Make Compliance Easier

Bring up the idea of easier compliance and watch what happens. Some people run for cover, some quietly ignore you, and a few will fuss and moan about one more thing on their plate. Yet compliance is a fact of business life, and it is not going away. Ask yourself an honest question: does a standard exist in your company if nobody actually follows it?

Every organization has to answer to someone. You must meet your customers, satisfy industry standards, and stay on the right side of the regulators who govern your market. The goal of this article is simple. If you make compliance easier, you make compliance happen, and the rest of this guide walks through ten practical ways to do exactly that.

• Your customers’ requirements (quality, safety, performance specs, quantity, price, and prompt delivery);
• Industry or other standards and guidelines, such as the ISO 9001 quality management standard and IFRS accounting rules; and
• Regulations, from the 8th EU Directive to the Food Safety Modernization Act.

What Is Compliance in Business?

Compliance is the practice of meeting the requirements, standards, and regulations that apply to your business. Some of those obligations come from your customers, some from industry bodies like the standards behind ISO 9001, and some from government regulators. The U.S. Small Business Administration notes that staying legally compliant is an ongoing responsibility for every business owner, not a one-time task. In short, compliance is how you prove, on demand, that you do what you say you do.

The Problem With Compliance

And therein lies the problem. Compliance is a lot like healthy eating or regular exercise. We know we have to, yet somehow it always feels hard. Why is it that “have to” and “want to” so often pull in opposite directions? The real challenge is selling yourself, and then your employees, on the idea that compliance is something you want, not something you merely put up with. How do you turn “got to” into “get to”? The SBA’s guidance on staying legally compliant is a useful reminder that the obligation is permanent, so the smarter move is to make it painless.

Why Is Making Compliance Easier Important?

Making compliance easier is the single best way to make sure compliance actually happens. When the right thing is also the easy thing, people do it without being chased. So how do you build that value into your company? Follow these ten practical steps.

1. Sell Yourself on the Idea First

You will find in life, if you have not already, that you cannot sell what you do not believe in. If you lack enthusiasm, conviction, self-discipline, vision, and the other traits that define leadership, you will not have many followers. Belief comes first, and it has to start with you.

2. Your Customers Are Your Ultimate Critics

If you do not meet their requirements, you are out of business. It will not matter what other requirements you satisfy if you fail to meet your customers’. Keep your priorities in order and listen to your customers first.

3. Include Your Staff in Easier Compliance

Include your staff in developing the policies and procedures that keep your company compliant, for three reasons: you cannot do it all by yourself; they know the day-to-day tasks, operations, and processes better than you do; and showing that you value and trust their judgment is how people grow. Micromanagers never win.

4. Supply Adequate Resources

Give everyone in your firm the resources they need to do their jobs effectively, and you will notice that compliance just got easier. Under-resourced teams cut corners, and cut corners are where compliance quietly breaks down.

5. Validate Training and Experience

Make sure your employees are more than adequately trained and experienced. They should know what they are doing and, just as important, why they are doing it. Understanding the reason behind a control is what turns a checkbox into a habit.

6. Keep the Lines of Communication Open All the Time

Communicate effectively and continually, at every level of your organization. Get out of your office, address your employees firsthand, and keep the conversation two-way. Open lines are how small compliance issues surface before they become big ones.

7. Listen

Listen, and then turn what you hear about compliance into something your employees and your customers actually want to act on. Listening without acting teaches people to stop talking.

8. Make a Habit of Short Meetings

Meet with suppliers, subcontractors, and everyone who has a hand in getting your product or service to your customers. The meetings do not have to be long. Short, frequent conversations are far more useful than rare marathon sessions. You may not manage it often, but do not let a year pass without checking in with your most valuable partners. Communication is key.

9. Look at Failures as Opportunities for Improvement

Resist the urge to hunt for the guilty party every time something goes wrong. Keep failures to a minimum, yes, but keep them in perspective too. Not every mistake calls for Draconian countermeasures. Treat mistakes as learning opportunities for process improvement, and compliance gets easier.

10. Share Success

Easier compliance goes beyond simply observing standards or laws. Done well, compliance helps you win business. When it does, spread the credit. Acknowledge the part everyone played in the win, especially those who had a direct hand in it.

Make Compliance Easier

Sell yourself first, then sell everyone else on the value and importance of compliance. Make them want it, because your customers already do. Compliance will be easier the moment you decide to make compliance easier, and the ten steps above are how you start.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Is Compliance Important for a Business?

Compliance is important because it keeps a business aligned with its customers’ requirements, industry standards, and the regulations that govern its market. Meeting those obligations protects the company from penalties and lost customers, and it builds the trust that wins new business.

What Does Compliance Mean in Simple Terms?

In simple terms, compliance means doing what your customers, your industry, and the law require, and being able to prove it. It is the practice of following agreed rules and standards consistently rather than occasionally.

How Can a Company Make Compliance Easier?

A company makes compliance easier by involving staff in writing policies and procedures, supplying adequate resources, validating training, communicating openly, and treating failures as opportunities to improve. When the compliant path is the easy path, people follow it.

What Are Examples of Business Compliance Standards?

Common examples include the ISO 9001 quality management standard, IFRS accounting rules, and regulations such as the 8th EU Directive and the Food Safety Modernization Act. Which ones apply depends on your industry and the markets you serve.

Who Is Responsible for Compliance in a Company?

Compliance is a shared responsibility. Leadership sets the tone and supplies the resources, while every employee owns the compliance built into their daily work. That is why including staff and keeping communication open matter so much.