Compliance is a profession that is a critical component of any organization. That wasn’t always the case, but now the compliance profession focuses on cutting-edge issues have broken barriers for women. Today, ethics and compliance professionals work tirelessly to build a world in which doing the right thing and making ethical decisions is standard.
This podcast was started to shine a light on the amazing and inspirational women who have helped the compliance profession develop and those who are making a difference every day. It turned into much more — a community that gets insight from women (and people supporting women) who share experiences and knowledge with one another.
We wouldn’t be where we are without Mary Shirley, our host emeritus. Mary is one of the founders of this podcast and is the co-author of the GWIC book, officially known as “Sending the Elevator Back Down: What We Learned from Great Women in Compliance” (CCI Press 2020) and sole author of “Living Your Best Compliance Life: 65 Hacks & Cheat Codes to Level Up Your Ethics & Compliance Program” (CCI Press 2023).
What are people saying about the podcast?
“I’ve truly found your podcast not only to be an educational source to teach me about the field, but also as a source of comfort on my most difficult days. I find the podcast to be much like a friend and mentor in my pocket, if you will!”
— Compliance director
“I absolutely loved your episodes on personal branding with Mel Stanley. They really helped me kickstart my journey as a panelist and speaker for various events. Made me realise there’s so much more to compliance than just my day job and found more fulfilling ways to contribute by using whatever knowledge and skills I had.”
— Financial services compliance director
“As a long-time GWIC listener, I wanted to thank (Lisa and Mary) for affirming my desire to pursue a career in compliance upon graduation. Thank you for providing a platform for students like me to learn about women who have great careers in compliance!”
— Compliance student and intern
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About Lisa & Hemma
Lisa Fine
Lisa Fine is a leader with extensive ethics and compliance experience with multinational corporations. Her areas of expertise include internal investigations, risk management and mitigation, third-party management and policy development and implementation. She is currently the global head of investigations and fraud at Pearson, the world’s largest learning company.
Lisa’s prior experience includes her position as director of global compliance at gategroup, the parent company of Gate Gourmet, the largest independent airline catering company, where she developed 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 individuals with disabilities.
Ethics and compliance are now the cornerstone of her career, as she believes that empowering ethical decision-making at all levels of an organization is critical to success. She is the co-author with Mary Shirley of “Sending the Elevator Back Down: What We Learned From the Great Women in Compliance” (CCI Press 2020). Lisa regularly speaks at conferences in the U.S. and globally, and regularly consults with and mentors other women in the field of compliance.
Hemma Ramrattan Lomax
Hemma R. Lomax Ph.D. is a passionate ethics and compliance professional focused on effective risk management at scale and coaching for compliance. She is the VP of integrity, governance risk and compliance and associate general counsel at Zendesk, where she leads the global ethics and compliance function.
Prior to Zendesk, she served as a senior corporate counsel in the integrity and compliance team at Snap Inc. and as a director in the global ethics and compliance management team at the Walt Disney Co.
Hemma also served for just over a decade prosecuting financial fraud and corruption with the SEC. Hemma is also a British-trained barrister and has previously worked as parliamentary counsel for the UK government and as an adviser at the United Nations for the government of Guyana.
Hemma is a strong advocate for integrity at work, active bystandership and DEI, and she has a PhD in human rights and the role of law in war. She lives in Maryland with her husband and their two daughters.
About the book
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.
What are people saying about the book?
“‘Sending the elevator back down’ is the ultimate ode for making space for everyone in the room and lifting others up as we grow. It helped me redefine success while embracing a new holistic approach of true leadership.”
— Compliance consultant & coach
“A great, quick read for anyone passionate about ethics and compliance, celebrating inspirational women who have contributed much to the field. Brings a much-needed perspective and voice (and sense of joy) to the E&C library.”
— Amazon reviewer
“I loved your book and I thought it was so refreshing to have such genuine and open testimonies from all these compliance professionals!”
— Compliance counsel