EA, Compliance and Gov't Contractors

 Ethical Advocate (EA), in conjunction with distinguished accounting and legal firms Cherry, Bekaert & Holland, and Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, will facilitate a compliance seminar for federal government contractors on December 9th in Vienna, Va.

By virtue of new Federal Acquisition Regulations, federal contractors are now mandated to have ethics and compliance trainings and programs in place after the awarding of certain types of federal contracts. 

The seminar will engage participants in the following critical areas:

  * The cost and scope of unethical actions

  * Who is involved

  * The critical importance to employees - and the company - for its leaders to be ethically driven

  * Why an ethical culture trumps ethical policies

  * What can you directly and uniquely do to create and influence your company's ethical culture

    * Elements of a Code of Business Ethics and Compliance program and the actions required to adapt th code and implement the program

    * Overview of the required intenal controls

    * Implementing an effective anonymous hotline

EA, as part of its focus to serve federal government contractors with its FISMA certified hotline services and ethics trainings, is working with increasing numbers of government contractors to bring them into compliance.

EA President Speaker at The Directors' Education Institute at Duke University

  

Jacob Blass, President, Ethical Advocate, a leading risk, governance and compliance company,  participated on a distinguished panel at The Directors' Education Institute at Duke University on September 28.

   The panel, titled  “Enlightened Self-Interest: Risks and Opportunities Presented by Global Warming and other Social Concerns”
 addressed the critical issues of global warming and other environmental and social concerns and the attendant business and reputational risks. What are best practices to assess the opportunities and risks about global warming and other environmental issues, working conditions and the interests of local communities and other stockholders, including global regulatory actions and public perceptions. What are the ethical issues companies must address with regard to their carbon footprint? What questions must Boards and executives ask to determine actions reconciling environmental and social concerns with business interests.

   DEI is an ISS-accredited, intensive, innovative two-day program developed by the Duke Global Capital Markets Center with the support of the New York Stock Exchange Foundation to address the recent developments in corporate governance. This program is designed for board chairs, corporate directors and senior executive officers of publicly traded corporations.

  

EA to Lead Ethics Seminar for Duke Management Team

Ethical Advocate, a leading risk, governance and compliance company, will facilitate a seminar for over 100 members of Duke University’s management team on May 20, 2008.

   The seminar, titled “Creating Values and Ethics in Your Company", will:

* Address how to deepen the ethical culture of your organization

* Assist participants in defining their own values and ethics

* Examine how people compromise their values and ethics, and

* Provide tools for avoiding such compromise

EA to Present to the Northern Virginia Government Contractors Council

Jacob Blass, President, Ethical Advocate, a leading risk, governance and compliance company,  will participate in a panel discussion for the Northern Virginia Government Contractors Council of the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce, on May 29, 2008.

New Federal Acquisitions regulations are requiring government contractors to have ethics programs of depth and substance.

   The seminar, titled “Ethics with Teeth” will:

* Address how to deepen the ethical culture of your organization

* Examine how people compromise their values and ethics, and

* Provide tools on how to avoid such compromise


Whistleblower Hotline Systems Provider Ethical Advocate Receives Industry-First FISMA Certification

CHAPEL HILL, NC--(Marketwire - December 18, 2007) - Ethical Advocate, a leading provider of confidential and anonymous incident reporting systems, often called Whistleblower systems, today announced that its EthicsVault reporting application has been certified as the first and only Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) compliant third-party hotline. Compliance with FISMA is mandated by law to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information and systems that support the operations and assets of government agencies. Agencies failing to meet FISMA requirements face withholding of federal funds and withdrawal of contractor eligibility status.

FISMA requires federal agencies to develop, document, and implement agency-wide information security programs. All U.S. government federal agencies and qualifying organizations contracted on behalf of U.S. government agencies must conform to FISMA's mandatory processes.

FISMA certification addresses access control, physical and environmental protection, incident response and authentication. There are 158 FISMA control requirements, each with many corresponding specific obligations. "As the only FISMA-certified reporting system, this is the most complete and secure approach for whistleblower hotlines and systems in the government sector," said Janet Hankins, EthicsVault system manager. "With our systems housed at one of the most secure hosting facilities in the United States with guaranteed 99.99% uptime availability, EthicsVault delivers the required availability, security and integrity required to ensure confidential reporting."

The EthicsVault hotline supports the reporting of federal procurement fraud and meets the Department of Justice (DOJ) National Procurement Fraud Task Force recommendations that qualified government contractors be required to operate compliance programs with reporting mechanisms such as hotlines. These recommendations stipulate that contracts be denied to organizations without compliance programs.

Studies indicate that people are far more likely to use external hotline services such as EthicsVault to report issues due to guaranteed anonymity and diminished fear of repercussions. EthicsVault's unparalleled FISMA certified hotline makes this application the foremost choice for government agencies and contractors.

About Ethical Advocate

Ethical Advocate (EA) provides anonymous incident reporting systems to more than one million users in all sectors, including corporate, government and educational institutions. EA incident reporting supports FISMA, Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA, and many other regulatory and reporting requirements. Persons desiring to report incidents, indiscretions, or suggestions can do so securely, 24/7/365, multilingual, via the Internet and phone. For more information, visit www.ethicaladvocate.com or call (888) ETHICS6.

EA President Presents at The Directors' Education Institute at Duke University

   Jacob Blass, President, Ethical Advocate, a leading risk, governance and compliance company,  participated on a distinguished panel at The Directors' Education Institute at Duke University on November 9th.

   The panel, titled “Enlightened Self-Interest: The Ethical Well-Being of Your Company” addressed the following critical questions: Are boards subject to ethical obligations that transcend their legal obligations?  What is the source of, and how to define, ethical norms?  How to address ethical concerns about environmental issues, working conditions and the interests of local communities and other stakeholders.

   DEI is an ISS-accredited, intensive, innovative two-day program developed by the Duke Global Capital Markets Center with the support of the New York Stock Exchange Foundation to address the recent developments in corporate governance