Nancy Draper Schaeffer: Addressing the compliance challenges of home and hybrid working

Since early 2020, the COVID pandemic has turned the world upside down. For many, working from home became not just the norm but a legal obligation, with ‘office life’ replaced by home working, and business travel and meetings replaced by the now ubiquitous dial-in by Zoom or other platforms.

Putting aside the obvious pros and cons of the ‘new normal’ (less commuting/ reduced interface with clients and colleagues), the compliance function has faced particular challenges in the COVID era: How to ensure that controlled data and communications are kept secure, and that the kitchen or dining room workplace isn’t the scene of unwitting trade control breaches or careless ‘shares’.

In a presentation with near-universal applicability to everyone in the world of compliance, Nancy Draper Schaeffer, a valued WorldECR contributor, talks through the key measures that companies need to take to ensure that the move to home and hybrid working does not result in compliance mis-steps or more egregious violations.

In addition to setting out best practice, Nancy will parse the extant guidance issued by regulators through the pandemic, including the temporary changes introduced by the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (‘DDTC’) to facilitate easier working from home for key staff – while setting out how organisations might prepare for continued uncertainties. 

About Nancy: After graduating from Harvard University with a Masters of Liberal Arts in International Relations, Nancy started her first export control position at West Virginia University. After that, she worked in BAE Systems, Inc. International Trade Compliance Office. She recently started working at Leidos, Inc. directly supporting a customer contract.