Ensuring Regulatory Compliance for Your Business

Today, organizations need to focus more on compliance, as Governments are doing their part to improve data privacy, reduce cyberattacks, increase consumer protection, and reduce environmental impact.

Businesses also want to reduce the risks associated with non-compliance and understand the different legislation of the countries in which they operate.

For many companies, it’s hard to find time and resources to deal with regulations and compliance; this is where software has its place.

Let’s learn about compliance management and software that simplifies the process.

Compliance Management

Operating ethically and responsibly is at the core of compliance, although it may appear burdensome. Compliance builds trust with stakeholders, prevents costly errors, and can enhance the financial performance of businesses.

Effective compliance management ensures that your organization follows the rules and regulations. This encompasses conducting audits (internal and external), implementing security and privacy controls, establishing internal policies for employees, and generating reports to demonstrate compliance.

It can be difficult for an organization to keep track of these activities, and failure to do so can result in penalties and reputational damage. Noncompliance can cost your organization a bundle of money. Healthcare organizations that didn’t comply with HIPPA could be fined between $100 and $50,000 per violation.

Businesses can use many types of compliance software to reduce the effort and cost of doing the right thing.

Types of Compliance Management Software

There are industry-based solutions geared toward the needs of a specific industry. For example, healthcare companies must work within HIPAA regulations to maintain patient privacy. One of the main areas where HIPAA-compliant software can help is email, and both proprietary tools and free alternatives exist. Hushmail has a very useful guide on how to make Gmail HIPAA compliant (and why it may not be the right choice for a healthcare practitioner).

Financial services is another heavily regulated industry where compliance software is vital.

Some solutions also include compliance tools for IT, corporate governance, and risk management.

There are software solutions for all areas your business may find helpful in managing compliance obligations, including:

• Compliance Management – tools and features for policy management, risk assessment, audit trails, and reporting
• Governance, Risk, and Compliance – integrated solutions for managing governance, risk, and compliance initiatives within an organization
• Document Management – create, store, and manage documents such as policies, procedures, contracts, and regulatory documents
• Training and Learning Management – deliver, track, and manage employee training and development programs, including compliance training
• Risk Management – tools often include features for risk identification, risk assessment, risk mitigation planning, and monitoring risk controls
• Data Privacy Management – platforms may include features for data inventory and mapping, consent management, data subject rights management, and data breach response
• Regulatory Change Management – helps organizations stay up-to-date with changes in regulations that affect their operations

Top Compliance Software Platforms

There are different types of compliance software solutions designed to meet every business need and industry. These are the top platforms worth checking out.

1. LogicGate

LogicGate falls into the last category of compliance software platforms. It offers a way to manage workflows for legal compliance, corporate governance and risk management.

2. Varonis

Varonis is targeted towards healthcare organizations that must comply with HIPAA data security regulations. The company also has solutions for financial organizations and GDPR compliance.

3. i-Sight

i-Sight helps companies protect themselves against fraud. If your business has an anti-fraud program, this is a great tool to use as part of the program. Your company can quickly identify fraud, investigate the issue, and report it to the authorities.

4. AuditBoard

For companies that have to operate under Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) regulations, this is a tool for you. Even if you just want something to help you conduct audits and manage accounting, this is a platform that you can use regardless of your industry.

5. ZenGRC

Another platform that helps companies with governance, risk, and operations. This is used by many large organizations like the New York Times to be more efficient at managing risks.

6. Convercent

Ethics plays a huge role in corporations today. You can integrate Convercent with your existing operations tools to tie ethical rules and policies to your organization’s day-to-day operations.

7. Neighborhood Watch for Corporations

You can protect your organization from fraud, corruption, security, and safety. Your employees have this tool to report issues so they can be handled immediately.

8. RegulatoryOne

This is geared towards consumer packaged goods and cosmetics. This allows your organization to comply with health regulations regarding food and health products.

9. ADAudit Plus

How would you like an audit trail that complies with HIPAA, SOX, and other regulations? This platform allows you to audit users to ensure your organisation complies.

10. Standard Fusion

This information security tool is a cloud-based solution that keeps your data safe while complying with different regulations.

How to Choose the Right Compliance Management Software

Now you know what compliance management is. You also know what the top compliance software platforms are. How do you go about choosing the right software solution for your business? These tips will help.

Your Business Needs

Your first step is to assess your business needs. You want to know what regulations you need to abide by. For some businesses, it’s just GDPR. For other companies, they have to comply with HIPAA or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Anticipate Changes

You can bet that there will be changes that you have to consider. You want to invest in compliance software that will adapt to those changes.

For example, cybersecurity and data privacy are two big issues for every business. You want to ensure that your business is prepared for the future as much as the present.

Final Thoughts

In life, there are two certainties, death and taxes. For most businesses, the two certainties are taxes and regulations. That doesn’t mean that rules are bad, but there is a lot that a business has to do to comply with those regulations.

That’s where business compliance software can help. It lets you quickly audit your teams, manage risks, and ensure you operate under the guidelines.

Different types of compliance software make it easier to find the right one for you. You must know your business needs and budget and find the software with the needed features. That’s sure to give you peace of mind.