While the Masters in Management and the MSc in Legal and Tax Management at EDHEC Business School initially steered Sabine Racine towards a career as a lawyer, before specialising in business law, primarily intellectual property, it was to ethics & compliance (E&C) that she gradually turned. Since April 2023, she has been covering E&C issues in the AMECA region (Africa, Middle East and Central Asia, representing around 5000 people) for Alstom, working on missions that are rapidly gaining in importance, of interest to the wider public as well as the press and markets. Here she explains how these issues intersect with corporate management, in the face of corruption risks which can impact each phase in a project. 

How would you summarise your current position and responsibilities?

Above all it's about the rollout and monitoring of E&C procedures with a constant eye on “risk control” concerns: mapping risks, conflicts of interest, gifts and invitations, third-party evaluations (clients, suppliers, partners), charitable initiatives, sponsoring, lobbying, funding political activities, bribes, international sanctions and competition law. I also run a huge amount of training courses for employees and use performance indicators to support top managers and country heads in the region who have to deal with ethics and compliance.

It's crucial to pay attention to E&C upstream (reviewing the project, country, clients, partners), but also during the project rollout. Corruption can arise at any time, and not only during the call for tenders. For some projects, the E&C recommendation is to not even engage if the risk is too high.

My role is also to promote a “speak up culture”, in other words an environment that encourages employees to approach management, particularly if they are in doubt or witness unethical behaviour, by creating the right conditions for speaking up with encouragement from managers and a system to raise the alarm (anonymously if necessary).

I also oversee a network of E&C ambassadors in the countries I'm responsible for, and I support the human rights and social, environmental & governance (ESG) department, as well as the department for inquiries and investigations, which are conducted separately in the interest of independence and impartiality. 

A speak up culture also depends on the company's managerial and HR culture … 

We offer training (sometimes with the support of HR) for managers, who are responsible for establishing a climate of trust and encouraging their staff to speak up. In France, voicing one's suspicions or openly talking about situations that seem inappropriate is something that is seen a lot less than in other cultures, like in English-speaking countries. People can see this as “snitching”, but mentalities are moving in the right direction, particularly thanks to legislative changes (Waserman law in France). The speak up culture makes it possible to detect the slightest dysfunction very quickly. It is important to reassure people that there won't be reprisals internally or externally (dismissals, pressure, persecution, etc.) and that the company guarantees complete confidentiality when dealing with such reports. This culture is challenging to put in place, but it's the path that major French firms are choosing to follow, with all of the benefits that come with it. 

Have Ethics & Compliance positions been around for a long time or did they emerge from the context of recent scandals?

I don't think ethics is something innate to the world of business and companies. Major firms have been convicted of corruption or anti-competitive practices, with various scandals reported in detail in the press. We are seeing burgeoning legislative and regulatory changes all around the world to combat corruption; examples include the Sapin 2 law in France, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in the US, the Bribery Act in the UK, and the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. The scandals we have seen and the increasingly tense legislative context have sped up the emergence of E&C departments. Responsibility for these issues used to be borne by in-house legal teams in charge of criminal and competition law. Nowadays, Compliance Officers can be found in all big firms and work hand-in-hand with legal, although these are separate positions and departments.  

But from a whole other perspective, there is also real demand from “consumers” (and the younger generation), who are demanding an “ethical” approach from businesses generally. They are expected to take a long-term view of ethics, and no longer simply to reward shareholders. This is all against the backdrop of a legislative context that is following this trend, particularly in France with the Pacte law that enshrined the “raison d'etre of businesses”. An “ethical” business – with proof to back up this label – attracts more investors and potential recruits. 

Finally, ethics departments depend on the initiatives taken by the firm itself and the personalities of top management, i.e. whether these are issues that are important to them. This is the case at Alstom, whose leaders are fully committed.

Isn't there a risk of greenwashing when you try to communicate a firm's virtuous practices?

This points to the complexity of communication. I'm convinced that communication (both external and internal) is an important tool of E&C, when used properly. Indeed, it is one of the recommendations made by the French anti-corruption agency (AFA). There's a “procedural” side to E&C, and it can be worthwhile to “market” certain aspects to make it more accessible to staff, investors and partners. 

I believe it is essential to seize every opportunity to remind people of E&C principles or victories. For example, it was important to communicate on the recent renewal of our ISO 37001 certification, proof of our commitment and efforts in this area. 

Although no business is perfect, it is still important to be able to communicate best practices wherever they are in place. 

How can corruption find its way into a firm? 

In many different ways. Some activities, such as those that involve interactions with public officials or bodies, are riskier. Representatives and officials who act on behalf of the company are another potential vector of corruption. Another aspect is “minor” corruption, which when repeated regularly over a long timeframe – such as a low-value gift offered over many years – can become problematic. Training in this regard is crucial, with the objective of ensuring that employees have the right tools and reflexes to react when they are solicited or witness unethical behaviour.

In a transport firm like Alstom, with many public and private partnerships, how do you manage to harmonise E&C policy with all your stakeholders?

Some stakeholders may have different internal rules: the key is to ensure that there is a minimum foundation of shared ethical values. Our suppliers commit to the same ethical standards as our own, and we regularly raise awareness among our partners, clients and subcontractors. 

What is the contribution of having a direct link between Ethics & Compliance and top management?

Having a direct link to top management shows that E&C is an absolute priority in the way we run our business. But to avoid conflicts of interest, businesses must put in place safeguards to make sure that Chief Compliance Officers have independence and the necessary skill sets to oversee their E&C policies. The commitment and confidence of top management in conducting these policies are central to the fight against corruption. The stakes are massive: employees could go to prison, fines can be colossal, a company can be barred from taking part in projects financed by banks or even excluded from certain public procurement markets. 

Is your dual background in business and law the only path to a career in E&C? 

Not necessarily, but you do need to have good knowledge of business and industry to manage E&C risks properly. There are many paths to a career in E&C: law, commerce, but also finance, auditing, internal control, and risk management. You need to have an understanding of cross-departmental aspects and be very rigorous and grounded, as well as love communication combined with training. I meet fantastic Compliance Officers who have totally different profiles to me. It’s a very tangible job compared to my career in law, which revolved more around “contracts”. Now I’m immersed in projects, calls for tenders and on-the-ground operations, working hand-in-hand with the business and top management. 

Learn more about Alstom’s ethical commitments