Karen Schnell is a Senior Director in FTI Consulting’s Forensic & Litigation Consulting segment and is based in Washington, DC. She has more than 30 years of experience advising clients on compliance, operations, governance, and risk management. She is skilled in deep-dive reviews for transaction lookbacks associated with potential financial crimes, evaluating KYC processes and files for completeness and correctness, analyzing and improving structural gaps such as governance or control weaknesses, and evaluating information system vulnerabilities. Ms. Schnell has evaluated compliance programs for financial institutions ranging in size from large, multinational banks to small, domestic credit unions, and she has developed programs to strengthen their controls and processes. She has assessed all aspects of the five pillars of anti-money laundering compliance programs and has developed policies, procedures, and training programs to enhance clients’ AML and sanctions programs. She is skilled at evaluating governance structures, conducting risk assessments, and assessing staffing and training needs. Ms. Schnell has conducted independent evaluations of financial institutions’ sanctions programs, including a review of internal controls, screening processes, and alert disposition. She has also evaluated KYC processes to ensure all relevant names are captured and screened properly for Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) sanctions.  As a former federal bank examiner, Ms. Schnell has advised clients on a wide range of financial regulatory matters, including safety and soundness, AML and sanctions, and consumer compliance.