Mac Fadlallah Speaks with EY for “Summer of Ethics” Series

Akin Gump international trade partner and partner in charge of the firm’s Dubai office Mac Fadlallah spoke with EY for its “Summer of Ethics” series discussing whistleblowing and compliance programs in the corporate setting.

Fadlallah discussed several topics, starting with the roles that speak-up and whistleblowing play in accomplishing compliance objectives. He said they both play an essential role, observing that no organization can be world class or top notch “when it comes to compliance if it does not have some mechanism for whistleblowing”—one that is being “used, managed and administered.”

The conversation then addressed how compliance professionals can create and facilitate safe spaces for speaking up, with Fadlallah stating that the tone at the top of an organization is critical and “so much more effective” when it comes from the business leaders. He said there also must be a written policy about nonretaliation that is accessible to employees and that it needs to be followed.

Fadlallah spoke of how best to support C-suite executives to have an authentic tone at the top, and he discussed how he creates the most value for a company, which he said is by helping “to create the infrastructure for a compliance program, not in managing the day to day of that compliance program.” Once the program is implemented, he said he looks to assist in any sort of gap assessments of that program because compliance requirements change—and they change frequently and in complex ways.

Fadlallah concluded by noting that compliance programs need to evolve with the times, evolve with the law and evolve with the company.

To watch the interview, please click here.