Are you allowed to speak up in your company?

While often overused as a catchphrase by compliance and human resource professionals, the phrase “speak-up” culture has increasing relevance to effective corporate governance. The days of secrecy and discretion in the corporate environment have given way to newer, more effective governance models that encourage employee contributions to the company’s overall success and afford aggrieved employees a platform for raising legal and regulatory issues internally, rather than reporting externally first.

In so doing, these models ensure that a company has an opportunity to be proactive in remediating the potential violation first, rather than being reactive—and at a distinct disadvantage—when regulators come knocking at the door. 

What is a Speak-Up Culture?

A speak-up culture is the product of a company that operates in a fully transparent, ethical, and accountable manner. In such companies, employees are repeatedly encouraged by their immediate supervisors, middle management and company leadership to report safety, legal, regulatory, personnel, and other concerns through appropriately managed and operated third-party hotlines or to company leadership directly.

Cultures like these exist only in organizations that are receptive to criticism and willing to listen to its rank-and-file employees about any concern raised in relation to all aspects of the company’s operations. While adopting a clear, plain-language Code of Conduct is an important first step in establishing an ethical culture, it is by no means the only ingredient in the recipe for positive cultural transformation. 

Equally important in establishing a speak-up culture are routine opportunities by employees to engage with senior leadership on a small group and individual basis to ensure that specific—and often critical—concerns are addressed. Organizations are increasingly relying on meetings to communicate important information and address employee concerns in an open forum where virtually no topic is off limits. These meetings present a real opportunity for the compliance function of an organization to repeatedly emphasize the importance of employee contributions to the success of the company overall. As such, compliance professionals should avail themselves of these and other opportunities by addressing some aspect of the company’s Code of Conduct, and re-emphasizing the various means by which concerns may be raised. 

Signs of a Weak Speak-Up Culture 

Signs of a weak speak-up culture include, but are not limited to the following: 

a. In mid to larger sized companies, the compliance team is an afterthought. 

b. The company has no internal reporting mechanisms or the existing reporting mechanism is underutilized    . 

c. Employees generally perceive that their concerns—once expressed—are not addressed. 

d. The tone of the organization is such that employees fear retaliation when expressing concerns. 

e. Senior leaders remain siloed and inaccessible to frontline employees. 

Promoting a Strong Speak-Up

Culture is Imperative

Recognizing signs of a weak speak-up culture and taking concrete steps to transform that culture should be the paramount concern of all organizations operating in increasingly regulated local and global markets.

I wish you luck in establishing this kind of openness and transparency in your organization and gaining the success that comes with it. Feedback is welcome; contact me at [email protected]