According to Paul Moskal, Director of CORE Consultancy, there is no typical day in the FBI. Throughout his 30-year career with the bureau, he worked on matters ranging from bank robberies and cyber terrorism to issues of foreign counterintelligence —“spy stuff” in the truest sense.

He worked long-term undercover assignments as a marathoner (he was an avid runner), a hedge fund operator, and an organized crime lawyer allegedly using drug money to pay bribes and develop luxury hotels and golf courses. He supervised kidnapping and extortion squads, worked in the National Press Office, and tracked down spies from foreign governments. He traveled the world, working stints in London, Rome, Port-au-Prince and Toronto, among other cities.

Paul’s interest in the FBI stretches back to his childhood. For as long as he can remember, he had big plans to become the next Sherlock Holmes — solving mysteries and fighting crime, pipe in hand. This fantasy followed him into college where he earned degrees in political science and English, and eventually a doctorate of law. “I remember reading, at the time, that more than 400 members of Congress were attorneys,” said Paul. “That statistic made an impression on me, and I remember thinking that if I wanted to help people, law school seemed like a great place to start.”

Three months after college, Paul joined the FBI, pledging to commit his career to protecting the public and upholding the Constitution of the United States. He started as a special agent and worked his way up to Chief Division Counsel — leading younger agents, directing investigative programs, and overseeing every significant case that walked through the doors.

In 2014, Paul made the transition into the private sector, assuming the role of director of compliance at a large design firm. 

Paul’s day-to-day job is similar to the Chief Division Counsel role at the FBI — making sure everyone in the organization, regardless of job duty, understands the law and the firm’s policies and procedures, and adheres to them to further the firm’s mission. Under Paul’s guidance, the firm has launched a robust Code of Conduct, established an ethics and integrity hotline, and put its employees through more than 15,850 hours of compliance training. Based on results from a recent employee engagement survey, questions related to employees’ understanding of the company’s compliance protocols received the highest scores of any in the 150-question survey.

Although Paul’s life has slowed down a bit since his days in the FBI, his pledge to protecting the public is unwavering. Now, rather than spend his days undercover, Paul is proud to be leading the discussion about compliance. He recognizes that bringing the topic out into the open is the best way to safeguard design firms.

“There really shouldn’t be any hesitancy to talking about compliance in the design industry” adds Paul. “Through discussion, education and training – that’s how you build understanding and ensure design firms around the country are best prepared to conduct business in this new era.”