Compliance Chronicles with Liisa Thomas
Compliance Chronicles is a practical podcast for privacy and compliance professionals who want meaningful, practical solutions they can implement in the fast-paced world of privacy, AI, and cyber compliance.
Recent Episodes
20
Sept. 30, 2026
Building Compliance Consensus in Complex Systems with Justin Martin (Ep. 20)
In this episode of Compliance Chronicles, Liisa Thomas talks with Justin Martin, an in‑house technical executive who straddles general counsel‑level work and COO‑level technical leadership in an electrical engineering organization. Justin shares how he moved from law firm partner into in‑house roles, driven by a personal mission around energy, environment, and electricity. In this episode, he shares how his experience making products “bondable” and transactable in markets translates into making
19
Sept. 16, 2026
Effective Compliance by Untangling People Problems and Staying Authentic with Corey Tanner (Ep. 19)
In this episode of Compliance Chronicles, Liisa Thomas talks with Corey Tanner about building an employment law function from the ground up and navigating the human side of compliance and investigations. Corey shares how a college job as a secretary at a small employment law firm led to law school and a career focused on workplace issues, internal investigations, and compliance across law firms, the University of Texas, and in‑house roles. She explains why she has always been drawn to the human
18
Sept. 2, 2026
Ensuring Your Compliance Role Matches the Moment with Jay Cohen (Ep. 18)
In this episode of Compliance Chronicles, Liisa Thomas talks with Jay Cohen about what it really means to lead compliance in a global insurance business, and why activity alone doesn’t prove an effective compliance program. Jay shares his journey from 20 years in New York government (including 10 years as a prosecutor in Brooklyn) into legal and regulatory compliance roles at a variety of companies including Prudential, Assurant, and ultimately QBE Insurance. He explains how he “fell into” comp
17
Aug. 19, 2026
Embedding Compliance in Business Growth with Lauren Ervin (Ep. 17)
In this episode of Compliance Chronicles, Liisa Thomas talks with Lauren Ervin, an Associate General Counsel who shares how privacy moved from a tentative “I’ll raise my hand” moment to the core of her legal and compliance work. Lauren shares how she spent over a decade in financial services—starting at a small litigation firm in Miami, then moving in‑house to a major non‑bank mortgage servicer—before a mentor encouraged her to take on privacy because “it’s going to be a big deal one day.” That
16
Aug. 5, 2026
Turning Privacy Into a Business Success Factor with Matthew Ellis (Ep. 16)
In this episode of Compliance Chronicles, Liisa Thomas talks with Matthew Ellis, an “opportunity creator and problem solver” who has spent nearly 25 years building and leading privacy programs across startups, Big Four firms, global technology companies, and consumer brands. Matthew shares how he fell into privacy at an email marketing startup, went on to start EY’s first Bay Area privacy practice, led privacy at Microsoft and Peloton, and now advises small–to–mid‑tier companies on turning priva
15
July 22, 2026
Security at the Intersection of People and Technology with Shellie Dreistadt (Ep. 15)
Chief Information Security Officer Shellie Dreistadt joins Compliance Chronicles with Liisa Thomas to talk about how psychology, cybersecurity, and leadership resilience come together in modern security programs. She shares her nonlinear path from psychology and call‑center leadership into information security, online banking, and ultimately her current CISO role. Shellie explains why security sits at the intersection of people and technology, and how understanding behavior, motivation, and tru
About the Host
Liisa Thomas
Liisa Thomas is a privacy, cybersecurity, and AI governance lawyer who helps boards, Chief Legal Officers, General Counsel, and executive teams lead organizational change in a fast-moving regulatory environment. She works with companies that need practical, defensible support for privacy compliance, cyber risk, AI governance, data protection, and enterprise-wide compliance transformation.
As a law firm partner, adjunct professor, author, and advisor to legal, privacy, security, and compliance leaders, Liisa brings a rare combination of legal judgment, regulatory fluency, and change-management experience. Her work focuses on helping organizations move from policy to practice: building governance structures, aligning stakeholders, preparing boards, supporting legal and compliance teams, and creating programs that work in real business conditions.
On Compliance Chronicles, Liisa speaks with leaders who have navigated privacy, cyber, AI, and compliance challenges inside complex organizations. The podcast is designed for board members, CLOs, GCs, CISOs, CPOs, CCOs, and business leaders who are responsible for turning regulatory pressure into sustainable action.
Whether the issue is AI adoption, cybersecurity oversight, privacy program maturity, regulatory scrutiny, board reporting, or cross-functional governance, Liisa’s focus is the same: helping organizations manage risk, build trust, and lead change without getting stuck in theory.