Innovation and compliance are often at odds with each other within organizations. Innovation is inherently risky, and the compliance function traditionally seeks to limit and mitigate risk. There is a place for innovation in compliance, like leveraging technology in a thoughtful way, with proper guardrails, to speed up manual tasks or derive previously unseen insights from data. The three finalists for Compliance Innovator of the Year have applied technology to improve compliance messaging and training; to enhance ethical decision making; and to resolve key compliance issues.
Without further ado, and in alphabetical order, are the three finalists for Compliance Innovator of the Year for the 2026 Excellence in Compliance Awards.
- Allison Barlotta, Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer at Booz Allen Hamilton
Excerpt from Allison’s nomination: ”What distinguishes Allison’s innovation is her balanced and principled approach to technology adoption. At a time when organizations are rapidly experimenting with artificial intelligence, she ensured implementation was grounded in transparency, accountability, and human oversight. She reinforced that AI should enhance ethical decision-making—not replace human judgment—modeling how compliance leaders can responsibly harness emerging technologies while maintaining trust.”
- Alonzo Martinez, Associate General Counsel at HireRight
Excerpt from Alonzo’s nomination: ”He became the first compliance professional in the background screening industry to consistently produce public-facing compliance content at scale. Through weekly articles, short-form video updates, webinar series, and coordinated content campaigns, Alonzo translates complex legal developments into practical insights employers can apply immediately.”
- Alex Vallejo, Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer at Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E)
Excerpt from Alex’s nomination: ”One of Vallejo’s most innovative contributions was leveraging the company’s lean management framework to stand up and mature PG&E’s Commitments Information Center (CIC), which evolved static tracking systems into a strategic forum to raise and quickly resolve key compliance issues. By elevating commitments using key lean tools, the CIC enabled real-time transparency to senior management, fostered immediate cross-functional collaboration, and accelerated problem-solving. This approach drove PG&E’s on-track commitments from 85% in 2022 to 100% in 2025, a tangible outcome that reflects both disciplined execution and creative use of existing infrastructure.”
Leadership from Compliance Week and its sister organization, the Ethics and Compliance Initiative (ECI), judged dozens of nominations for Compliance Innovator of the Year submitted by colleagues, friends, students, and others who know the organizations and were able to best articulate their accomplishments.
Of these three finalists, one will be named Compliance Innovator of the Year for the 2026 Excellence in Compliance Awards, at Compliance Week’s National Conference, to be held May 6-8 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Now in their seventh year, CW’s Excellence in Compliance Awards annually honor the brightest minds, biggest innovations, and crowning achievements in compliance.
At the reception on the evening of May 7, Compliance Week will also hand out awards to Joe Murphy for Lifetime Achievement in Compliance; CCO of the Year, Compliance Program of the Year, Compliance Mentor of the Year, and Rising Star in Compliance.
Congratulations to all three finalists!
