LATAM Compliance Update with Alejandra Montenegro Almonte

In this episode of Great Women in Compliance, Lisa speaks with Alejandra Montenegro Almonte, a member at Miller Chevalier. Alejandra is the Chair of their International Practice and Practice Co-Lead, Workplace Culture. They discuss recent regulatory trends, workplace culture, and the evolving compliance landscape in Latin America and the United States, including the increased focus on Foreign Terrorist Organizations, False Claims Act enforcement, and the importance of addressing these changes and others proactively, including the DEI Executive Order requirements. Alejandra also shares her insights about the shift towards addressing workplace culture and conduct issues proactively, and how this has evolved past looking just at litigation risk. She discusses employee engagement and the increasing use of ethical assessments. Alejandra and Lisa reflect on the challenges of building authentic professional relationships in a predominantly remote work environment. They emphasize the need for intentionality, such as scheduling regular virtual coffees and employer-facilitated opportunities for connection, to foster networking and mentorship. Alejandra and Lisa have known each other for a long time, and they discuss the value of the early career friendships that become a peer network. This is harder in a virtual age, and Alejandra shares some of her strategies to build networks.