The big lesson for financial services firms from Nasdaq's trading fiasco is to have an adequate backup system for when things go wrong and ensure that their compliance officers, risk managers and corporate boards are all involved in testing the firm's systems. "Systemic failures are systemic and risk management problems, not really compliance problems. Nonetheless, compliance officers, risk management officials and corporate boards have an obligation to ensure that their facilities are operational and fully functional, represent the most up-to-date software and technology available, and are continuously being tested for potential errors and glitches," said Harvey Pitt, a former SEC chairman. "They must ensure appropriate redundancy, to permit their systems to continue to function when the main system goes down, freezes, or is temporarily malfunctioning," he said. Pitt was SEC chairman between August 2001 and February 2003. He was speaking after the Nasdaq exchange was forced
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