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No 79

PERFORMANCE

32

Everyday

ethics
With the establishment of Ethics & Compliance networks in two
more Divisions this spring and the roll-out of the Integrity Principles
in September, E&C Representatives are making compliance a
more accessible topic for all.

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eputation is hard to earn and

easy to lose, says Morad Bourouffala, Head of Ethics & Compliance at Eurocopter. Just before
Eurocopter launched their Ethics &
Compliance Representatives (ECR)
network in June, EADS CEO Tom
Enders visited a Communications/
Compliance working group to emphasise this very point. His visit
helped everyone realise that for a
company to operate with integrity, compliance initiatives not only
come from the top management,
but are a requirement of the top
management as well.
The ECR initiative aims to provide more comprehensive support for EADS employees via the
strength of an expanded network.
ECRs work outside of the Ethics

25.09.13 10:49

& Compliance function, and when

nominated for the role, volunteer
to do this job in addition to their
regular work. They are appointed
across Divisions and business lines,
and report to Divisional compliance
organisations who support them.
The result is a huge resource base
comprised of trustworthy individuals who understand local compliance issues because they work in
the same functions. They have legitimacy, theyre in a senior managerial position, and theyve been
with the company for a while, Morad says. Its a good mix of company experience and the authority
that comes from that experience.
When the new network was set
up in Cassidian this June, Birgit
Graumann was an obvious nominee to become an ECR. Her job as
Head of Social Policy and Industrial Relations includes dening HR
policies and providing expertise
regarding labour law. My colleagues within HR and many line
managers were already coming to
me for advice on compliance-related matters, she says. Becoming an ECR was a natural extension of this.
Similarly, Ashish Bhattacharya, Quality Manager at Airbus
Engineering Centre India, says
that hes found theres a natural
synergy with his role as an ECR.
It helps me connect with people
across various functions, and as

Ashish Bhattacharya, Quality Manager

at Airbus Engineering Centre India

they get to know me, they feel that

Im approachable within the organisation. And he adds, It helps
to have a local representative who
is part of that culture, while at the
same time promotes the organisational values.
ECR network members devote
up to 25% of their working hours
to communicating the importance
of Ethics & Compliance. This includes the dissemination of compliance topics, induction training
for new employees and addressing and resolving employees
compliance queries.
Disclose and discuss
The issues that are raised to me
cover all aspects, says Birgit, from
harassment to bribery, data protection and more. As a member of

Morad Bourouffala, Head of Ethics &

Compliance at Eurocopter

a cross-functional committee, we
representatives have a very good
network, so we can contact our
colleagues on questions beyond
our scope of responsibility its really helpful.
When it comes to dealing with
these issues, the right answer is
not always obvious, says Ashish.
The process is twofold: disclose
and discuss. First, we prompt people to disclose anything on their
minds, and then we discuss it in
order to nd the best solution.
He recalls, A colleagues
spouse was working in a sub-contracted organisation that was bidding for business with Airbus. The
employee told us and we advised
them to recuse themselves from
the selection panel on which they
were serving. Their manager, understanding the situation, took up

Birgit Graumann, Head of Social Policy

and Industrial Relations at Cassidian

the selection instead, and we prevented a compliance issue.

E&C at the forefront
In a year from now the compliance
discussion will be an integrated part
of our daily business, Birgit predicts. Morad agrees. Before, the
view was that the E&C team was
a separate entity. Now, our executive employees are more involved
and support the Compliance team,
providing the time, resources and
support for our initiatives.
Only ethical companies are successful companies, Ashish adds.
Its paramount that we have the
culture of an ethical company if
we dont have a good reputation,
internally and externally, people
will not have condence to buy our
products.
Jess Holl

A message with integrity

Upon the launch of the Integrity Principles this autumn, a conversation with AnneCatherine Rochefort, Head of the Ethics & Compliance programme at Astrium

Anne-Catherine
Rochefort
Head of the Ethics & Compliance
programme at Astrium

What are the Integrity Principles?

Why were they created?

How will they affect EADS employees?

The Integrity Principles are a basic

description of the business ethics
that we as a company stand for.
What is unique about this document
is its integration message: it claries
that the same principles govern every
part of the Group. This is going to be
especially crucial when it comes to,
say, the integration of Cassidian and
Astrium. Now both can arrive with
the Standards of Business Conduct
in hand.

One objective was to put an end to

divided messaging customised to
each Division; every employee has a
role to play in the overall companys
E&C achievements. There was also a
need for a simple document communicating our priority messages. And
we wanted to show there is a compliance network throughout the Group
to support people.

The deployment of the Integrity Principles is a test of their content. We

expect managers to take ownership
of the ethical message and address
this topic with their teams with the
aim of creating an open dialogue and
encouraging a speak-up culture.
Managers have a lot on their plates,
so its a risk, because the message is
only going to be as good as the messenger. If the content of the Integrity
Principles is distributed well, it is going
to make all the difference.
JH

For more info: myEADS > Our Company > Ethics and Compliance

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