TIPS Newsletter | November 2024 - TI: Business Integrity Toolkit for Medium-Sized Enterprises

Dear TIPS Member,

In November 2024, TI published a ‘Toolkit for Medium-Sized Enterprises’ which it co-developed with the World Economic Forum to provide a comprehensive guide to embedding anti-corruption and ethical practices within SMEs.

Among other things, the guide: emphasises that SMEs are especially vulnerable to corruption due to their limited resources and challenging operating environments; offers practical, step-by-step tools to enhance business integrity, aligning with broader goals like the UN's Sustainable Development Goals; and stresses that integrity drives resilience, reputation, and long-term growth while urging collective action to combat corruption and enhance governance.

The toolkit outlines four core components for establishing a culture of integrity:

1. Foundational measures: establish an ethics committee and conduct risk assessments to identify and mitigate corruption risks systematically.

2. Anti-corruption policies: templates and strategies help SMEs create policies on financial crimes, conflicts of interest, donations, and political contributions, ensuring clarity and compliance.

3. Operational frameworks: tools for integrating financial crime clauses, managing conflicts of interest, and handling complaints build transparency and trust.

4. Strategic benefits: ethical practices improve competitiveness, enhance stakeholder trust, attract investments, and reduce regulatory risks, facilitating better integration into global markets.

Please see below the TIPS Newsletter for November 2024. We look forward to seeing you soon.

 - the TIPS team

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1. Upcoming Events (register for TIPS events on our Events page)

Impact Investment Banking ESG Conference 2024 | 11 - 12 December 2024, 9am-4pm GMT | London

Economic Crime Congress 2024 | 12 December 2024, 8am-7pm GMT | London

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2. Recent Events

TIPS | Tech-Enabled Due Diligence – Here Now or Still Coming?

AI is at the current moment “the worst it will be, and the best it has been.”  On 28 November, the TIPS Network welcomed an esteemed panel featuring Amritha Edachery and  Adrian Warner of Ground Truth Intelligence, Hugo Corden-Lloyd of The Risk Advisory Group and Zachery Rothstein of Xapien.

The panel examined and discussed the limitations, opportunities, and realities of using both publicly- and commercially-available 'AI'-powered technology tools for due diligence, how they compare to OSINT investigative tools, and when traditional human investigative nous is required.

We would like to thank Laetitia Hoffmann for facilitating the session and Control Risks for kindly hosting. Read a detailed write up about the event on LinkedIn.

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3. Jobs Board

• Business Integrity Governance Engagement Lead, Unilever, London. Apply here.

• Senior Consultant, Forensics Litigation & Valuation Services, Baker Tilly, London. Apply here.

• Senior Financial Crime Lawyer, Clyde & Co, London. Apply here.

  
  

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4. Items of Interest

TI publications

- Cheques and Balances: Countering the influence of big money in UK politics. See here.

- Strengthening Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs): Lessons learned for a Just Energy Transition. See here.

TI blogs

- Joint investigation finds nearly £400m in UK property owned by Bangladeshi investors accused of corruption. See here.

- UK Government announces ‘clamp down on corruption and illicit finance. See here.

- The BVI continues to lag behind on corporate transparency - will the UK government now take action? See here.

- New Ministerial Code ‘an important marker’ for Government's commitment to improving standards. See here.

- Advocating for anti-corruption in the defence and security sector: Insights from Geneva Peace Week 2024. See here.

- G20 & corporate transparency: Put your money where your principles are. See here.

Other items

- Know Your Host: Why It Matters That Azerbaijan Is Hosting the COP29 Climate Summit. See here.

- Anti-corruption measures in the context of oil. Evading the ‘resource curse’ in Uganda. See here.

- Kickback:  Corruption Risks in Renewable Energy Stop obsessing over the ECCP #121.  Listen here.

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5. One Minute Reads

New One Minute Reads have been uploaded to the TIPS website. Please do click the link to read more – perfect for your morning/evening WFH coffee break!

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6. TI-UK Business Integrity Programme

The private sector plays a crucial role in combatting corruption. TI-UK works with companies through a range of support and services.

• The Business Integrity Forum is a space to discuss and collaborate on anti-corruption and business integrity.

• The Corporate Anti-Corruption Benchmark helps companies assess, compare and improve their anti-corruption performance.

• The certifiable 'Doing Business Without Bribery' e-learning provides comprehensive anti-corruption training in the business environment.

Email businessintegrity@transparency.org.uk for more information.

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7. Focus on...

Liam Lane

Associate at Peters & Peters

Why did you get involved with the TIPS network?

I got involved through former TIPS Committee Member Joseph Sinclair who suggested I might find some of the events interesting as a lot of my work involves cross-jurisdictional / sanctions / ABC/ AML issues – as ever, he was right!

Please describe your experience as part of the TIPS network.

The TIPS Network stands out for its variety of events and topics which provides better engagement and more importantly encourages people to share their view. I’ve found TIPS members to be engaging and informative, providing valuable insights into global and domestic efforts against fraud, bribery, and corruption, as well as the use of targeted and sectoral sanctions. This has made my experience with the TIPS Network overwhelmingly positive

Connect with Liam on LinkedIn.