Richmond, Virginia, United States
Experienced ethics and compliance professional with more than fourteen years of progressive responsibility in complex, highly regulated organizations. Creative problem solver with proven ability to provide clear, consistent, and effective guidance to leaders and cross functional stakeholders; develop and implement processes based on best practices and regulatory and policy requirements; and create board and senior management level reporting to identify successes and opportunities for growth in fostering an ethical workplace.
Conducts investigations in a timely and efficient manner, utilizing best practices to resolve cases within benchmarked time frames. Identifies process improvements based on findings. Throughout both investigation and corrective action process, communicates clearly and professionally to bring matters to resolution. Delivers investigation results and actionable recommendations to management and senior leadership. Contributes to metrics analysis for quarterly reporting to executive leadership. Engages in dialogue with partner offices to provide input related to trends, issue spotting, organizational response, and other topics relevant to business leaders. Fosters relationships with cross-functional peers to effectively conduct complex investigations, support leadership decisions related to addressing misconduct, and identify opportunities for both process improvement and for strategies to strengthen ethical culture. Assists with planning and execution of training sessions and other Ethics and Compliance Office initiatives and communications.
Experienced investigator with proven ability to plan, conduct and document complex administrative investigations - resulting in comprehensive, written fact-based reports provided to senior management for corrective action Enhanced oversight and management of VCU’s anonymous Helpline for reported concerns and centralized case management system including notification to units, follow-up as necessary, and statistics reporting - Implemented regular case coordination meetings with appropriate offices to enhance communication between partner offices and streamline fact gathering and case resolution - Provide consistent, data-informed guidance to university offices to support consistent review of concerns and enforcement of university expectations - Monitor implementation of corrective actions Developed comprehensive framework for ethics and compliance risk assessments Create and deliver training on high risk and management-requested topics including: responding to reported concerns/complaints; conflict of interests; general ethics and compliance training for all new employees and new department chairs Enhanced the university’s Integrity and Compliance Annual Report to identify and reflect outcomes and effectiveness of ethics and compliance program initiatives - Analyzes universitywide data in comprehensive report on ethics and compliance activities to the Board of Visitors - Synthesizes relevant information on outcomes of ethics and compliance activities into a concise report to support the Board’s role in ensuring the effectiveness of the ethics and compliance program
Primary investigator in complex investigations of employee misconduct Implemented universitywide centralized case management system and continued management of VCU’s anonymous reporting Helpline - Provided oversight of and guidance for all reported concerns [approximately 300-400 per year] - Developed protocol for case management of reported concerns - Coordinated with partner offices to ensure appropriate handling of reported concerns - Identified metrics to monitor the university environment for patterns or practices of employee misconduct - Provided Board-level and senior management level reports analyzing case management data and providing recommendations for fostering an ethical culture Conducted general ethics and compliance training for new employees Developed and implemented compliance monitoring plans for complex federal regulations to identify and remedy gaps in order to mitigate risks of noncompliance Created Federal Regulatory Accountability Matrix documenting universitywide federal regulatory compliance responsibilities and compliance status to identify regulatory gaps; assess risk; and assist in prioritizing resources to mitigate risks Implemented monitoring tool to efficiently document compliance with federal regulatory reporting requirements Developed and distributed quarterly newsletter that highlighted university compliance updates, best practices, and related resources Represented the office and provided guidance to various compliance-oriented committees
Assisted lead investigators in complex investigations of employee misconduct Created comprehensive Ethics and Compliance Annual Report, provided to the university’s Board of Visitors, documenting effectiveness of the university’s ethics and compliance program Researched and provided guidance to partner offices related to specific regulatory requirements Developed presentations and provided administrative support for quarterly Compliance Advisory Committee meetings Contributed to redesign and enhancement of ethics and compliance program website Developed and delivered well-received presentation at National Higher Education Compliance and Ethics conference on developing a compliance program, sharing best practices and compliance materials