Great Women in Compliance

Great Women In Compliance

With Mary Shirley and Lisa Fine

For a long time, compliance was perceived as a part of the larger legal world. Today, compliance is its own profession — a place where people work tirelessly to make the world a better place, one where doing the right thing is the standard for everyone. There are a lot of amazing and inspirational women who have helped the compliance field develop into what it is today and women who are joining this field every day. They are leading the work on cutting-edge issues and breaking barriers for women.

Sending the Elevator Back Down:

What We’ve Learned from Great Women In Compliance

Lisa Fine and Mary Shirley share wit and wisdom from some of the greatest minds in compliance in their new book: Sending the Elevator Back Down: What We’ve Learned from Great Women in Compliance (CCI Press, 2020), which includes quotes and contributions from women who hail from every corner of the globe and span myriad industries and experience levels.

The guidance these contributors offer and the experiences they share are a breath of fresh air – both for the young professional just starting out and for the mature compliance leader with a long history in compliance and ethics. The stories are exceedingly relatable, the lessons universal.

Mary and Lisa have compiled a light-hearted but substantive work as a celebration of women in the compliance space and an encouragement to stand fast in the face of adversity.

As the authors and the Sending the Elevator Back Down and its contributors inspire readers to support and lift others up, they demonstrate a commitment to diversity (among compliance pros and everywhere) and to amplifying lesser-heard voices. Clearly, in this compliance community, the door is open. Come right in.

Our Story…

Lisa and Mary first met in 2016, when Lisa was at Mary’s presentation at that year’s SCCE, having come from Singapore for the event. For Lisa, it was the beginning of building a compliance network, and as Mary moved to the US in 2017, we became sounding boards for one another as well as friends.

In 2018, we were both at Compliance Week in May and SCCE CEI in October. We looked forward to both for combining professional development and social opportunities not only with each other but our ever growing network of Compliance friends. Read more

Mary Shirley

Mary Shirley is a New Zealand qualified lawyer with extensive experience implementing, evaluating, and monitoring compliance programs for multi-national corporations. Currently Senior Director, Ethics and Compliance at Fresenius Medical Care in Boston, Mary has a large international footprint of experience having held global ethics and compliance roles in Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai.  Mary also spent time working as an investigator for regulators in New Zealand in the areas of data privacy and antitrust.

For Mary, compliance is more than just a 9-5 job.  She co-hosts the Great Women in Compliance podcast with Lisa Fine, co-hosts the Boston Compliance Professionals Networking Meet Ups with Matt Kelly, and contributes to thought leadership opportunities in the field regularly; including speaking at conferences, sitting on the Compliance Week Advisory Board, the SCCE Boston Regional Conference Planning Committee, writing articles and and participating in interviews on ethics and compliance.

Mary’s expertise, commitment to the advancement of women and dedication to coaching the next generation of compliance officers has been recognized in recent years as a finalist in three categories at the Women in Compliance Awards; Compliance Officer of the Year, Mentor of the Year for the Advancement of Women and In-house Compliance Team of the Year. She was also bestowed the honor of being named a Compliance Week Top Mind 2019.

Lisa Fine

Lisa Fine is a compliance leader with extensive experience in compliance strategy, including risk management and mitigation, internal investigations, and implementing and growing compliance programs.  She is the Director, Compliance for the Americas, for Pearson, the world’s learning company, where she is leading compliance for the Americas and supporting Pearson’s global compliance work.

Lisa’s prior experience includes her position as Director, Global Compliance at gategroup, the parent company of Gate Gourmet, which is the largest independent airline catering company, where she supported and managed the Company’s global compliance initiatives.

Lisa started her career as a practicing attorney in the public and private sectors, including as a litigator, leading a law firm’s Washington, D.C. pro bono  practice, and working as an advocate for persons with disabilities.

Ethics and compliance are now the cornerstone of her career.  She has spoken at conferences in the United States and Europe, and regularly consults with and mentors other women in the field of compliance and those starting their careers.  She is particularly passionate about the “Great Women in Compliance” podcast, co-hosted with Mary Shirley, where women compliance practitioners are interviewed and discuss their experiences, advice and substantive expertise.