Integrity is a mirror revealing the truth about an individual or a corporation. It involves walking the talk — not just talking it.
On a personal level, integrity is measured by what an individual does and does not do when no one is looking. Do they hold to their values, beliefs, and ethics? Or do they compromise and do the opposite of what they believe is right?
Integrity is the same at the corporate level. Corporate reports, filings, and stakeholder communications state one thing but in reality the corporation is doing something else. This inconsistency comes as a result of ignorance, market/management pressure, or an outright willingness to deceive. Within corporations it may be the result of one individual or a campaign of several seeking to violate an organization’s governance principles, risk posture, compliance obligations, culture, and ethical practices.
Integrity is violated when corporate policies and procedures are thrown out the window in the quest for personal or corporate gain. From an organization’s perspective, personal and corporate integrity are two sides of the same coin. In order for a corporation to have integrity it must have an ethical environment with employees and business partners willing to follow and enforce corporate culture, policies, and procedures. From an individual’s perspective, an employee or partner wants to make sure they are working with a corporation aimed at doing the right thing and is in sync their personal values and beliefs.
This is the reason I have launched my new firm – GRC 20/20 Research, LLC. My objective is to assist organizations in achieving integrity in their corporate governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) processes. This is accomplished by monitoring GRC events, drivers, trends, and best practices in corporations around the world and providing insight to GRC professionals, technology vendors, and professional services firms that make up the international GRC community.
I would welcome your thoughts and perspectives on GRC and its relationship to integrity …
All the best,