Food and belonging

This story of simple kindness reminded me of an event I organized years ago.

It was a multi-day training conference for my company’s ethics and compliance officers based in Asia Pacific. I made sure that we had snack breaks in the morning and the afternoon, good lunches, and team dinners at night for networking and relationship-building. I even thought of asking if anyone had food allergies.

But I failed to realize that my conference was during the month of Ramadan, and that one of my attendees was a practicing Muslim. I didn’t notice him skipping the lunch and snacks on the first day. After my closing remarks that afternoon, with a kindness I still remember, he sought me out for a private word and explained, with a gentle smile, why he would not be joining us for dinner, which was scheduled a few hours before sunset. I was mortified. I apologized repeatedly but he assured me it was OK.

I never forgot that lesson. In subsequent years, I made sure not to schedule this event during the holy month. I also made sure we had halal options at all meals. Such a simple solution, yet so easy to overlook when you assumes that everyone else does what you do. Food is such an important aspect of culture and daily life, it should not be overlooked.

I applaud the colleges that are now being more inclusive and showing simple kindness to the Muslim students during Ramadan. I also encourage all employers who offer cafeteria services to learn more about, and meet, the dining needs and practices of their employees.

What UX does your E&C department offer?

About 10 years ago, my department changed its name from Business Practices to Global Ethics & Compliance.

Our new name needed a new logo. So we hired a consultant who created a mark that was just right. We were really proud of our new brand.

But, as Seth Godin points out, a logo is just a flag, not a brand. The brand is created by the experience of the customers.

How would your employees describe the experience of interacting with your ethics and compliance department? Whatever that description is, that’s your brand.

No logo can change that.

How to solve puzzles

Are you playing Wordle online?

If you are a beginner, a quick chat with an expert player can significantly improve your game. For example, you’ll learn that if you try NOTES first, followed by ACRID, the 10 most-often used letters of the English language will already be in play. Your chances of solving the puzzle in the next 4 tries are very high.

The same strategy works if you play in the field of ethics and compliance. New “puzzles” show up at work regularly, and connecting with other professionals can propel you faster towards a solution.

Today is the start of Impact, the annual conference of Ethics & Compliance Initiative. I will be mingling, virtually, with current and former Deputy Attorneys General, General Counsels of corporations and government agencies, Chief Ethics & Compliance Officers, law firm partners, and so on. If I am missing a piece of a puzzle, someone at this event can help me find it.

It’s not too late to join. And for price you would pay your outside counsel for one hour of their time, it’s a good deal.

How to raise money for Ukraine at work

In workplaces around the world, employees are coming together to help the Ukrainian people, especially the refugees. It’s a beautiful thing to see amidst the horrors of war.

Before money and necessary items can be collected and shipped to the front lines, someone at work needs to ask for donations. And this is where it gets tricky. Who can ask, and how the requests should be made, is often regulated.

It’s regulated for two reasons. First, companies want to avoid abuse-of-power situations. When senior leaders, or even first-line supervisors, ask employees to donate to a cause, many feel obliged to donate amounts they can’t afford, to causes they don’t believe in, for fear of embarrassment or retaliation. Second, some companies block all forms of solicitation, even for charitable causes, because it opens the door to union-forming activities (we won’t get into that here).

Therefore, many employers prohibit all types of solicitation in the workplace. No Girl Scout cookie sales, no toy drives during the holidays, no blankets for refugees.

Is that the right answer? Do we need such drastic measures to prevent the posting of a union flyer in the cafeteria? Here are some guidelines that can help you do good in the world without giving angst to your employer or putting undue pressure on your colleagues:

  • Ask a front-line employee to make the donation request, not a manager or leader.
  • Avoid face-to-face or email requests. Put a flyer up in a common room inviting people drop items off in a box or to donate anonymously to a GoFundMe page.
  • Clearly state that all contributions are voluntary, and make it credible. Use language that acknowledge the fact that many employees have already donated to the same cause outside of the office. Mention that some employees may not be able to give at this time.
  • Run your campaign by your HR professional and ask for feedback. Do the same with your ethics professional if you have one.

Build a brand

Here is one piece of advice I give during the onboarding process of a new ethics and compliance officer: build a brand.

Take action each month (or better, each week) to remind those you serve what your role is. Explain a section of your code of conduct in the company’s newsletter. Present the key requirements of a new policy at an all-hands meeting. Send a reminder email when the training completion deadline approaches. And so on.

Do this consistently, and when someone has a concern, they will know who to go to. Better yet, they will come to you before it’s a concern, before anything is done. You will be seen as an advisor, not just an enforcer.

Build a brand. It convinces other people to come to you before they even know they have a need to do so.

Illegal and good for you

It is widely accepted that diversity is good for business.

It is true for the small team working on a marketing campaign. It is true for the executives making strategic decisions. And it is true for company boards setting the vision.

Yet, many companies fail to act in their own best interest. Most make no efforts to include in their ranks, and on their boards, members from underrepresented communities.

So “progressive” or “liberal” or “bleeding-heart” legislatures sometimes try to give these corporations a “hand” or a “push” or “incentives”. And, as it so often happens, the courts are right there ready to strike these laws down as unconstitutional.

OK. Fine. We can’t force it on you. But that doesn’t mean it’s bad for you. Perhaps you didn’t notice the benefits of diversity when they were first mentioned in a research papers 40 years ago. Maybe you didn’t read the Harvard Business Review article 20 years ago that summarized all that research. But you probably have seen the benefits of diversity being touted on the cover of Forbes and on the front page of the Wall Street Journal for the last 10 years.

So what are you waiting for? Even the courts agree that diversity is good – it just can’t be legally imposed (in the US).

Go ahead. Beat your competitor to it.

Wikipedia stands with Ukraine

Wikipedia is a gift to humanity.

And right now, it’s a threat to Russia.

There’s a page on Wikipedia describing Russia’s criminal acts. Russia wants that page removed because it contradicts its own narrative, and such contradictions are against Russian law. Putin doesn’t want his fellow citizens to know what he’s up to, for fear of another revolution.

So far, it appears that Wikipedia will not back down, despite the threat of heavy fines. Every year, this non-profit asks me to donate $3, which I gladly give. I intend to give much more this year.

Please share this page widely: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine. Post it on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, etc. If you know people living in Russia, send it to them. The sooner the truth is known in Russia, the sooner this war will end.