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20 Questions Directors Should Ask About Codes of Conduct
20 Questions Directors Should Ask About Codes of Conduct
Written by
20 questions
20 Questions
Directors Should Ask about
Codes of Conduct
Written by
Michael A. Gunns, FCA
Mark N. Wexler, PhD
Project direction
Gigi Dawe
Principal, Risk Management and Governance
CICA
20 Questions
Directors Should Ask about
Codes of Conduct
Second Edition
Copyright 2010
Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants
277 Wellington Street West
Toronto, ON M5V 3H2
All rights reserved. This publication is protected by copyright and written permission
is required to reproduce, store in a retrieval system or transmit in any form or by any
means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise).
For information regarding permission, please contact [email protected]
Printed in Canada
Disponible en franais
December 2010
Preface
To help members of boards fulfill their responsibility for the oversight of an organizations ethical climate, the Risk Oversight and Governance
Board (ROGB) of the Canadian Institute of
Chartered Accountants (CICA) has commissioned
this re-issue of its publication 20 Questions
Directors Should Ask about Codes of Conduct.
This edition has been updated to reflect changes
in the business and regulatory environments.
Directors oversight role includes assuring themselves that the organizations culture is characterized by ethical practices and business behaviour.
This briefing provides suggested questions for
directors to ask the CEO, senior management,
professional advisorsand themselves. Directors
and CEOs will find it useful in assessing their
present approach to formulating or revising
Codes of Conduct and to overseeing the implementation of these Codes throughout organizations for which they are responsible. Reading
this document may also prompt dialogue among
directors and between boards and executives.
Thats exactly what an effective Code should do.
CICA Staff
Gigi Dawe
Principal, Risk Oversight and Governance
Beth Deazeley, LL.B.
Principal, Risk Oversight and Governance
Table of Contents
Introduction:
Why directors should
ask questions about
Codes of Conduct
Section A
Code Context,
Development
and Revision
Codes of Conduct are an integral part of organizational culture. In most organizations, Codes are
introduced or revised within an existing context of
explicit directional and behavioural expectations.
MISSION
vision
values
Finally, directors are also responsible for ensuring that their own actions and those of the CEO
(whether or not a member of the board) are
consistent with the Code. As such, the board
sets the tone at the top of the organization, from
which all other behaviour follows.
code
An organizations ethical climate is significantly
influenced by its leadership. A term often used for
this influence is tone at the top. This climate creates the overall context in which all of the organizations directional statements (including the Code)
are interpreted. Some factors that can influence the
ethical climate of an organization include:
the perceived consequences of ethical breakdowns in terms of financial and reputational loss.
Stakeholder participation
Although the initiative for a new or revised Code
usually emanates from the top of the organization,
the timing and manner of inclusion of the representative views of other constituencies is a key
factor in the Code being widely adopted and
followed.
Principal stakeholders
Those having a strong ties to or in-depth involvement with an organization typically include the
board of directors, employees, major suppliers
and contractors. One best practice is to establish
representative teams from each group subject
to the Code and engage them in a participatory
process of discussing alignment of business
practices and behaviours. In the case of directors
and employees, the organization will likely seek
input on both content and wording.
Other stakeholders
Other stakeholder groups such as environmentalists, union representatives, regulators, or other
special interest groups will legitimately have an
interest in the content and application of the
Code. Increasingly, institutional investors and
other shareholder groups are also sensitive to the
ethical practices of investee companies. Seeking
input from these groups is not obligatory, however including them in the development process
can help to build stronger relationships and trust
with them.
Expert input
It is essential that those developing or revising
the Code consult frequently with the organizations legal expert, whether an internal lawyer
or outside counsel. Other technical specialists
in areas covered by the Code (e.g., investment
traders, environmental specialists, etc.) should
also be consulted.
Supplementary Codes
experience gained from monitoring infractions, or difficulties in applying the Code; and
Time Frame
aspirational content;
proscriptive content.
There is an important link between an organizations Code of Conduct and its identification,
assessment and management of risk. Although
many of the topics that will typically be covered
in a Code are common across organizations,
the practical exposure to ethical risk may vary
considerably. Exposure to specific ethical risks
may also vary widely across the different parts
of an individual organization. Certain types of
ethical risks (e.g., insider trading, corruption of
foreign officials, etc.) will warrant enhanced focus
in some companies or parts of companies. A list
of topics which may be addressed in Codes of
Conduct can be found in Appendix 2.
Simple language
Each organization, industry, and region tends to
have its own particular style of communicating.
In reviewing the Code, directors should consider
whether the language is appropriate to the
organization and is sufficiently clear and specific
to allow those subject to the Code to understand
what conduct is expected of them.
A key input to the assessment will be the organizations awareness of previous breakdowns in
ethical behaviour. Wider industry history or the
experience of others with similar exposures may
also prove to be invaluable in assessing risks.
As organizations adopt formal risk management
processes, it is important to integrate the results
of an ethics audit into the overall risk assessment
process. Sometimes, it might seem that ethical
lapses would typically have less impact than, say,
overlooked strategic risks. However, there are
numerous examples of high-profile corporate
failures which demonstrate the very real consequences and costs of poor ethical behaviour.
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Section B
Code Implementation
and Execution
The board of directors has an ongoing responsibility to assess whether a Code is:
relevant;
Communication
In todays media-rich world, organizations have
the opportunity to disseminate information in
many different ways. The board should satisfy
itself that the means of communication management uses are appropriate to make the information accessible to those affected.
Although oversight of the Code and the companys compliance with it is ultimately the responsibility of the whole board of directors, certain
items may be brought first to the attention of one
of the boards committees, such as the audit or
governance committee and reported on by that
committee to the whole board.
Code review, addressing continued applicability, any addenda or supplements issued, and
the date of the next scheduled Code revision;
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Education
presentations by the organizations leaders and their availability for questions and
dialogue;
Some criticism is to be expected. How the organization handles that criticism, however, demonstrates
its true commitment to its principles and beliefs.
Statements in Codes of ethics are most likely
to have an impact when they address new
situations or when they take positions with
which one mildly disagrees.
Bruce Gamatz and John Lere
Certified Planning Journal, 2003
Acknowledging and listening respectfully to critical
feedback regarding the Code is of paramount
importance. Undertaking to consider these opinions
in subsequent revisions of the Code is also appropriate. However, bending to the expectations of
vigorous critics, at the expense of the organizations
well-thought out and purposefully developed principles, will quickly weaken everyones commitment
to the Code and can lead to widespread cynicism.
The board should be satisfied that management
has established an explicit process for handling
criticism of the Code. The board may receive a
summary of this information on an annual basis. As
well, there may be some types of criticism which,
due to its nature or the credibility of the critic
(e.g. a regulator), the board will wish to be made
aware of immediately. Directors should ensure that
management has a clear understanding of what
types of criticism should be brought to the board.
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An individual seeking guidance about the application of the Code would normally raise such issues
with his or her immediate supervisor. Where this
does not lead to satisfactory resolution, the issue
may proceed higher up the reporting line.
The Code should offer explicit guidance to be followed in circumstances in which employees may
be reluctant to raise concerns with their immediate supervisor. Typically the channels for such
enquiries will include the chief ethics officer, the
chief compliance officer or the head of the Law,
Human Resources or Internal Audit functions.
Additionally, many organizations ask directors and employees (and others subject to
the Code) to complete such a sign-off annuallyreconfirming their continuing commitment
and explicitly stating that they have followed
the requirements of the Code throughout the
previous year. Sign-off forms should make provision for disclosure of incidences of known or
suspected non-compliance.
13
External stakeholders such as customers, suppliers and investors should also have an explicit
point person within the organization to contact
with questions regarding the organizations Code.
This may be the chief ethics or compliance officer,
if the organization has appointed one. Otherwise,
questions might be directed to the Public
Relations department or the Corporate Secretary.
On occasions where employees or others subject to
the Code seek to have its provisions waived there
should be an explicit process for people to seek such
waivers. To discourage people from seeking relief
from what they perceive as inequitable treatment
from the strict application of the Code ultimately
acts as an incentive to cover up. However, such
requests require deliberation at senior executive
levels and, usually, at the board level. All waivers
granted, regardless of significance, should be
reported to the board of directors.
14
In addition to reviewing written documents and asking intelligent questions, directors should consider
taking some additional, practical steps to help ascertain whether the principles of the Code are actually
being practiced throughout the organization.
Everyone does it
One of the most difficult situations that an organization has to face is how to deal with anonymous
complaints concerning ethical behaviour. Whether
from employees or other sources, they cannot be
ignored. Each instance must be weighed on its
own merits, while carefully protecting the rights as
well as the privacy of all those involved.
Directors should also take advantage of opportunities to observe what is actually happening in the
organization and to listen to what others say about it.
Many directors find that field visits, when they
chat informally with management and front line
employees, are invaluablenot only to understanding the business but to assessing the organizations
ethical climate. They factor this assessment into their
confidence in everything from the organizations
sustainability to the probable accuracy of its results
and reporting. Again, if directors feel uncomfortable
raising the subject of field visits, or feel that theres
no opportunity, its probably a cause for concern.
15
16
Appendix 1:
Regulations relating to Codes of Conduct for
Canadian public companies
The Canadian Securities Administrators are responsible for the securities regulations of all Canadian
provinces and territories. CSA members work closely in the development of new policy initiatives and
the continuous improvement of the regulatory framework for securities. Investigation and enforcement
are also core CSA activities.
There are three pieces of regulation that address the need for Codes of Conduct and sound ethical practices of Canadian public companies. The relevant excerpts from these regulations are reproduced hereunder.
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51-102 requires every material change report to include a full description of the material change. Where
a material departure from the code constitutes a material change to the issuer, we expect that the
material change report will disclose, among other things:
the reason why the board has or has not sanctioned the departure(s), and
any measures the board has taken to address or remedy the departure(s).
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FORM 58-101F1
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE DISCLOSURE
5. Ethical Business Conduct
(a) Disclose whether or not the board has adopted a written code for the directors, officers and
employees. If the board has adopted a written code:
(i) disclose how a person or company may obtain a copy of the code;
(ii) describe how the board monitors compliance with its code, or if the board does not monitor compliance, explain whether and how the board satisfies itself regarding compliance
with its code; and
(iii) provide a cross-reference to any material change report filed since the beginning of the
issuers most recently completed financial year that pertains to any conduct of a director
or executive officer that constitutes a departure from the code.
(b) Describe any steps the board takes to ensure directors exercise independent judgement in
considering transactions and agreements in respect of which a director or executive officer has
a material interest.
(c) Describe any other steps the board takes to encourage and promote a culture of ethical business conduct.
FORM 58-101F2
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE DISCLOSURE
(VENTURE ISSUERS )
4. Ethical Business Conduct
Describe what steps, if any, the board takes to encourage and promote a culture of ethical business
conduct.
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Appendix 2:
Topics that may be included in Codes of Conduct
The following topics (listed in alphabetical order) are typical of those found in Codes of Conduct. This
is not intended to be an exhaustive list but may be helpful when reviewing the content of a Code. Except
in the largest organizations, Codes will rarely cover such an extensive number of topics.
1.
2. Charitable contributions
3. Computer security
4. Confidentiality
5. Conflicts of interest
28. Record-keeping
9. Discrimination
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Director Briefings
Climate Change BriefingQuestions for Directors to Ask
Controlled Companies BriefingQuestions for Directors to Ask
Diversity BriefingQuestions for Directors to Ask
Long-term Performance BriefingQuestions for Directors to Ask
Director Alerts
New Canadian Audit Standardsquestions for directors to ask (Dec 2010)
Fraud Risk in Difficult Economic Timesquestions for directors to ask (July 2009)
Human Resource and Compensation Issues during the Financial Crisisquestions for directors to ask
(July 2009)
The Global Financial Meltdownquestions for directors to ask (Oct 2008)
Executive Compensation Disclosurequestions directors should ask (Feb 2008)
The ABCP Liquidity Crunchquestions directors should ask (Oct 2007)
*Available at www.rogb.ca.
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*Available at www.rogb.ca.
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ISBN-13: 978-1-55385-538-5
20 Questions
Directors Should Ask about
Codes of Conduct
Second Edition
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