Elecnor Foundation and IE Foundation launch a Compliance Observatory

The Elecnor Foundation and IE Foundation, together with the Eversheds Sutherland Nicea law firm, have signed a partnership agreement to set up the "IE - ELECNOR Observatory on Sustainable Compliance Cultures" in response to the concerns of the Elecnor Foundation regarding the development of compliance among small- and medium-sized enterprises. Combating corruption must be a central aspect of the ethical commitments of all corporations. The observatory will support the development and implementation of controls to prevent and diligently detect any risk of non-compliance or misconduct at organisations.

While major corporations around the world such as Elecnor are well aware of the strategic role of compliance, and work to drive its implementation, the adoption of regulatory compliance measures at medium-sized enterprises remains embryonic, with significant misunderstanding of, and failure to adjust to, regulatory demands, which are often multi-jurisdictional. The observatory will be a platform to help medium-sized enterprises incorporate natural measures that prevent and control potential risks in their day-to-day operations and procedures.

The key objectives of the observatory will be as follows:

• To raise and develop awareness, ensuring that medium-sized enterprises understand the challenges of implementing a culture of compliance
• To develop proposals to support the implementation of compliance at medium-sized enterprises and those with more limited resources
• To extend awareness and drive compliance throughout the business world beyond major corporations, multinationals and early adopters.
• To support an understanding and shared framework for compliance when engaging in collaborative initiatives and projects between companies, particularly in highly integrated value chains.

The observatory’s first year of operations will focus on conducting and disseminating an initial study on "the state of the culture of compliance at medium-sized enterprises, based on a comparative approach". The study will chiefly examine indicators regarding the situation in Spain, and provide an analysis of successful solutions deployed in other countries and a quantitative assessment of the barriers, challenges and application of solutions in Spain.

The observatory will have a website and will publish an annual report on all of its activities.

The IE Law School has a mission to reinvent legal training globally, redefining the legal profession as part of the process and helping legal systems to successfully address the major challenges of our age. To this end, its programmes take an innovative, multidisciplinary and global approach, placing the focus on technology and business, seeking to ensure that our graduates are ready to lead the change.

About the Elecnor Foundation

Since it was founded in 2008, the Elecnor Foundation has cemented its role as a key driver of corporate responsibility at Elecnor. Its objectives include promoting, fostering, implementing and providing consultancy on applied training projects, while supporting research. In more than ten years of operations, it has deployed 10 social infrastructure projects, providing water and energy to underprivileged and remote areas in America and Africa.

About the IE Foundation

The IE Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation that works to reinforce the IE's social impact, harnessing its own resources and collaborating with strategic partners. Set up in 1997, the Foundation has actively worked for the last 20 years to promote the institution's values: enterprise, diversity, inclusion and innovation, with a special emphasis on the humanities as a central aspect of higher education.

About Eversheds Sutherland Nicea

Eversheds Sutherland Nicea marks its tenth anniversary this year, positioning itself one of the country's fastest growing and foremost law firms. It has 18 partners in Spain and more than 80 lawyers. The firm provides legal advisory services to businesses and individuals in all areas of corporate law. The Compliance Department in particular is renowned both domestically and internationally. The global Eversheds Sutherland network includes more than 700 partners and 2,400 lawyers, operating across 66 countries and in the major cities and financial hubs of Europe, America, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.