Anti-bribery practices are integral to the business and commercial sectors. The International Standard of Organization (ISO) has established the standards that define good practice in the commercial sector. This sets guidelines for businesses to ensure that they do not engage in bribery practices. The standards include a set of rules and guidelines to reduce the incidence and prevent bribery throughout the organization.
ISO 37001, the standard provides for the application of controls at all levels. These include the topmost level of management and the lowermost staff involved in a project. This encompasses all organizations, including government agencies of the public sector, public, non-profit organizations, corporations, academics and foundations, and international organizations. An effective anti-bribery policy, therefore, covers a large area of business activities.
Types of Bribery Identified
The standard establishes different types of bribery and their respective controls. These are false gifts or incentives, quid-pro-quo (or represent or promise something for free), and influence and access. Therefore, the anti-bribery policy of an organization focuses on preventing potential corruption at all levels and across all kinds of organizations.
Bribery is a broad term used to refer to any situation where money or other financial compensation is given to an individual to perform a specific task or obligation. In the context of the standards outlined in the iso 37001 anti-bribery management systems, a financial reward may be defined as a payment or gift given for the performance of a relevant task by giving undue favor to one party. The deals can be in giving contracts, handling office deals, or other matters where bribery is one element in decision making.
Need for Anti-Bribery Consultants
Implementing an anti-bribery management system requires a collaboration between the organization and an implementing organization with expertise in this field. This can be handled by using a consultant that has experience in ISO 37001 compliance. However, this is not always the case. Some organizations may not have the required expertise or resources to implement an anti-bribery management system. Therefore, organizations must identify the areas that require improvement and then look for the best practices in the industry.
The consultant should identify and analyze the risk areas and evaluate the risk management solutions available for the organizations. Based on the analysis and assessment, the consultant should develop an ISO 37001 compliant work environment. In addition to this, the consultant should also develop controls that address the issues identified in the review. This means that the implementing organization should implement ISO 37001 based occupational health and safety systems controls and best practices in all workplace environments.
