Compliance and Ethics Professionals' Role Expands, But SCCE and HCCA Survey Finds Little or No Job Security Offered

Survey focus:  Security offered through severance package and the location in the organizational

chart of the compliance and ethics officer

MINNEAPOLIS, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The expanding role of compliance and ethics professionals clearly places them in a high risk position, yet they enjoy scant protection when it comes to job security or severance, according to the findings of a recent survey conducted during the fall by the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE) and the Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA).

Under provisions in the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines that went into effect on November 1, 2010, organizations may now receive a reduction in fines and other penalties even if senior executives are involved in the wrongdoing. However, to obtain that reduction "individuals with operational responsibility for the compliance and ethics program [must] have direct reporting obligations to the organization's governing authority or appropriate subgroup thereof."

This latest change, while providing governmental encouragement for the compliance office to have a direct line to the board and thus elevating the importance of the compliance professional, also raises the risks for compliance and ethics officers. "They may appear to senior leadership to be a potential challenge to their control of what the board sees," said SCCE and HCCA Chief Executive Officer Roy Snell.

Serving as a Chief Compliance and Ethics Officer requires a great deal of integrity and the willingness to ferret out wrongdoing wherever it may occur. That can, at times, include taking on senior executives and challenging well-established business practices. "This puts the compliance and ethics officer at risk for termination, or may call for him or her to resign," explained Snell. "The survey found that just 29% of compliance and ethics professionals have any severance packages at all. To act in a truly independent manner, more compliance and ethics professionals will need severance packages."

In addition, there has been a growing movement, led in many ways by the U.S. Government, to move compliance out of the general counsel's office and make it a separate function. Such has been the case with several high profile settlements. The survey revealed that, generally speaking, compliance is already located outside of the general counsel's office, except in publicly traded companies. And, in those organizations where it is currently a part of the GC's office, "there are typically no plans to move it elsewhere," said Snell.

The SCCE and HCCA jointly fielded this survey to assess the impact these forces have had on the compliance office, and to learn the protection being afforded to the compliance and ethics officer. While the research focused on the protection accorded through severance agreements, it also examined where in the organizational chart the compliance office is located. More than 810 responses to the survey were received. To review the complete survey, visit:

http://www.corporatecompliance.org/EvolvingRole

About the SCCE

The Society of Corporate Compliance & Ethics (SCCE) is headquartered in Minneapolis, MN. Its mission: SCCE exists to champion ethical practice and compliance standards in all organizations and to provide the necessary resources for compliance professionals and others who share these principles. Visit the SCCE Web site at http://www.corporatecompliance.org, Tel: 888-277-4977. Society of Corporate Compliance & Ethics is located at 6500 Barrie Road, Suite 250, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55435. E-mail: [email protected]

About the HCCA

The Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA), established in 1996 and headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, is a non-profit professional membership organization made up of approximately 6,400 compliance and ethics professionals working in the health care industry. HCCA is dedicated to improving the quality of compliance. Visit HCCA's Web site at www.hcca-info.org. Tel: 888/580-8373.

SOURCE Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics

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