Though some business owners may consider it unnecessary to have a compliance manager, it is actually the best way to prevent many problems that could arise out of the blue. Your business could be up to date with all the necessary regulations, but there are still some things that you could have missed.
Consequently, if these issues aren’t addressed, your business could be fined or even closed (temporarily or permanently) when a regulatory agency decides to check your company and discovers these issues. Yet, there are other reasons still why you would want to hire a compliance manager. Here are the five reasons why you need one.
Who Is A Compliance Manager?
First and foremost, who exactly is a compliance manager and what do they do? A compliance manager is a professional at your company who works with your legal department to ensure that your business complies with the relevant laws and industry standards. Compliance managers are usually industry-specific, so you can’t just hire any compliance manager you come across.
Most of the time, a good compliance manager will have very good education in their respective field and will spend years learning about all of the intricacies of legal requirements and corporate compliance. Sometimes, compliance managers can be called compliance officers or compliance specialists, but such positions can also be distinct from each other. In this case, a team at a big company could consist of a compliance manager, officer, and specialist.
Compliance managers usually oversee all of the company activity and ensure that its business practices and policies meet industry standards and relevant laws. Depending on your company size, you might want to either hire a compliance team, a single compliance manager, or outsource compliance completely. Some compliance managers can have experience in different industries which makes them even more valuable specialists.
Speaking of industries, some of them usually have a higher demand for compliance managers. These include healthcare and pharmaceutical, financial services and insurance, and manufacturing. Depending on the industry, a compliance manager’s responsibilities could vary slightly, though the overall job description is usually the same.
#1 They Will Detect Issues Other Specialists Don’t See
The first and most obvious reason why you would need a compliance manager is that they will detect issues other specialists at your company might have missed. When a regulatory agency decides to check your business, you shouldn’t have any of these issues. This is why detecting even minor issues could play a huge role in the success of your business.
A good compliance manager will regularly run an audit of all the processes in your company to identify possible issues. Such audits start with your company’s policies and end it with its practices which means that every aspect of your business will be assessed and kept in check.
#2 They Will Prevent Compliance Problems Beforehand
Likewise, compliance managers will prevent compliance problems beforehand. It’s one thing to detect problems and solve them, but it’s even better to prevent them in the first place. When you are working with a compliance manager, this becomes more than possible.
For instance, you might want to introduce a new policy in your company or you want to update an old one. A good compliance manager will work closely with you to ensure that the new policy changes are compliant with industry laws and then implemented correctly in your company. It’s the best way to know that everything is running smoothly because you already have someone who knows about possible problems and who can prevent them beforehand.
#3 They Will Help Find Innovative Solutions
While it may seem that complying with all the laws and regulations could significantly limit your company’s activities, this is not exactly true. When you have a compliance manager on your team, they can consult you on the options you have and this could help you find innovative solutions for your company.
As experts from the college paper writing service reviews site put it, “When you hire a compliance manager, you expect them to monitor everything and keep an eye out for possible problems. But if you are lucky enough or if you go out of your way during the hiring process, you could find a professional who is also quite creative. Such compliance managers will help you revolutionize your company policies and practices while staying compliant.”
#4 They Will Always Be Present for A Consultation
You’ve probably been in at least a single situation when you desperately needed to know information that couldn’t be simply googled. Maybe you could google it, but it would take you a lot of time to actually find what you are looking for. In such cases, having a compliance manager could be a gamechanger because they will always be present for a consultation.
Instead of having to keep up with all the new laws and regulations, your compliance manager will be doing the job. And when you need them to give you a particular piece of information about these laws, they will be there to give you a consultation and good advice on what you can and can’t do.
#5 They Will Help Prevent Potential Expenses
Last but not least, a good compliance manager will help you to prevent potential expenses. Indeed, for a smaller company, hiring even a single in-house compliance manager could be a little costly. However, these costs will probably be much lower than the potential expenses you could have if there is an issue with your company’s compliance.
Think about this. If you have a restaurant and there are problems with the way you handle food, your restaurant could even be completely shut down. Luckily, if you do have a compliance manager on your team, they will ensure that a situation like this doesn’t happen and you don’t lose money (or worse, face the possibility of being closed).
Final Thoughts
All in all, hiring a compliance manager to monitor your business is definitely something you should do as soon as possible. It’s a way for you to prevent potential disaster and it doesn’t take too many resources from your business. Use this article to help you make the final choice and decide whether you need a compliance manager.