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KPMG publishes its compliance guide to accompany Bribery Act

09 July 2010

KPMG publishes its compliance guide to accompany Bribery Act

Ensuring that companies have anti-bribery and corruption ('AB&C') compliance programmes in place can assist them in turning this risk into advantage by helping them to build a sustainable business, says KPMG.

KPMG publishes its compliance guide to accompany Bribery ActThis is particularly the case where ethics is a factor in investment decisions, making good AB&C programmes an important aspect of brand value. It can also encourage substantial savings, even when firms have long behaved in an ethical manner, says KPMG, which publishes today its guide to AB&C compliance.The guide will help companies prepare themselves for the introduction of the UK Bribery Act 2010 (the 'Act'), which is due to come into force later this year or in early 2011.In addition, KPMG considers that AB&C programmes can also help companies through:

• Improved understanding of operational realities: Corrupt practises can only be prevented by firms with a high level of self-knowledge and transparency. Effective AB&C policies lead to tougher risk assessments and sharper justification of new projects, improved awareness of how managers actually operate and identification of weaknesses in internal controls.
• Strengthened central direction and control: By improving information about, and awareness of, operations, processes and structures, not least by putting an onus on individual employees to understand and comply with company policies.
• Creation of a more cohesive culture: AB&C programmes encourage staff to focus on the needs of the whole organisation and leads to more careful treatment of integrity related issues. Obliging employees to justify key actions breeds rigorous thinking, clearer explanations and robust decision making.

Brent McDaniel, UK Head of Anti-Bribery and Corruption at KPMG, said:

"For firms to gain an advantage, such as building a sustainable and ethical business, undertaking an initial risk assessment is absolutely fundamental. Nothing thwarts good AB&C compliance as much as adopting off-the-shelf programmes. Firms need to know their own unique risks before devising their policy and procedures.”

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