S2E3 | Champion of Ethical Culture: Ashlee Foltz on Integrating Ethics Into the Business and Advancing Integrity Throughout the Organization

PULL QUOTE: “Compliance and ethics is not for the faint of heart. All of us, we live for those moments where we can be part of a monumental wake-up call that can really realign an organization and bring them back to their core values.”
-Ashlee Foltz


On this episode of the Principled podcast, host Dr. Marsha Ershaghi Hames interviews Ashlee Foltz, founder of ACF Consulting Solutions and the former chief ethics and compliance officer of Cintas Corp. Ashlee describes her own journey into the ethics and compliance field, her passion for business ethics, and how best to integrate the function into an organization. During the episode, trends in business ethics and drivers for socially responsible companies are discussed, as well as how to advance integrity as part of the business mandate. Ashlee explains how the industry is moving away from a top-down approach based on punishment, and toward a bottom-up approach, where the ethics and compliance program is seen as a competitive advantage and a source of pride.

What You’ll Learn on This Episode

[1:09] How did Foltz find her way to ethics and compliance?

[3:27] Coming from an in-house position and evolving into a private practice, what drove her in that direction?

[4:45] How does she view the opportunity to integrate business ethics into an organization?

[7:27] What are the future trends we can expect to see in business ethics?

[10:11] What is the driver for people wanting to work in a more inclusive and socially responsible workplace?

[12:00] How much does she see ethics and compliance professionals being responsible for advancing integrity as part of the business mandate?

[14:53] How can ethics and compliance Leaders balance scaling a program, yet keep it locally and contextually relevant?

Find this episode of Principled on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Sound Cloud, Podyssey, or anywhere you listen to podcasts.