ECI recently convened a small group of ECI members to discuss how their organizations are responding to the War in Ukraine.
The war in Ukraine put culture and values at the forefront of strategic business discussions and decisions being made at companies of all types and sizes. In a recent discussion with a small group of ECI members who are senior ethics & compliance (E&C) leaders, we learned that their focus continues to surround employee safety and well-being, particularly for those companies that have workers in Ukraine, Russia, or bordering countries.
Company values also continue to be in headlines as many companies across the globe suspend business, shipments and other trade with or in Russia in reaction to the country’s invasion. According to recent news reports, more than 500 companies have severed or significantly scaled back their relationships and/or operations with Russia.
As more than one participant noted, the focus for their organizations has been on taking care of people and creating timely and mindful communications about this geo-political conflict, the effects of which are rippling across the globe with escalating impact on a daily basis. Personnel and business discussions continue to offer E&C an opportunity to engage emerging issues in ways that ensure that the organization’s values are front and center not just with employees, but also with customers, partners, shareholders and other important audiences. If the E&C department is not connected to other internal key strategic partners monitoring and responding to the crisis already, this is the time to reach out to ensure alignment and to support internal communications about company values and integrity.
Knowing that the “world is watching” makes it imperative for E&C to integrate and align with the other internal stakeholders and business partners that are focusing on issues such as monitoring sanctions, sub-tier supply chain relationships with Russia and Russian entities and contract terms as part of the broader risk landscape. While companies will continue to focus on employee health and well-being throughout this humanitarian crisis, discussion participants noted that attention must also be focused on cybersecurity and that risks in this area will only continue to grow as a result of Russia’s action in Ukraine.
Regardless of whether an organization has business of any kind in Russia, above all it is important that E&C be sensitive to the human dimension of this tragedy inside and outside the company and be prepared to ensure that any actions taken align with and reflect the organization’s core values.
If you would like to be included in these types of high-level discussions in the future, please feel free to reach to Dan Woltman for more information about our Fellows Program.
Be sure to attend ECI’s Annual Conference, IMPACT 2022, April 19th and attend the keynote session on Russia and Ukraine: The Near and Long-term Impacts on E&C with:
- Luke Dembosky, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton
- Leo S. Mackay, Jr., Senior Vice President Ethics and Enterprise Assurance, Lockheed Martin Corporation
- Michael Volkov, Chief Executive Officer, The Volkov Group
Register today at https://www.ethics.org/impact/
Written by Earnie Broughton, Senior Advisor for ECI
