For over a decade, Lance Armstrong has enjoyed the reputation of a hero. The world watched as he showed extraordinary personal strength to defeat cancer, and then win a record 7 consecutive Tour de France titles. We loved him as the cycling champion that trained harder, was more focused and raced faster than any of his competitors. Although there were rumours of performance enhancing drugs, most of us just believed Lance Armstrong was naturally the most dominant cyclist ever.
Fast forward to October 2012 – all that has changed. USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency) released a 1000 page report containing compelling evidence of Lance Armstrong’s history of illegal doping. The report includes the sworn testimony of 26 people, including 15 of Armstrong’s former teammates, confirming illegal doping practices by Armstrong and his professional cycling team, US Postal Service (USPS). The report also details financial payments, emails and scientific data that, according to USADA, prove the use, possession and distribution of performance enhancing drugs by Armstrong and the USPS cycling team.
A Toxic Workplace Culture
USADA are alleging the USPS cycling team was involved in a massive doping conspiracy, which included grooming and pressuring athletes on the team to use and distribute performance enhancing drugs. Armstrong has been labelled the enforcer of doping activities within the team, warning teammates if they wanted to continue riding for the team they would have to follow the doping program outlined by the team doctor. The “win at all costs” team environment included a ‘Code of Silence’ where people involved were pressured to stay quiet and do what they were told. Armstrong’s role as doping enforcer and the high pressure team environment paints a picture of a workplace rife with bullying, harassment, discrimination, corruption and coercion.
What can compliance professionals learn from this?
A compliance program is only as good as the workplace culture in which it operates. For Armstrong and the rest of the Tour de France competitors, there are clear rules, obligations and responsibilities the riders must adhere to or face severe financial penalty, suspension, expulsion and potentially jail. The riders and their teams are acutely aware of these rules, and the associated penalties for non-compliance. Within the USPS team a culture of non-compliance existed, which was reinforced by enablers within the organisation including team management and medical staff. The team management’s acceptance of non-compliant behaviours, as well as a culture of bullying and harassment, enabled Armstrong and the USPS team to compete with the aid of illegal drugs and pressure other riders to breach cycling rules.
Similarly, Australian businesses have a raft of laws they and their employees must adhere to. In addition to the laws, many businesses have clearly defined internal policies outlining their expectations for employee conduct. However all the rules in the world cannot force an individual to comply, and ultimately the decision to comply or not comply rests with that individual. A significant influencing factor on employee behaviour is the tone of company culture and its attitude toward laws and processes. Like the USPS team, a workplace culture of non-compliant behaviour and lack of respect for company processes is more likely to foster an environment where employees will breach laws and processes associated with their work roles. These breaches will often result in significant penalties and heavy fines for individuals and the business, as well as the negative press that causes significant brand erosion – which as sponsors of Armstrong’s cycling team, the US Postal Service is now experiencing.
One of the major influences on positive compliant workplace culture is company wide acceptance of, and respect for compliance programs by all levels of employees – especially managers, directors and executives. People will respond to the norms of their environment, meaning if the workplace norm is compliance with company policies then employees will be more likely to embrace compliant behaviours. Fostering an open and accepting workplace will ensure employees feel comfortable reporting incidents of non-compliance to supervisors, allowing businesses to identify and resolve areas of potential risk before they can cause damage to the business, and its brand.
What if there had been an accessible channel of communication for cyclists working for the USPS cycling team, such as a whistle-blower program, to report illegal doping activities? Someone may have been willing to come forward and blow the whistle on non-compliant behaviour by Armstrong and the USPS team. Relevant authorities could have stepped forward and ended the doping conspiracy before it grew so powerful, and Armstrong would have been found guilty of illegal conduct long before ‘winning’ 7 world titles.
By fostering a culture of compliance in your business, you may avoid having to ask – what if?
