Charges Imposed for Engaging in Bribery - Assignment Example

The board of directors takes issues related to the shareowners and other stakeholders, mainly strategy, risk management, and key profiles, very sincerely. In certain cases, companies try to enjoy some sort of relaxation from the government when they ignore legal regulations. The article provides evidence of a few companies that fell under the scanner (Palazzolo, 2012).

Two most important issues

Companies often have to face penalties when caught under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The problem of bribery has spread to every sort of industry. The article provides evidence of the diversity of the problem. The companies have to make arrangements for funds to conduct the investigations. The time requires for the companies to tighten up the control of subsidiaries. The companies have to face a financial crunch as the expansion process suffers due to a lack of funds. A major proportion of funds are channelized to conduct the investigations; the result being dwarf companies. The companies involve themselves in such types of investigations and hand over the documents to the government with the hope they might be exempted from the penalties or will be charged with lighter penalties. The companies of the U.S. are leading on the list of companies under bribes case.

To deal with the problem, companies will have to engage themselves in taking some appropriate measures. The anti-bribery policies of the organizations shall provide guidance on the process of conducting the business in a fair fashion. The anti-corruption program compliance shall take into consideration the numerous reporting and certification controls on monitoring. The program can encompass a critical education component which can be web-based, as well as in-person training. In order to raise overall awareness, anti-bribery audits can be conducted on a periodic basis. Such audits will detect potential misconduct and any ignorance of the laws of corruption or the policies of the organization. The organization needs to assess all the business units for the associated risks of corruption. The audit can be concentrated on the locations where the probability of risks is higher.

A reasonable solution to each issue

The companies can have a shield that will protect them from the charges imposed for engaging themselves in bribery. The company can assess whether the business is at risk and the level of the risk associated. The anti-bribery policy should contain procedures that are proportionate to the level of risk and the scope and size of the business. Communication and training of the representatives will increase the awareness of not getting engaged in bribes. Frequent monitoring and review process needs to be conducted.