Compliance officers searching for construction-specific advice should not feel alone. Speakers who presented best practices for small- and mid-size firms at the Construction Industry Ethics and Compliance Initiative forum, held in Denver on Oct. 10-11, all shared the same experience: They started their careers in operations or legal work with no direct training in compliance. All reached out to CIECI as a resource for writing and maintaining industry-specific ethics and compliance programs.

CIECI was formed three years ago by 13 contractors and now has grown to 45 members, including engineers and specialty contractors. CIECI Chairman Bruce Grewcock, who is CEO of Kiewit Corp. and one of the charter members, said the group is actively seeking new members, although it screens candidates and requires the CEOs to send a letter stating their company is committed to ethical conduct. Two prospective members have been turned away.