The Compliance Implications of Operation Varsity Blues: A Conversation with AP Capaldo-Aoun, LPEC

On the afternoon of Monday, April 8th, 2019, I spoke with AP Capaldo-Aoun, a global compliance attorney and director of E&C at a Fortune 100 technology company, about the compliance implications of Operation Varsity Blues. Our conversation took place just as news broke that Felicity Huffman and 12 others would plead guilty to bribery in the widespread college admissions scandal, and on the heels of coverage of the topic by Hui Chen and other members of the compliance community.

A graduate of the University of Notre Dame Law School and a former Associate General Counsel at an international education company, AP brought unique perspective from her experiences in corporate governance, regulatory issues, internal investigations, global compliance, anti-bribery, anti-corruption, and the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act to our conversation on this trending topic.

You can listen to our 30-minute discussion below, or by visiting Hanzo’s Anchor podcast channel. 

All views expressed on this podcast are our own and do not represent the opinions of any entity whatsoever with which we have been, are now, or will be affiliated. 

 
Episode Breakdown

(00:00 – 4:55) Introductions and Varsity Blues Overview

(04:55 – 7:00) AP’s Personal Reaction to Operation Varsity Blues

(07:01 – 10:30) How Does Operation Varsity Blues Change Ethics & Compliance Programs in Colleges and Universities Moving Forward?

(10:31 – 14:35) How Long Will It Take For Things To Change After The Dust Settles and Implement Changes To E&C Programs?

(14:36 – 21:50) Reputational and Cultural Implications of Operation Varsity Blues, Proactive and Reactive Risk Management, and Why Nobody Saw This Coming

(21:51 – 26:10) How the E&C Market Will React to Operation Varsity Blues, Academic Accountability, Collaboration, and Opportunities for Recovery

(26:11 – 32:50) Using Operation Varsity Blues as a Case Study and Training Opportunity for Corporate Ethics and Compliance Programs

The Hanzo team will continue speaking with compliance, risk, and legal professionals throughout 2019 to discuss current events and regulatory trends. Thanks for listening, and be sure to subscribe to our Anchor channel to get notified when future podcasts are published! 

This interview with AP Capaldo-Aoun is the latest entry in Hanzo’s Profiles of Excellence series. You can read more stories from our “Profiles of Excellence” series on our blog, including: 

Louis Sapirman, Former Chief Compliance Officer at Dun & Bradstreet: “An Interview with Louis Sapirman, the Complianve Innovator” 

Alexandra McCombs, Senior Project Manager at PAE: “10 Years In, and Still Passionate About eDiscovery”

Joseph Stephenson, Managing Director at Hagerty Insurance Agency: “Social Media Investigations – Lessons from a Master” 

Ben Robbins, Senior Manager for Information Governance, eDiscovery and Forensics at LinkedIn: “Getting to Know Ben Robbins from LinkedIn” 

Ricky Brooman, CEDS, Litigation Support Project Manager at Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP: “Zero to Sixty in eDiscovery – the Value of On and Off the Job Training”