[00:00:01] Speaker A: Get ready for Ethisphere's 16th annual Global Ethics Summit where the brightest minds in ethics and compliance come together to spark innovation and drive change. I'm Julia Boies and this is the Ethicast.
This year marks Ethisphere's 16th annual Global Ethics Summit, or GES as we like to call it. GES is Ethisphere's annual global event to bring together leaders who are passionate about ethics and compliance and advancing ethical culture within their organizations, communities and the world. This year, April 6th through 8th in Atlanta, Georgia, and virtually, we will spend three days listening, learning and sharing best practices around topics that are top of mind for ethics and compliance professionals. Today in this episode of the Ethicast, we will speak with Emily Rickaby, Ethisphere's Director of Shared expertise and strategic Projects, to hear all about exciting highlights and sessions you won't want to miss at GES this year.
Emily, it is so wonderful to have you join us.
[00:01:12] Speaker B: Oh, Julia, it's great to be here and talk about our upcoming summit.
[00:01:16] Speaker A: Yes. Wow. We have tons of questions for you and we're really excited to get some insight. For starters, what is new at GES this year or what feels different than in years prior?
[00:01:27] Speaker B: I think this year what I would say it's about expansion. So just generally an expanded agenda.
Of course we'll have our, really our excellent slate of panelists that will be part of our conversations and keynotes. You know, there's going to be more than 20 panel conversations going on over the three days, both main stage and breakout. But, but new this year is we have two topical tracks during our breakout sessions and one of those tracks is focused on those programs are maybe a little earlier in their maturity or perhaps you're an ethics and compliance leader and for the first time you find yourself in the position of having to start a program from scratch. So we have one track devoted to that and then our other topical track is really on the cross functional collaboration with hr.
You know, there's a lot of overlap when we think about what it takes to really build a strong ethical culture. It's about engaging employees. It's about educating managers and their role in engaging employees. So we want to take advantage of the overlap between those two functions and look a little bit more closely at where they can partner together for mutual success.
The other area where we've expanded is really in our peer to peer conversations, our workshops, and also in some industry roundtable opportunities. There'll be 18 different topics to choose from when it comes to those types of Sessions and those are really meant to be smaller gatherings, maybe 20 or 25 leaders around a table, or maybe it's a workshop environment of about 50 colleagues where you can spend a little bit more time diving more deeply into what's working and where your challenges are. You know, we're going to cover everything from AI governance to the use of AI to support ethics and compliance programs. We'll talk about third party and supply chain risk management.
We'll have a session on managing the Speak up and whistleblower programs.
We'll go back to basics in some ways with learning how to craft really solid, effective codes and policies.
And then on the afternoon of the last day, that's where we're going to have some opportunities for people to come in and gather in industry specific roundtables. So stay tuned for more details on what industries we're going to be targeting for those.
[00:04:00] Speaker A: That all sounds so exciting. It makes me want to ask you another question. I'm curious, with all of that going on, what sessions are you most excited for this year?
[00:04:11] Speaker B: Yeah, a couple of things I think, generally speaking, of course, AI is still going to be a big topic of conversation again this year. So I'm looking forward to that. I really feel like the folks in the ethics and compliance profession have a real knack for quickly coming up to speed when there are new things within the environment and AI is certainly one of those and related technologies. So we had a big, big discussions on that last summit and that will carry over into this year. So I'm excited to see the growth that I'm sure will be on display at this year's summit. The other thing I would say is, you know, whenever we have a summit that coincides with a big change in the administration and that a lot of attendees this year. So I think I'm looking forward to our conversations on strengthening the integrity agenda. I think it's always important to keep that internal organizational compass pointing in the right direction in times of uncertainty or big change. And then the other conversation related to that would be the one we're having on ethics and compliance professionals really staying close to the board and close to those strategic priorities. That's going to take on greater emphasis for people this year, I think.
[00:05:27] Speaker A: Emily, that was all so exciting. Thank you so much. You know, for those people who might not be as familiar with Global Ethics Summit, our very first day of our three day event is, is called Bella Day and it's exclusive for our Bella members. What are some things that Bella members can expect during Bella Day this year?
[00:05:43] Speaker B: Yeah, Julia, you know, Bella Day is really an opportunity for this particular community to come together and sort of launch the year. We often talk about the Ethics and Compliance year as being Global Ethics Summit to Global Ethics Summit. So especially in the Bella community, this is sort of the launch of our 20, 25 years. So one of the things we like to do every year is check in with the state of the profession. And this year the focus is going to be on skill sets. Right. How do you make the most of the team members that you have in place, whether it's skills or expertise or titles, to really build the most robust team you can, given the limitation that we know a lot of people are facing as far as their people resources.
[00:06:30] Speaker A: So.
[00:06:31] Speaker B: So that will be one session that we kick off the day with. The other thing I'm really excited about are our two keynote conversations on Bella Day. And I would put these generally under the umbrella of Lessons Learned. Right. I think Lessons Learned was such a big part of the emphasis of the DOJ's latest update to the ECCP. So these are really going to speak to that. So we're going to have two different perspectives and one is going to be from a single professional's perspective throughout their career, and then another conversation focused on that organizational perspective. So we're fortunate enough to have Larry Thompson join us. He was here at the summit 10 years ago, and so this is sort of 10 years later. It's a real retrospective on the lessons that he's learned over his career, which include stints as a U.S. deputy attorney general. He was involved in both the Enron and Volkswagen cases.
He also spent time as the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Pepsi. So he has a lot to say on ethics compliance and integrity as a force for good. So we're looking forward very much to hearing his individual perspective. And then on the organizational side of things, we are lucky enough to have a conversation led by Chuck Duras, who's the co chair and FCPA and Global Anti Corruption Group head at Morrison Forster. And joining him will be Jonathan Sloanum, who's a partner and Deputy general counsel at McKinsey. And their focus of conversation will be on McKinsey's recent DOJ resolution. So tons to be said for sharing lessons learned as part of Bella Day. And new this year for Bella, of course, we'll have our wonderful annual Bella Dinner festivities. But between formal programming and that Bella Dinner, we're going to have an opportunity for Bella members to participate in a community support activity that's going to be led through Hands on Atlanta. We have a number of Bella members who are based in and around Atlanta. And now that Atlanta is our home for the summit, we're really excited to offer this kind of service activity. So stay tuned for more details on what that will entail. But we're super excited to be able to offer our community a way to give back to the Atlanta community.
[00:08:59] Speaker A: That is so exciting. I, for one, cannot wait for Bella Day. And thank you. All of this information's been awesome. So this next question feels incredibly cruel to even ask, but if you had to give an elevator pitch for Global Ethics Summit a quick little overview, what would you say?
[00:09:19] Speaker B: Yeah, and this is not, I'm sure, my original thought, but it's one that sticks with me and I think it's so true. And I would say come and pack a year's worth of connections, data and insights into three days.
I really do believe that is true. I don't think you're going to find another event with the same level of leadership representation, the same breadth and depth of expertise as you'll get at the summit. So really do think about it as you're going to come away with a year's worth of information that you can bring back to your team, that you can continue to ideate on, that you continue to build the connections that you're going to make at the summit. So it's really three days and a full year's worth of information and inspiration.
[00:10:09] Speaker A: Gosh. Well, I'm sold. Do you think there's anything else that you want to share that the listeners should know today?
[00:10:15] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. You know, one of the things we haven't talked about is our virtual experience.
So in addition to. Right. All of these incredible opportunities that will be available to those who attend in person.
And nothing can replace that, of course, but we really have a very robust online experience for those attending the summit through our virtual platform.
So I really encourage compliance leaders and their teams to think about the summit as a full team experience, even if not everyone can be in the room where it's happening.
It's a great way to have some colleagues in person and some online. It can be a way to sort of divide and conquer across what is a very packed agenda. And all the sessions from the main stage are broadcast live and the recordings from the breakout panel conversations are often available that same day or same evening. So we really do try to make it as much of a synchronous event as possible for both our in person attendee and virtual attendees. So really do consider that as a way to expand access to the summit, to the conversations, to the information and data more fully across your teams.
[00:11:35] Speaker A: That's so wonderful. And I know how much I've treasured the virtual experience in the past. So thank you for that, Emily, and thank you for all of your time today and all of your wisdom. And we look forward to seeing you in Atlanta.
[00:11:48] Speaker B: I look forward to seeing everyone, too. It's such a wonderful time and it really is. It feels like a family reunion almost. It's a great time and I can't wait. And it's coming up fast. So not only are we making our plans, but I recommend that everybody make your plans to join us in Atlanta.
[00:12:07] Speaker A: Yes. All right, Emily, talk to you later.
[00:12:10] Speaker B: Thanks, Julia.
[00:12:12] Speaker A: To learn more about Global Ethics Summit, see the registration link in our show notes or email eventsethisphere.com for more information. If you're a part of a Bella member organization, reach out to your engagement director to learn more about BELLA member discounted and complimentary passes. We can't wait to see you April 6th through 8th, virtually or in Atlanta, Georgia. I'm Julia Boies and this has been the Ethicast. We hope you enjoyed the show. For more content like this every week, please subscribe here on YouTube, on Apple Podcasts, or on Spotify. You can also get our free weekly
[email protected] ethicast and for even more free content, please visit the Ethisphere resource
[email protected] resources. That's all we've got for you today, but always remember, strong ethics is good business. See you next time.
