: Codes of Conduct That Actually Work
Nearly every company has a code of conduct. At some it’s a commonly cited document that guides behavior at the organization. At others, it gets more use as a beverage coaster. Security and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, for example, falls into the first category. When the company announced late last year that its board of […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Ethics & Compliance Training for the Hardest Groups of All
Any compliance program worth its salt has been training senior executives for years now on the importance of embracing compliance and striking the right tone at the top. In the real world, however, compliance officers have several more crucial employee groups to worry about, too: hourly employees, who often have tight schedules and few close […]