Ericsson AB is facing the exit of its compliance chief just as the Swedish 5G equipment maker is trying to untangle itself from scandals and fix its governance following years of ethics breaches.
(Bloomberg) — Ericsson AB is facing the exit of its compliance chief just as the Swedish 5G equipment maker is trying to untangle itself from scandals and fix its governance following years of ethics breaches.
Laurie Waddy is leaving after four years in the job, Ericsson said on Tuesday. Her role has been central as the company has worked to straighten its corruption track record, clean up its corporate culture and manage various investigations tied to alleged violations of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
In December Ericsson announced it will remain under the oversight of an independent compliance monitor for another year, until June 2024, following an agreement with the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Ericsson is also being probed over payments in Iraq that may have ultimately gone to the ISIS terror organization. That scandal, which erupted in February 2022, has prompted a management shake-up and in March last year more than 10% of shareholders voted against shielding Chief Executive Officer Borje Ekholm and the board from liability. That means the door is open to future legal action against them.
“The whole executive team remains focused on the key priority of embedding a culture of ethics and integrity into our business, which we believe is critical to our market leadership,” Ekholm said on Tuesday.
Waddy will be replaced on an interim basis by Jan Sprafke, who will report to Scott Dresser, chief legal officer, as well as to the board’s audit and compliance committee. Ericsson declined to elaborate on the reason of Waddy’s departure.
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