Business Ethics Advisors E.T.H.I.C.S. Toolkit

Learn why your emerging and existing leaders need our Toolkit to help them master ethical decision making.  All of our Toolkit programs are delivered by a Certified Virtual Presenter assuring that these programs will run smoothly.

E.T.H.I.C.S. Toolkit is NOT Optional

Equip your employees and managers…

So they can identify the personal characteristics and circumstances leading to unethical behavior that may otherwise result in millions of dollars in legal fees, fines and penalties, loss of public confidence in the business, reduced market capitalization and, potentially, criminal liability. 

It all started with my own white-collar criminal conviction…

Once upon a time, I was a successful real estate executive living the good life.  My life and career came to a crashing halt when our company came under criminal scrutiny.

Suddenly, I found myself being interviewed by the FBI and hired a criminal attorney…

After a three-year investigation from hell, the DOJ threatened me with 20 -30 years in prison unless I plead guilty to conspiracy.  My attorney wanted $1 million to represent me if we went to trial, AND, he thought I would lose.  Frustrated and beaten, I plead guilty to one count of conspiracy.  The judge sentenced me to 48 months, and I served 37 months of that in federal prison.  It was a life-changing experience that I would not wish on my worst enemy.

Two weeks after reporting to prison, I was thrown into solitary confinement for protective custody!  In the solitude of that cell, I vowed that I would do all I could to help other professionals avoid my fate.

While I was in prison, I talked to dozens of fellow inmates about WHY they were there – the decisions they made or did not make that lead to their incarceration.  The common thread was that most guys never thought they were doing anything wrong.  Their conviction blindsided them, and it was entirely 100% preventable.  I used my time to distill these conversations into the E.T.H.I.C.S. Toolkit program that I use today to help your employees avoid ethics traps and make better ethical decisions. 

If you don’t think what happened to me can’t happen to you …… Think again!  There are 5,000 criminal laws and another 10,000 – 300,000 federal regulations that can result in criminal violations. 


Think – Wells Fargo, Volkswagen, Theranos, Herbalife, and any number of pharmaceutical and financial companies that you read about almost daily.  In the five years preceding April 2008, “the Department of Justice obtained nearly 1,300 corporate fraud convictions. These figures include convictions of more than 200 chief executive officers and corporate presidents, more than 120 corporate vice presidents, and more than 50 chief financial officers.” (2008 Corporate Fraud Task Force report)






Now, think about the scrutiny and traps lying in wait as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. What’s the risk of FCPA, bribery, fraud, price-fixing, insider trading and other securities violations, FCA, and falsifying product testing (to name a few) in your organization in the Post-Pandemic world?

A new side effect from remote working, layoffs and furloughs stemming from the coronavirus pandemic: more whistleblowers. 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission received about 4,000 tips, complaints and referrals of possible corporate wrongdoings from mid-March to mid-May, 2020.  When employees are working remotely or face pressure to meet goals during difficult financial times, the likelihood of wrongdoing can increase.  Effective Ethical Leadership will give employees a direction to their moral compass and less to whistleblow on.

I once had a GC at a top 50 Fortune company tell me that his biggest nightmare that he lost sleep over were employees doing illegal or unethical things thinking they were helping the company. Do you have the same nightmare? 

Why Values-Based Training

Most Code of Ethics/Conduct training is rules-based. Follow this rule or that one, and you stay in compliance with the rules book. Unfortunately, we live in a quickly changing business environment that requires flexibility.

Values-based training emphasizes an individual’s own principles regarding what is right and wrong or what is known as moral decision-making. In the business world, someone may make a decision that fits the code, but may not fit the integrity that an “ethical culture” demands.

Our program is not meant to replace a company’s required Code of Ethics/Conduct training. It is meant to complement and supplement it so your employees can make decisions more aligned with the “highest good” regardless of the current business environment – ideal for the Post-Covid World
.

What is the Ethical Leadership Toolkit?

Protecting Organizations One Leader at a Time

At BEA we train your emerging and existing leaders to make ethical decisions that keep your company and employees out of hot water saving you millions of dollars in legal fees and fines, lawsuits or even worse, prison. 

 The Ethical Leader raises a high bar for himself and others in the organization to create an ethical culture.  The values-based Ethical Leadership Toolkit prepares leaders and other employees to identify the personal characteristics and circumstances leading to unethical behavior with these programs: 

1

Virtual/Live Ethics Awareness Training via Keynotes or Workshops 

As an ethics expert and natural storyteller, Kevin provides compelling and personal examples of how individuals can identify unethical behavior and their causes. Appropriate for all employees, presentations are designed to empower individuals to make informed and sometimes difficult ethical decisions.  

2

Ethical Leadership Accelerator Group Mentoring

Enroll new and emerging leaders in a deep dive 8-week ethical leadership mentoring program for a transformative experience.  Delivered virtually. 

3

Online Values-Based Ethics Courses

The popular "Solving the Ethics Enigma" program is available as a two-hour online course as a cost-effective way for organizations to complement and supplement their regular ethics training programs. 

4

“Everyday Ethics” Weekly Videos 

A series of short weekly videos addressing various ethics and compliance issues is an essential component of to the Ethical Leadership Toolkit.  Our corporate clients can distribute these videos in any way that makes sense to them.

5

Elite Access Executive Forum

For ethics professionals and leaders facing relentless ethical issues, the Forum is modeled on CEO and Vistage-type programs allowing members to address pressing ethical issues. Delivered virtually bi-weekly.

6

“Everything Ethics” Zoom Meetings

Free-for-all weekly ethics discussions with Kevin on Zoom