Innovation in Compliance with Tom Fox

Building trust is a key component of any successful business, but in today's world, trust is increasingly linked to compliance. On this episode of Innovation in Compliance, Tom Fox hosts Girish Redekar, co-founder and CEO of Sprinto. Girish shares his insights on the overwhelming nature of compliance, the benefits of frameworks like SOC 2 and ISO 27001, and the importance of building trust through compliance.Girish Redekar is the co-founder and CEO of Sprinto, a software company that provides an automated solution for achieving and maintaining compliance for other software companies. Girish is a software engineer by trade and has a wealth of experience in running and managing software businesses. Prior to founding Sprinto, he ran a software company called Recruiter Box, where he wrote a bulk of the early code and managed teams, as well as ran product marketing.You’ll hear Girish and Tom discuss: Going through the compliance process can help companies holistically view their organization and think about what it really takes to secure the data that they are handling on their customers' behalf.  Sprinto translates SOC 2 and ISO programs into specific security practices to run in your company and automate those practices, which can make it ten times faster and a lot less overwhelming. Frameworks like SOC 2 and ISO 27001 provide a standardized form of building a security program that both companies and customers can trust. “What that means is that if I claim that I am SOC 2 compliant and I can provide documentation to the same, you as my customer can actually trust the documentation and have some assurance that I do indeed run these security practices,” Girish remarks.  The compliance stack is a list of tools that you would use to become compliant, or maintain a security posture. Sprinto's security and compliance platform includes risk management, compliance management, vulnerability management, and incident management features. A compliance command center allows you to look at all manner of security risks through “a single pane of glass”. The command center gives you one place where you can monitor what's happening in your company and how to mitigate it.  Girish notes that people are often the weakest link in a company's security and that security leaders worry about employees inadvertently sharing credentials or falling victim to social engineering attacks. Concerns around cybersecurity are relatively similar across the globe. Ransomware attacks were a major concern for security leaders in 2022, and cybersecurity insurance is becoming increasingly popular as a means of protecting against such attacks. KEY QUOTES"Think of SoC 2 and ISO… they're no different than SATs. …you write SATs, and you have like one score, and then that you can use across colleges. SoC 2 and ISO are not very different than that." - Girish Redekar“It's pretty fascinating that a standard should emerge out of just the way people want to build trust in the way they do business.” - Girish Redekar "...the way I think about a compliance command center is nothing but a single pane of glass where you get to see exactly what your security and your compliance posture is, where the gaps are." - Girish Redekar ResourcesGirish Redekar on LinkedIn | TwitterSprinto

Are you still relying on outdated communication methods to reach your clients and employees? If so, you might be missing out on a huge opportunity to connect and engage with them. In this episode of Innovation in Compliance, Tom Fox speaks with Dr. Barrett Matthews, a media expert who believes in meeting clients where they are and creating authentic content to increase engagement. Barrett offers valuable insights on how businesses can leverage media to expand their reach and connect with their audience.Dr. Barrett Matthews is a media expert with a diverse background in broadcasting, writing, and production. He has worked with industry legends like Brent Musburger and Terry Bradshaw. He eventually created a business focused on helping others embrace and leverage the power of media. Barrett now works with entrepreneurs and corporations to help them develop an authentic media presence that meets their clients where they are.Barrett and Tom discuss in this episode: Media has evolved and is more accessible today than ever before. Entrepreneurs and corporations need to embrace media and create content that meets their clients where they are. People consume information through a variety of media forms, so businesses need to create content in multiple formats (e.g., podcasts, books, social media, etc.) to reach a wider audience. Authenticity is key in creating engaging media content. Clients don't necessarily buy the content itself, but rather the person behind it. Businesses should be open to showing their human side and not strive for perfection. A documentary film can be a powerful way to showcase a business's authenticity and human side. By delving into why a business does what it does, potential clients can connect with the business on a deeper level. Deliver your content on the platforms where your target audience is present; this is essential for your business to succeed. Ego-based marketing is not effective as it only promotes what makes a business owner comfortable.  Build a strong brand by delivering on the promises you made to your customers, and exceeding their expectations. Your customers will refer your business to others, which can boost your brand recognition. Podcasting is an excellent medium for those who are passionate about something because it's easier to talk about a topic than to write a book on it. Barrett is involved in two initiatives called iChange Nations and Media Monarch, where he aims to promote civility worldwide and teach grassroots journalism to people in different countries. Barrett has a video training program available on his website about how to use media to gain more clients. KEY QUOTES"If you think that you have clients all over the place, you need to meet them where they are. Meaning that if they listen to podcasts, you better have one. If they read books, you better have one, and so forth and so on." - Dr. Barrett Matthews"People don't necessarily buy your content as much as they buy you when it comes to the media you put out." - Dr. Barrett Matthews"Marketing is what you say about yourself to people. Your brand is what people say about you." - Dr. Barrett MatthewsResources:Barrett Matthews on LinkedIn | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook  | Media Boss PodcastFive Ways to Paying ClientsiChange Nations

The traditional workplace as we know it is changing exponentially. This, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has forced companies to adapt to a new way of doing business. In this episode of Innovation In Compliance, Nate Thompson and Alex Schwartz, co-founders and hosts of The Disrupted Workforce, chat with host Tom Fox about the trends and challenges facing companies in this new era of work, including talent acquisition and retention, how AI will help identify talent pools, and the major shifts and disruptions happening in the workplace. Alex Schwartz is a digital marketing and transformation solutions expert with over a decade of experience working with Fortune 500 companies. Prior to that, he worked in talent management in New York. Alex realized that there was a need to focus more on helping individuals navigate change and on creating better work cultures. He is passionate about looking at the future of work from a human-centered perspective.Nate Thompson started his career as an engineer at Qualcomm. He ultimately left the technology space to focus on understanding organizational psychology and helping organizations reinvent themselves. Nate has spent the last 20 years specializing in organizational leadership and change. He went through a personal transformation after experiencing a “life crash”, which gave him the grit and resilience he needed to become a successful business leader. In March 2020, Nate and Alex launched their current platform.You’ll hear Tom, Alex and Nate discuss these ideas in this episode: The world is changing rapidly due to various factors, including the pandemic. Nate tells Tom, “We are at the slowest period right now that we will ever be going forward. In other words, right now, today life is going really fast, and it's only going to get faster, like significantly faster.”  “The way that you're even thinking about the world today has to start to evolve,” Nate remarks. The future of work mindset - as conceptualized by Alex and Nate - is crucial to navigate fast-paced change, and it's based around the idea of exploring, expanding, and evolving. “The eleven days of clean audit health to failure [of the Silicon Valley Bank] really demonstrated to me the speed of which social media can bring change,” Tom remarks.  “Sometimes leaders and organizations aren't progressive, and they're battening down the hatches and trying to weather the storm. The only problem is that strategy will not help in this dynamically unfolding world. You have to be able to surf the waves, not get washed over, crashed upon,” Nate says. Companies need to be proactive in building future of work programs, including creating talent mobility within the organization. Thoughtful and empathetic communication is crucial in handling layoffs, upskilling, and reskilling of the employee base. Talent acquisition and talent retention are among the most important issues for corporations in 2030 and beyond. There is a global job shortage and talent shortage in the United States. KEY QUOTES“...strategy will not help in this dynamically unfolding world. You have to be able to surf the waves, not get washed over, crashed upon.” - Nate Thompson"If you ignore this, you will be kind of run over by these waves of disruption. We believe, and try to wake people up and really lead them through." - Alex SchwartzResources:Alex Schwartz on LinkedIn | Instagram Nate Thompson on LinkedIn The Disrupted Workforce

How can you build a culture of trust and purpose in your organization? Tom Fox’s guest this week, Christina Foxwell, is an expert in helping companies unleash the purpose within each employee to build a sustainable business. In this episode, Tom and Christina explore the world of organizational transformation: Christina shares how her team helps companies put programs in place to measure outcomes and document results, satisfying stakeholders such as regulators and shareholders. She also emphasizes the importance of building a coaching culture, which can help transform company culture as well as the personal lives of employees. Christina Foxwell is the Global CEO of Ignite Purpose, a company that aims to make a difference to one person's life a day so that they can make a difference to their world. She is a renowned leadership and transformation expert who has spent more than two decades working with organizations and executives to achieve their goals. At Ignite Purpose, Christina and her team specialize in partnering with organizations to create transformational change through culture change, leadership development, and team optimization. She is also a sought-after speaker and podcast host, using her platform to share insights and inspire leaders to unlock their full potential. You’ll hear Tom and Christina talk about: Building a culture starts with one person and then cascades into the organization. Organizations need to foster connections among people and create communities where employees can bring their whole selves to work. Trust is essential, and it starts with individuals trusting themselves before they can trust others. In a hybrid work model, companies need to create opportunities for employees to come together, both physically and emotionally. There is no cookie-cutter solution to building a culture of purpose and values. It requires a relentless effort to find the answer together. Measurement and documentation are crucial for demonstrating outcomes to regulators, shareholders, and stakeholders. Transformation requires a shift in culture, not just a tick-box approach. Coaching executives on how they show up, including their thoughts, speech, and emotions, is critical to creating a coaching culture. Creating a coaching culture helps to change the language of failure to learning, promoting purpose and engagement in the workforce. Podcasting helped to build Christina’s courage and gave her a platform for sharing insights, for challenging and inspiring others. The younger workforce wants to learn and develop differently, challenging organizations to think about how to reach them through different mediums. KEY QUOTES"Connection isn't just a physicality. It's an emotional choice to be connected. What we've got to do is we've got to give our people permission to make that emotional choice and teach them the gift of community and connection." - Christina Foxwell"We change the language of failure to learning, which means we want people to show up." - Christina Foxwell"We need to be able to open our mind...As a business owner, how do we reach people in different mediums to create the talent growth within the organization?" - Christina Foxwell“For me, [podcasting] is about sharing insights and learning and maybe learning to have the courage to use my voice and to speak to people, to bring about new ideas.” - Christina FoxwellResources:Christina Foxwell on LinkedIn | YouTube | Twitter | Facebook  Ignite Purpose

Alexander Cotoia, a regulatory and compliance lawyer focused on third-party due diligence, sanctions, and export controls. He reviews FCPA enforcement trends and shows how conduit schemes, reseller discounts, and sham contracts drove recent cases. He stresses reprioritizing third-party risk management, the value of voluntary disclosure, and attention to sanctions and export controls.

Adam Bailey, SVP of Product Management at Diligent, helps boards and executives see risk, audit, compliance, and ESG more clearly. He discusses the growing complexity of third‑party relationships. He explains a risk‑based approach, continual due diligence, and how clear reporting links board decisions to operational action.

Kairi Isse, Managed Services Group Manager focused on third-party risk and AI-assisted due diligence. She discusses post-contract implementation and why ongoing monitoring matters. She outlines AI-driven adverse media searches, the balance of machine and human review, and audit trails and managed services for sustainable vendor oversight.

Stephanie Font, director in operations optimization who specializes in due diligence and third-party questionnaires. She discusses crafting questionnaires tied to regulations and risk models. She explains how questionnaire answers guide the depth of investigations and when to escalate. She highlights using templates tailored by risk and the role of documentation and automation in creating audit trails.

Is your company's data fit for purpose? In this episode of the Innovation in Compliance podcast, host Tom Fox welcomes Malcolm Hawker of Profisee, a company that creates MDM software, to discuss the importance of data quality, master data management (MDM), and data governance. They also explore how proper data management can drive exceptional results, reduce costs, and ensure compliance. Malcolm Hawker is a seasoned data management and governance professional with over 30 years of experience. Malcolm spent 15 years in product leadership, including a stint as Chief Product Officer at a software startup in Austin, Texas. He also led an IT organization at a $2 billion publicly traded company. Malcolm has since specialized in data management, master data management, and governance, working as an analyst for Gartner before joining Profisee as the Head of Data Strategy. Malcolm's passion is helping organizations leverage data to drive results.You’ll hear Tom and Malcolm talk about these ideas: Data must be accurate, complete, timely, and unique to be fit for purpose within an organization's business processes. Master data management (MDM) solves the "single version of the truth" problem, helping organizations maintain consistent and trustworthy data across various systems and departments. Effective data governance involves creating and implementing policies and procedures related to data management to optimize value, reduce costs, and ensure compliance. High-level, cross-functional, and functional levels all require tailored governance strategies. A CDO should define how data governance drives the three levers of revenue, cost savings, and risk mitigation within an organization. Corporate governance is typically the focus of boards of directors, while data governance is more of a functional or operating level concern. Data privacy plays a significant role within data governance and must be addressed with robust policies and procedures. Data governance can contribute to ESG initiatives, with one example being the reduction of carbon footprint through better data management and retention policies. No matter where technology trends lead, the foundation of accurate, consistent, trustworthy, and fit-for-purpose data remains essential for successful decision making and operations. "Modern younger business leaders are turning to LinkedIn, they're turning to YouTube, they're turning to podcasts for these types of insights [about business]. I need to be where the business leaders are." Malcolm shares best practices from a data management, data quality, and MDM perspective through his CDO Matters LIVE podcast. Malcolm's experience at AOL during its rapid growth period on his approach to innovation. KEY QUOTES"Data quality is all about making sure that you have data that is fit for purpose, that can be used efficiently in operations within the business, can be accurate and consistent, and trustworthy within the analytics, the reports that are used by that organization.." - Malcolm Hawker"My point here is that from a governance perspective, …the foundation of data quality, master data management - all the things that go into creating accurate, consistent, trustworthy, fit for purpose data - those things never go away." - Malcolm Hawker"Modern younger business leaders are turning to LinkedIn, they're turning to YouTube, they're turning to podcasts for these types of insights. I need to be where the business leaders are." - Malcolm HawkerResources:Malcolm Hawker on LinkedIn CDO Matters LIVE PodcastProfisee

Michael Parker, Director of Advisory and Consulting Services with government and tech experience in anti-bribery/anti-corruption and third-party risk, joins to discuss risk mitigation strategies. He outlines the need for board buy-in and a single source of truth. Topics include screening beyond FCPA, audit logs for defensibility, classifying and scoring vendors, and keeping platforms current with changing regulations.