Compliance Week 2008 – Choosing My Agenda For Day 1

Went through the Compliance Week 2008 program and circled what I want to attend outside of the General Sessions.  

This year, based on the feedback from attendees, they are holding private “conversation” sessions where executives, theoretically, can talk off the record.  Therefore, media (which is my designation here) are not invited.  We’ll see if I can get any of the speakers/discussion leaders to give me feedback in a fungible, anonymous way.  

Hey Scott Taub, I’m talkin’ to you…

One of my favorite girls, Linda Thomsen, kicks off the conference at 9am.  That’s a much more prestige spot than the US Chamber gave her a month or so ago.  I guess her message is somehow more welcome here?  Funny, seems like the same audience.  But I will be sure to say “Hi” after the speech and maybe ask a question.

The next session is a toss-up between data in the compliance value chain and COSO.  Hmmm… It doesn’t get much more exciting than that.  So it comes down to the speakers and, therefore, Pfizer Chief Compliance Officer Doug Lankler wins over Axis’ Andy Anderson, (Who names their kid Andy when their surname is Anderson anyway…)  Also, Andy is speaking with Paisley and I will have enough of the “vendor speak” at the Approva-Paisley cocktail hour on Wednesday evening.  (Thanks, Mike for the invite.)

The 11:30 is hands-down Scott Taub talking about materiality, misconceptions and restatements.  Scott, do your guidelines  apply to dating too? 

Hate to miss Josh Hochberg from McKenna Long & Aldridge, who is speaking at the same time on FCPA.  But I will have to catch him later.  I feel a some loyalty to the firm of my Irish primos, but not enough to miss Scott. 

Lunch keynote is Robert Pozen, Chairman of the SEC Advisory Committee on Improvements to Financial Reporting (CIFR).  Can’t wait…

After lunch, sessions are a toss up, but must go to hear the “Chief Compliance Officer” for Chiquita Brands talk about FCPA, if only for the irony of it all.

The end of the day sees me probably listening to the KPMG guys talk about Fraud Risk in Emerging Markets.  Although I am not working as closely with Mexico and South America right now as I would like, I have to keep up, if only to be a good Advisory Board Member for the Latin American Studies Program at the University of Chicago.

The day runs late.  Another session is scheduled at 5:30!  Will probably go see the Yahoo! Chief Compliance Officer.  Maybe he’ll answer a question about China.  Yeah, right… (Yes, you have to put the exclamation point in. Who knew?) 

All this being said, it is a woman’s prerogative to change her mind.  And I do let mine wander like a kangaroo on walkabout sometimes.

Good thing there are two receptions to attend after all this.  I’m going to need a stiff drink.