- Use active bystandership to strengthen corporate compliance and risk reduction
- Build compliance training around practical skills for effective employee intervention
- Prioritize misconduct prevention by teaching employees to intervene before harm
- Support active bystandership with cultures that value and protect intervention
Article
Look Over Here: The Illusion of Risk Reduction
Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics
Written by Jonathan S. Aronie
October 1, 2026Estimated Read Time: 1 min
Key Takeaways
Corporate compliance programs have traditionally emphasized reporting misconduct after it occurs, but active bystandership offers a preventive approach to risk reduction by teaching employees how to intervene before avoidable harm happens. Effective compliance training can give employees practical skills, tactics and organizational support for employee intervention, an approach that has been applied in law enforcement, aviation, healthcare, higher education and municipal government. The article argues that organizations should incorporate active bystandership into corporate compliance programs to strengthen misconduct prevention rather than relying primarily on post-incident reporting.
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