Expolink

Last updated
Expolink Europe Ltd
TypePrivately held company
Industry Business Services

Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance

Business Ethics
Founded1995
Defunct2021
HeadquartersWiltshire, United Kingdom
Parent NAVEX Global, Inc.

Expolink Europe Ltd (branded as Expolink) was a British company founded in 1995 to provide independent whistleblower services.

Contents

Expolink worked with organisations all over the world to implement solutions[ buzzword ] for governance, risk management and compliance, with a strong presence in the United Kingdom and mainland Europe.

On 3 June 2019, Expolink announced via its website that it had been acquired by NAVEX Global. [1] The business was fully incorporated into NAVEX Global and made defunct as of 31 December 2021.

History

Expolink was founded in 1995 by local business owners David and Jackie Crook. Its first offices were in Castle Coombe, Wiltshire but soon moved to a business park within Chippenham, Wiltshire.

The whistleblowing hotline service was created after the owners were alerted to an alleged instance of sexual harassment against one of their employees at a client's premises. Many of the company's first clients were local government authorities and PLCs.

At the time it was founded, Expolink was the first outsourced whistleblowing service provider in Europe.

Confidential reporting services

Expolink's manned telephone hotline service was launched in 1995, becoming a 24/7 service in 2001. A web reporting platform was introduced later that decade, followed by online case delivery in 2014. A mobile app reporting channel was launched in March 2017.

Services

Expolink provided confidential reporting for users predominantly through its manned hotline facility and online platforms.

It also offered enterprise software to support the management and investigation of whistleblowing reports.

Benchmarking Data

Expolink published a Benchmarking Report annually, which summarised data from the thousands of whistleblowing reports it processed each year.

In 2018 it revealed that whistleblowing reports relating to workplace sexual harassment and abuse had risen 89%, linking the trend to recent media revelations and the impact of the #MeToo movement. [2]

The company's 2019 Report highlighted a 57% increase in workplace whistleblowing rates between 2016 and 2018. [3]

Clients

As of 2019, Expolink worked with more than 750 organisations globally, with the majority headquartered in the UK and Europe.

Its clients included L’Oréal, BAE Systems and the BBC. [4] Expolink also worked with eight of the UK's top 10 retail banks and around one-third of companies listed on the FTSE 350 Index.

Related Research Articles

State Street Corporation American financial services holding company

State Street Corporation is an American financial services and bank holding company headquartered at One Lincoln Street in Boston with operations worldwide. It is the second-oldest continually operating United States bank; its predecessor, Union Bank, was founded in 1792. State Street is ranked 15th on the list of largest banks in the United States by assets. It is one of the largest asset management companies in the world with US$3.9 trillion under management and US$43.3 trillion under custody and administration. It is the largest custodian bank in the world, and it is considered a systemically important bank by the Financial Stability Board.

A whistleblower is a person, usually an employee, who exposes information or activity within a private, public, or government organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe, fraud, or abuse of taxpayer funds. Those who become whistleblowers can choose to bring information or allegations to surface either internally or externally. Over 83% of whistleblowers report internally to a supervisor, human resources, compliance, or a neutral third party within the company, with the thought that the company will address and correct the issues. Externally, a whistleblower can bring allegations to light by contacting a third party outside of the organization such as the media, government, or law enforcement. The most common type of retaliation reported is being abruptly terminated. However, there are several other activities that are considered retaliatory, such as sudden extreme increase in workloads, having hours cut drastically, making task completion impossible or otherwise bullying measures. Because of this, a number of laws exist to protect whistleblowers. Some third-party groups even offer protection to whistleblowers, but that protection can only go so far. Two other classifications of whistleblowing are private and public. The classifications relate to the type of organizations the whistleblower works in: private sector, or public sector. Depending on many factors, both can have varying results. About 20% of whistleblowers are successful in stopping the illegal behaviors, usually through the legal system, with the help of a whistleblower attorney. For the whistleblower's claims to be credible and successful, the whistleblower must have compelling evidence to support their claims, that the government or regulating body can use or investigate to "prove" such claims and hold corrupt companies and/or government agencies accountable.

BearingPoint is a multinational management and technology consulting firm headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It has operations in 23 countries with around 4,600 employees and is one of the largest management consultancies in Europe. In 2020, the firm delivered 1515 projects in 49 countries.

In United States labor law, a hostile work environment exists when one's behavior within a workplace creates an environment that is difficult or uncomfortable for another person to work in, due to illegal discrimination. Common complaints in sexual harassment lawsuits include fondling, suggestive remarks, sexually-suggestive photos displayed in the workplace, use of sexual language, or off-color jokes. Small matters, annoyances, and isolated incidents are usually not considered to be statutory violations of the discrimination laws. For a violation to impose liability, the conduct must create a work environment that would be intimidating, hostile, or offensive to a reasonable person. An employer can be held liable for failing to prevent these workplace conditions, unless it can prove that it attempted to prevent the harassment and that the employee failed to take advantage of existing harassment counter-measures or tools provided by the employer.

Sexual harassment Repeated unwanted sexual attention or advances

Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions from verbal transgressions to sexual abuse or assault. Harassment can occur in many different social settings such as the workplace, the home, school, churches, etc. Harassers or victims may be of any sex or gender.

LiveRamp San Francisco-based SaaS company offers data connectivity platform

LiveRamp Holdings, Inc., formerly known as Acxiom Corporation, is a San Francisco, California-based SaaS company that offers a data connectivity platform whose services include data onboarding, the transfer of offline data online for marketing purposes.

Fiserv Provider of financial services technology to banks

Fiserv, Inc. is an American multinational Fortune 500 company headquartered in Brookfield, Wisconsin that provides financial technology and financial services. The company's clients include banks, thrifts, credit unions, securities broker dealers, leasing and finance companies, and retailers.

United Talent Agency American talent management firm

United Talent Agency (UTA) is a global talent agency based in Beverly Hills, California. Established in 1991, it represents artists and other professionals across the entertainment industry. As of 2021, the company has more than 1,400 global employees. UTA has divisions focused on film, television, sports, digital, books, music, video games, branding and licensing, speaking, marketing, fine arts, news, and broadcasting, among others. The agency also operates the non-profit UTA Foundation.

FactSet Research Systems Inc., trading as FactSet, is an American financial data and software company headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, United States. The company provides integrated data and software. For fiscal year 2020, FactSet's total ASV and professional services revenues were $1.56 billion.

Insight Enterprises Global technology provider

Insight Enterprises Inc. is an Arizona-based publicly traded global technology company that focuses on business-to-business and information technology (IT) capabilities for enterprises. Insight focuses on three, primary solution areas: cloud and data center transformation, connected workforce, and digital innovation. The company is listed on the Fortune 500 and has offices in 19 countries.

Department of Defense Whistleblower Program

The Department of Defense Whistleblower Program in the United States is a whistleblower protection program within the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) whereby DoD personnel are trained on whistleblower rights. The Inspector General's commitment fulfills, in part, the federal mandate to protect whistleblowers. It also administers the Defense Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Program (DICWP), as a sub-mission for the intelligence community. The Inspector General's Defense Criminal Investigative Service also conducts criminal investigations which rely, in part, on Qui Tam relators.

ECPAT International

ECPAT International is a global network of civil society organisations that works to end the sexual exploitation of children. It focuses on halting the online sexual exploitation of children, the trafficking of children for sexual purposes and the sexual exploitation of children in the travel and tourism industry.

The Defense Intelligence Community Whistleblower Program (DICWP) is a sub-mission of the Department of Defense Whistleblower Program. In administering the DICWP, the Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense (DoDIG) balances the competing national security and separation of powers interests raised by whistleblowing within the Defense Intelligence Community.The DoDIG provides a safe, authorized conduit for Defense Department whistleblowers to disclose classified information. The Inspector General also has authority to investigate whistleblowing reprisal allegations filed by civilian and military members of the Defense Intelligence Community. It therefore accepts the disclosures and provides source protection for those providing the information. The Department of Defense funds and supervises much of the Republic's intelligence gathering. DoD IG accordingly provides protection to a large number of civilian and military intelligence personnel.

Telus International Canadian corporation

TELUS International is a Canadian technology company which provides IT services and multilingual customer service to global clients. Clients include corporations in technology & games, communications & media, eCommerce & fintech, travel & hospitality, and healthcare industries. TELUS International made its debut in the public markets on February 3, 2021 dual-listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange trading under the ticker symbol TIXT. Its parent company, TELUS, has been a foundational part of TELUS International's growth, and TELUS remains a dominant influence as it has a majority economic and voting interest in TELUS International.

The Network, Inc. is a technology and services company that develops and delivers integrated GRC solutions designed to help organizations mitigate risk and promote organizational compliance. The Network's solutions are based on proprietary SaaS-based technology and expert-level services. The company uses the phrase "Protect, Detect, Correct" to describe how its solutions enable global enterprises and institutions manage risks posed by fraud and unethical conduct.

Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013 is a legislative act in India that seeks to protect women from sexual harassment at their place of work. It was passed by the Lok Sabha on 3 September 2012. It was passed by the Rajya Sabha on 26 February 2013. The Bill got the assent of the President on 23 April 2013. The Act came into force from 9 December 2013. This statute superseded the Vishaka Guidelines for Prevention Of Sexual Harassment (POSH) introduced by the Supreme Court (SC) of India. It was reported by the International Labour Organization that very few Indian employers were compliant to this statute. Most Indian employers have not implemented the law despite the legal requirement that any workplace with more than 10 employees need to implement it. According to a FICCI-EY November 2015 report, 36% of Indian companies and 25% among MNCs are not compliant with the Sexual Harassment Act, 2013. The government has threatened to take stern action against employers who fail to comply with this law.

Logi Analytics

Logi Analytics, Inc. is a computer software company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, United States with offices in the UK and Ireland. It offers interactive data visualization products for business intelligence and business analytics.

Thomas Martin Clonan is a retired Irish Army Captain, author and security analyst.

Solium Software company in Canada

Solium Capital, now known as Shareworks by Morgan Stanley, is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is best known for Shareworks, software used by public and private companies to manage their employee stock options and/or cap tables. It also does 409A valuations. The company has ~3,000 clients and has offices in Canada, the United States, the UK, Europe and Australia. Morgan Stanley announced a definitive agreement to acquire Solium in February 2019 for approximately CAD$1.1 billion, a 40% premium over the recent trading price.

Debra Katz American civil rights and employment lawyer

Debra S. Katz is an American civil rights and employment lawyer and a founding partner of Katz, Marshall & Banks in Washington, D.C. She is best known for representing alleged victims of sexual assault and sexual harassment, notably Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Vanessa Tyson, Chloe Caras, and accusers of Congressmen Pat Meehan and Eric Massa, and whistleblowers facing retaliation, including most recently Dr. Rick Bright. Katz's primary practice areas at her firm are employment and whistleblower law, where she represents victims of workplace discrimination and retaliation.

References

  1. "ANNOUNCEMENT: NAVEX Global Acquires Expolink". Expolink. 2019-06-03. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  2. "HR issues dominate complaints from whistleblowers". People Management. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  3. "Report: Whistleblowing rates rise 57% in two years". Expolink. 2019-04-24. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  4. Waterson, Jim (2018-06-20). "BBC staff caught up in claims of sexual assault at Welsh assembly". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2019-05-14.