Compliance is a necessary responsibility for any organisation. Whatever your industry is, you are likely faced with policies, legal frameworks, environmental, health standards, and more.  This is all good, vital in fact, helping to attain operational excellence and integrity. Nonetheless, managing compliance requirements can be hefty and challenging, and compliance software can help.

Leaders across the compliance industry have long worked towards leveraging automated software systems that allow organisations to make data-driven risk decisions with efficiency and ease. One centralised hub that uses sophisticated algorithms to streamline processes relevant to the administration and management of compliance obligations. This idea is now a reality for those companies that choose to adopt emerging technologies known as compliance platforms.

What Is A Compliance Software Platform?

A compliance platform is a technological solution. It is a system that automates and centralises all relevant data so that you can manage risk and comply with regulations.  It works by recognising trends and generating key insights into a company’s various compliance metrics. A compliance platform provides data-driven visualisations so that users can engage easily with large quantities of information.

Data insights produced by the platform summarise the degree to which various compliance initiatives are being implemented. Data summaries can also be broken down to focus on specifics- time intervals or geographical locations, for instance. Moreover, data capabilities should extend to a wide range of compliance subject areas, including:

  1. Culture monitoring
  2. Employee conduct and incident management
  3. Employee training
  4. Third-party risk management
  5. Policy management
  6. Conflicts of interest
  7. Regulatory probes
  8. Programme assessments, audits, and reviews.

By integrating a wide range of compliance tasks that have previously been siloed, compliance platforms can better analyse and interpret the compliance strategy. The practice of integrating multiple governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) disciplines on a single platform is best known as integrated compliance management.  The Institute of Internal Auditors’ paper, The Three Lines of Defence in Effective Risk Management and Control, provides good insight into why it makes sense to bring these functions together.

What Are the Benefits?

Compliance software is important for the same reason any software is important in the age of Big Data. With so much digital information to keep track of, manage, and attempt to put to proper use, it’s increasingly impossible to do so without a dedicated software platform.

And the cost of non-compliance in the financial sector is huge- Since 2008, banks have paid over $243 billion in compliance-related fines and infractions. Luckily, compliance management software makes life easier to meet regulations head-on. By choosing the right software tool you will benefit from a reduced administration burden, allowing time to focus on higher-value activities.

Here’s a rundown of why businesses need to invest in and use compliance software:

  • Reduced Legal Problems
  • Enhanced Operations and Process Efficiency
  • Facilitate Informed and Compliant Decision-Making
  • Enhanced Reputation
  • Effective Team Collaboration and Communication

Finding a Compliance Platform

Overall, compliance platforms are powerful tools and by embracing their capabilities you and your team will be able to identify and mitigate risks before they cause real legal, financial, and reputational harm.

1RS are trusted providers of leading GRC solutions. Our cloud-based, integrated compliance platform- ERIC is a user-friendly system that is customisable to your unique business needs. We communicate closely with our clients at each stage and tailor our work to match the regulatory requirements, size, complexity, and culture of your organisation. Find out more, or book a discovery call here.