01 // TELL US WHAT YOUR GROUP IS FOCUSED ON THESE DAYS.
Freescale began operating as an independent company in 2004. At that time, my organization (that is, me and my business conduct and ethics manager, Sue Moloney) developed plans for what we needed to implement within our first year, and we also outlined goals for our first five years. The specific focus for the upcoming year is a revision of our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and new Code training for all employees.
02 // WHAT SPECIFIC INITIATIVES HAVE WORKED WELL THAT YOU CAN SHARE WITH OTHERS?
Our process for educating and reporting to our board has been very successful. We have operated under three different boards during our company’s lifetime. First, when we were a wholly owned subsidiary of Motorola, we operated under the Motorola, Inc. Board of Directors; next, following our IPO in July 2004, we operated under our own board as a publicly traded company; now, we operate under a completely
new board following our private equity transaction in December 2006. Through these changes, we have been successful in engaging our board around the importance of ethics and compliance and in their role in supporting this program.
03 // WHAT PART OF YOUR BACKGROUND HAS MOST PREPARED YOU FOR THIS POSITION?
Immediately before becoming Freescale’s ethics and compliance officer, I worked for the company as a labor and employment attorney. In this role, I advised senior management on a variety of issues, and developed close trust relationships that help me in my current position. Prior to my in-house role, I worked in large law firms as a labor and employment attorney with a heavy litigation focus. The investigation and presentation skills needed to be a successful trial attorney have been useful in my work as ethics and compliance officer.
04 // WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT?
Managing compliance in 30 countries. We conduct business every day in a global environment of complex and sometimes conflicting laws and regulations, changing priorities and business customs. It is not realistically possible to be in complete compliance at all times in every location, but that is our goal.
05 // IS THERE ONE SPECIFIC PIECE OF ADVICE THAT YOU COULD SHARE THAT YOU WISHED YOU HAD KNOWN WHEN YOU FIRST GOT THE JOB?
New ethics and compliance officers should accept that they will be overwhelmed by the scope of their responsibility and by the number of elements they feel they have to address right away. They will also attend conferences and webinars and feel that everyone else seems to have figured out how to handle these responsibilities. My advice is to accept that you will be behind for several months, but to take your time, prioritize your projects, take advantage of the work other companies have done and put in place the program that makes the most sense for your company.
06 // WHO DO YOU REPORT TO? WHAT ROLE HAVE THEY PLAYED IN THE COMPLIANCE AND ETHICS PROGRAM?
I report to John Torres, Freescale’s senior vice president and general counsel. John plays an active role in our program as a member of Freescale’s Business Conduct and Ethics Leadership Team, and as the Secretary to our board of directors.
07 // WHAT’S THE WORST JOB THAT YOU HAVE EVER HELD?
In high school, I worked one summer at a used car lot. It was my job to clean and shine each of the 50 or so cars on the lot every day. I grew up in a small town south of Houston. Temperatures during the summer were above 90° with over 90 percent humidity. That was a miserable job.
08 // WHAT’S THE DUMBEST/SMARTEST QUESTION THAT SOMEONE HAS EVER ASKED YOU IN AN INTERVIEW, AND HOW DID YOU ANSWER IT?
I have been asked a number of inane questions during interviews, and have probably asked a few myself. Instead of reciting one of those, how about I tell you about the “dumbest” or at least most naïve answer I ever gave to an interview question. When I interviewed for the labor attorney position at Motorola in 1995, I met with the deputy general counsel and the director of labor and employment law. They asked me the usual question about why I wanted to leave private practice for an in-house role. I gave the usual answer about no longer having billable hours or client development responsibilities. Had I stopped there, I would have been fine. Instead, I continued by saying that I looked forward to being able to take my time and fully research questions before giving advice. I wouldn’t have to worry about how much time I took because I wasn’t billing by the hour. They didn’t laugh out loud, but anyone who has been an in-house attorney knows they should have.
