In the middle of a busy workday, getting an email reminder about mandatory compliance training can make employees feel irritated, stressed out, and even downright frustrated. It’s not unusual for individuals to ignore these emails, completely forget about them, and then find themselves rushing to complete their compliance training at the last minute—and, let’s be honest, probably not comprehending much of what they’re learning in the process. 

But what if compliance training was more than what many may see as a boring, time-consuming obligation? What if these trainings helped employees feel more agile and informed so they could carry out their work ethically? 

In this article, we'll explore strategies you can use to transform compliance training from a dreaded chore into a source of value employees are eager to engage in. Ready to revolutionize your approach to compliance training? Keep reading! 

Leverage microlearning to engage employees 

Compliance training shouldn’t take your team a full day to complete. Requiring employees to spend hours at a time on compliance training not only consumes time employees may be relying on to finish a project, but it also means you’re likely feeding learners way more information than they can realistically retain. 

Instead, consider implementing microlearning. Microlearning is digestible content delivered in bite-sized snippets, and for compliance trainings these snippets are typically around 10–30 minutes long. Now, we’re not saying you need to provide employees with only 10–30 minutes of compliance training total per year, as that probably won’t meet regulatory practice. What you might consider, though, is providing multiple pieces of microlearning content to complete over time. 

Our tip: Deliver all microlearning courses at once with a common due date, or deliver one piece of microlearning per week for four weeks, allowing employees to engage in short bursts of learning over the span of a month. This way, the course or training can be picked apart and employees can sit with what they learn. Think of your team and how they learn best when you choose which method works best for them. 

Compliance training isn’t something employees should do once a year and then forget about. With microlearning, you can use compliance training as an ongoing reminder of how to stay safe and mitigate risk. Because this content is short and easy to complete, you might use it throughout the year. For example, choose a month to focus on DE&I and assign a microlearning course about the importance of diversity & bullying prevention. 

Go1’s content library features many content providers who offer unique microlearning courses. Easy Llama’s learning content, for example, includes video scenarios that are presented as Facetime chats, and Marcom’s compliance content is largely set in real-world contexts and features realistic scenarios. 

Segmenting your training into small doses of information creates an approach that employees can fit into their schedule, allowing for better information processing and retention. This type of segmented learning is less overwhelming and more focused, and it enables employees to learn on their own time, at their own pace. Plus, microlearning makes it easier for employees to revisit and review content whenever necessary, resulting in a more impactful, long-lasting training experience. 

Incorporate real-world scenarios specific to your organization 

Compliance training shouldn't be rushed through just to get to the end of it; it’s important that employees actually understand the training content in order to carry out their work ethically and responsibly. Rather than assigning employees generic training and hoping for the best, integrating real-life scenarios into your training can help your team better grasp compliance concepts and understand how to incorporate them into their work. 

Consider sharing real-life successes and failures that your organization or organizations in your industry have experienced. Analyzing personalized or relatable compliance case studies will help employees see the direct impact of their behaviors in upholding ethical practices. If you’re looking to offload some of that personalization work, with Go1, L&D admins can create customized hybrid courses using our lightweight course builder. This allows organizations to create training tailored to their unique policies and compliance scenarios to ensure employees fully understand how to adhere to your company standards. 

Experiential learning strengthens the brain’s neural connections, accelerating learning and improving retention. Offering simulation exercises and role-playing is a great way to help employees put their knowledge to practice and make the theoretical tangible. When an employee understands how to deal with a compliance issue in real time, they're no longer just taking in information; they're embodying an experience so they know how to react if a similar situation ever occurs. 

If you’re still relying on white boards, picking scenarios out of a hat, or an online spinning wheel for interaction, it’s time to update your training with modern technology to better engage your employees. Cutting-edge tools like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) can provide immersive experiences that make training more exciting and interesting. 

Research suggests that we remember 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, and a staggering 90% of what we do. Interactive technologies take training to the realm of doing and seeing, rather than simply reading an article or watching a video. And the more senses you engage, the more likely the information is to stick! 

Imagine stepping into a realistic compliance scenario, where every decision you make actually changes the story’s outcome. A compliance video game doesn’t sound half bad, does it? VR and AR can do just that by providing real-world, interactive experiences employees need to practice compliance concepts. AR and VR are the next best thing to on-the-job training, without the risk of real-world mistakes. 

It’s no secret that our society loves games—from sports and fitness to board games, video games, and more, nearly everyone engages in some type of game. When it comes to training, gamification can boost engagement, increase information retention, and encourage correct application of compliance information. 

Adding leaderboards and rewards, like virtual badges and tangible incentives, to training modules can turn compliance into a friendly competition and reinforce good training behaviors. You might also consider using a gamified training course that immerses learners in a story to add interest and excitement. Ultimately, compliance content that incorporates achievements and milestones, as well as interactive elements, gives employees clear, tangible goals to strive for, making the learning process feel like a series of wins.  

By prioritizing a culture of two-way communication, employees will feel less like passive learners and more like active contributors to their own learning. Invite your team to provide feedback through surveys, open forums, or even dedicated feedback sessions. When employees have a say in how they're learning, engagement skyrockets. 

It’s up to you to update, revise, and refresh your training content using the feedback you receive from your team. This iterative process ensures that your compliance training stays current and relevant, and that employees are learning and complying with your organization's policies. Compliance isn't static; it's a continually evolving topic, and your training materials should reflect that dynamism. 

It’s time to transform compliance training from a dreaded requirement into a valuable and enjoyable part of your organization's culture. These strategies will not only elevate your training but also build a workforce of informed employees who approach their work responsibly. To effectively introduce new compliance training, make sure you’re curating content that’s relevant to your business’s unique needs.  

We can help with this if you’re stuck or looking to change up your current strategy. Go1 provides compliance courses based on location, business size, and industry needs. We’re here to help you look at compliance through a new lens—not as a box-checking exercise, but as an opportunity for professional growth, risk management, and, above all, ethical practice. 

For more insights, subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay up to date on all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to discover how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs. 

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Learn how to reframe compliance training from a chore to a source of value, using training content to foster a culture of ethical practice.

How to mitigate risk by boosting engagement in compliance training

There are a number of different cyber threats that you need to be both aware of, and actively trying to prevent in your workplace. These range from the classic phishing calls and emails, to increasingly sophisticated attacks using tools like Artificial Intelligence to bypass company data security systems. 

Luckily, there are a number of effective methods you can employ to reduce the risk of these attacks on your company systems and data.

This is one of the longest-running forms of cybercrime, and hackers are constantly developing new ways to trick people into revealing sensitive information. Social engineering attacks are reliant on human error, as opposed to badly protected systems and software. 

Generally in email form, phishing is the attempt to gain valuable personal information such as bank details, credit card information or system passwords. These scams can be very sophisticated, with information, email addresses and company branding all appearing to be authentic.

Phishing attacks are popular with hackers as they are effective, cheap, and easy to do. With a minimal investment of time and effort, these strategies are low risk but can result in high rewards.

The term malware covers all types of malicious software including viruses, spyware, adware and bots. It’s essentially any kind of software created for the purpose of stealing data or damaging devices and systems.

Ransomware, such as the Petya virus, has the ability to freeze or shut down computers – from a personal device to the servers of an entire organisation. Once this occurs, hackers and cybercriminals can extort money from companies or individuals in return for decrypting the virus and allowing access to devices.

While Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence are both useful tools in the fight against cyber threats, they can also be used against us in more sophisticated attacks. AI can be used as a weapon to breach security systems as it permits a face or voice to be superimposed over another, and this allows a hacker access to previously protected data.

Endpoints are generally end-user devices like PCs, laptops and mobile devices. With the use of cloud-based systems, SaaS providers and enterprise networks on the increase, cybercriminals have larger attack surfaces and more vectors to choose from when bypassing security systems. It’s important to note that attacks will begin at the endpoint, even if this device isn’t the actual target.

Cyber attacks are costly events for a number of reasons. Aside from the obvious expenses incurred when repairing your systems and recovering data, you may well be hit with fines and legal costs. On top of this, the time spent rectifying the issue will cause a drop in overall employee productivity, it’s highly likely you will lose customers, and the damage to your company reputation may be irreparable. Recent research shows that cybercrime costs the Australian economy over a billion dollars annually.

How to prevent cyber threats in your workplace

Unfortunately, many companies have experienced the negative effects of serious cyber attacks. The good news is there are a number of ways you can prevent these, including:

Ensuring your antivirus programs, firmware and firewalls are up to date

Employing a policy of least privilege for your users; this limits the systems and resources available to the minimum required for each particular role 

Maintaining a full inventory of all internet-connected devices on your company network, and details of their operating systems

Applying security solutions to all devices on your company network - your system is only as strong as your least protected asset

Creating an offsite backup of your company data as part of your company disaster recovery plan

Ensuring your company systems are up to date, and removing any unused or unsupported software 

It’s vitally important that you have effective data security programs and policies in place to protect your business from cyber threats. This means your company data is secure, along with any sensitive information relating to or belonging to customers and clients.

Take a look at our Go1 Information and Data Security pathway. You'll find courses covering everything you need to keep your systems and information protected, from email etiquette and how to handle sensitive data, to guarding against identity theft, phishing and malware attacks.

For more insights, be sure to subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs.

Avoiding common cyber threats in the workplace

Victoria Houchin, Business Development Manager for Training Alliance at the Cerebral Palsy Alliance, talks about the importance of providing high-quality training to employees in the disability industry. 

The disability industry has undergone significant changes and growth over the past few years since the introduction of the NDIS, and the dust is yet to settle. With the sudden increase in numbers of clients as well as providers, most providers felt the chaos with registering to become an NDIS approved provider as well as change the way that we cost our services.

We must first appreciate the NDIS for what it is, a huge step in the right direction for people with disability, many of which now have access to funding or more funding and able to utilise fantastic supports that enable them to live a fulfilling life. 

Nonetheless, the Quality and Safeguards Commission is here (replacing the Ombudsman) and all providers are or have undergone audits to ensure they provide a quality service. Most are given some minor improvements to make and more often than not, staff training is at the top of the list.

Training in the disability industry has peaked and dipped in it’s popularity over the past few years because of the impact that the NDIS introduction had on most organisations bottom lines, and as an RTO who’s No.1 customer base are disability providers we noticed that organising regular or comprehensive training became difficult with most providers simply trying to keep their head above water with the changes.

David Moody, the newly appointed CEO for NDS released a sobering message on November 1st 2019 regarding the interim report for the Aged Care Royal Commission, titled “Neglect”. From this report he states that there is an expectation of the focus of the upcoming Disability Royal Commission to look at:

restrictive practices including significant attention to the use of medications as a restraint;

quality of food and attention to oral health;

health and medical care including pain management;

It’s a great idea for all organisations to carefully look at each of these points, as well as all of the NDIS Practice Standards and understand exactly what they are doing to support their clients to the absolute best standard, and be able to evidence it. 

Over the past 75 years Cerebral Palsy Alliance (CPA) has supported people with disability to build enriching lives. Training Alliance, as a division of Cerebral Palsy Alliance has developed all of our training through the expertise and experience of CPA and our industry partners to be specifically for the disability and health sectors. 

CPA offers a range of cost-effective in-person, Nationally Recognised and online learning that supports many organisations across Australia to upskill and prepare staff to provide an excellent service.

Our online learning is a great tool for providers who need comprehensive, time efficient and cost effective training for their teams. It’s especially great for organisations who may have regional locations that can be difficult to find in-person training.

Our online learning library offers a range of essential health and compliance topics for Disability Support Practitioners. It is used as a full induction and refresher program for many organisations, and others choose to blend our online and in-person courses. 

Get started with CPA content through Go1 today!

The importance of providing high-quality training to employees across the disability industry

The hospitality industry is fast-paced, creative and unpredictable. In such an energetic environment, ensuring staff members are up to date with the latest training and compliance can be a challenge.

With the anti-social hours most employees work, and the physical nature of the job, finding the time for training can be difficult. The team is exhausted at the end of a busy shift, and when the customers are in, the focus is on their experience. 

Essential areas of training for hospitality staff

Hospitality environments are often stressful and fast-paced. Kitchens are places where a lot of accidents can happen, so safety of staff and customers should always be paramount. Training in this area will supply learners with the knowledge and skills required to apply solid WHS practices.

Being up to date with guidelines on workplace bullying is crucial for those in hospitality management. The high-pressured service industry often creates a climate of perfectionism, and in such conditions, it can be easy for staff members to take out their stress on each other. Training will encourage staff to reflect on how they should act in certain situations and what to do about bullying incidents.

Linked to training on workplace bullying, harrassment and discrimination can easily arise when a workplace cutlure becomes unfriendly.  In times of stress, it can be difficult to remain civil and treat other employees and customers with the respect they deserve. However, customers will notice if staff members or other customers are being treated poorly. 

Knowledge in this area is a basic prerequisite for any establishment preparing food for customers. Making mistakes can result in businesses paying the ultimate price and being shut down. Training your team with real-life scenarios will educate them on the importance of food safety, and the consequences of their actions if mistakes are made.  

The hospitality industry can be physically draining.  The heat of the kitchen, constantly being on your feet and lifting stock can be extremely taxing on the body. Those responsible for staff welfare need to be sure that the team understands how to stay safe. They need healthy bodies to do the work to the best of their ability! Training will provide learners with the skills they need to look after themselves in the workplace. 

Tips for hospitality staff to make the most of online learning: 

As the person responsible for ensuring your staff is compliant, it can be difficult to know whether the information from an online course has been taken on board. It can also be tempting to tick the box once the course has been completed, but your staff needs to apply what they’ve learnt to a practical context. 

If you are the manager or owner, you will already have a lot on your plate to keep your business running.  It might be helpful to designate a trusted employee to oversee and implement training. Then, you can be sure your staff members are not only well-trained, but also have a senior member of staff to ask for help should they need it.

However you decide to ensure your team is up to date with the latest training, here are our tips to be sure your staff members make the most of their online learning experience:

When setting staff the task of completing online training, it can sometimes be difficult for them to see the bigger picture or understand why it is important.  They have physical and often challenging work days, so they need to understand why they are making the extra effort.  

Many who work in the hospitality industry are driven by the desire to serve customers to the best possible standard.  If you can use this purpose to frame regular training updates, it will help staff to become invested and want to ensure they complete the training to the best of their ability. Ultimately, if your staff is not compliant in these areas, the customers will pick up on this and think twice about coming back to your establishment.

 It is important that every member of staff is well-versed in the online training.  This includes those in management, or even investors. Anybody who has regular contact with the business should understand the rules and live by them.  A whole-team approach is key.  

Show staff examples of best practice: Whether you as the manager are responsible for training, or you have allocated this job to another member of staff, modelling best practice is the best way to ensure team members take their learning on board and begin to apply it in the workplace.  If those in leadership are not showing staff how things should be done, the online training will lack purpose.

Although it can be difficult to find the time to do so, taking the time to consolidate learning from online courses in a practical environment can be invaluable to staff members.  Every staff member needs learning put into the context of their daily work.  This could be as simple as demonstrating steps throughout the day to ensure the safe handling of food, followed by reviewing the steps with staff members. 

To make the learning process easier, Go1 has partnered with Allara Learning to help you keep your staff up to date. Whether you run a bustling cafe or sophisticated fine-dining restaurant, well-trained staff members are guaranteed to improve customer satisfaction. Allara Learning’s Hospitality Compliance Training Package is specifically designed for the Australian market, and is essential for reminding staff of their legal obligations.  The package can also be used to on-board new team members, and focuses on five key training areas. All are equally important for ensuring your establishment is up to scratch and meets the basic requirements. 

Easy steps to make sure your hospitality business is compliant 

Part 4 of the Aged Care Quality Standards Series

The new Aged Care Quality Standards are now in place across Australia. The standards apply to all aged care services, including residential care, home care, flexible care and services under the Commonwealth Home Support Program. Now is the time to familiarise yourself with them.  

In order to meet the standards, staff must be well-equipped and feel confident in delivering the best possible care. To support this, Go1 has partnered with Australian training provider Aged Care Learning Solutions to bring you all the online training courses you need to be ACQS compliant.

For Standard 4, organisations need to ensure their services and supports for daily living allow for consumers to do the things they want to do. Meeting the requirements for this standard is closely linked to the guidelines set out in Standard 1.  If consumers are provided with the help to maintain their independence, they will be able to live with purpose and have a sense of belonging to their community. 

What does ‘services and supports for daily living’ include?

Your organisation’s services and support systems include any provisions in place for consumers’ health and wellbeing that enable them to do things they want to do. 

Whether you are working with consumers living in their own homes or those in residential care, each consumer will have goals they want to achieve.  They will also want to be engaged in activities which have meaning and purpose, but may have challenges in their health and abilities which make this more difficult. 

The services and support your organisation provides should enable consumers to work towards their goals and aspirations, and help them to engage in meaningful pursuits. 

domestic help, such as cleaning, laundry, gardening and home maintenance services

food services, including meals, food advice, delivery and preparation

services to encourage and support consumers to take part in social and other activities they are interested in, including community life.

Reviewing your services and support systems

Whether you believe the services your organisation offers are of a high standard, or you think they need improving, you will need to complete a review and ensure they meet the requirements for the new ACQS. 

These are our top tips for aged care providers to use and to generate conversation around the topic. The advice we share is to be implemented at the discretion of those responsible for the quality of aged care provision. Staff wishing to implement changes should do so in consultation with colleagues and line managers:

1. Provide opportunities self-management 

Where possible, allow those you are caring for to take ownership of organising activities and making changes in their home. Of course, there are policies and guidelines everyone has to adhere to, but there is room within these to allow consumers to shape the world around them. 

Perhaps the consumers in your organisation could set up a community association, or organise a fundraiser? If a person in your care is living at home, are there organisations in their community which could help to give them a voice? Of course, this won’t be possible for all individuals, but highlighting the opportunity to those who are able can make a huge difference to their sense of independence.

2. Encourage consumers to remain physically active 

Staying in the best physical shape possible is essential for the individuals in your care and their ongoing level of independence. Although the extent to which an individual is able to move or how far they can travel will vary, encourage them to continue doing what they can.  This might be as simple as walking in the garden, or organising household items. However small, each opportunity for movement will help those in your care to remain as active and engaged as possible. 

3. Tailor your services to the consumers’ needs

When reviewing the support your organisation offers to consumers, the best place to begin is with the information on the care plans.  If the services on offer meet the needs and wishes of consumers as closely as possible, consumers in your care will feel safer and that they are being listened to. This also applies if you have room in the budget to put new services in place.

It is equally important to involve consumers in the review process and ask for their feedback.  Their opinions will be the best indicator as to how the organisation is doing, and it is important to listen to them as you implement change.  Communicating any changes to consumers is also essential, as changes to an environment or routine can be stressful. 

4. Encourage consumers to take part in community life 

In order for consumers to feel as though they are engaged in daily life, it is important that staff members encourage them to take part in their community. Consumers need to be supported to overcome any impairments or conditions they may have which make participating difficult. 

If consumers are in residential care, there should be a range of activities that those with different personalities will enjoy taking part in. Some will enjoy physical activities, some more creative pursuits, and others will enjoy staying up to date with world politics. Provide activities for consumers of all personality types to enjoy their environment. 

Consumers in residential care should also be encouraged to take part in activities in the wider community if possible. Family members or friends might be able to assist with this. In residential care, it is also beneficial to have networks with the community, so that those outside of the organisation can provide services to consumers. For example, a massage therapist might visit consumers in residential care on a weekly basis. 

On reflection, are there any improvements you need to make to the services and supports in your organisation?  For information and support with meeting the requirements for Standard 4, you can find reflective questions on the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission website.  

If you have a Go1 Premium portal, log in to view the Aged Care Learning Solutions video guide to Standard 4. Here, you will also find learning resources related to Standard 4.

For more insights, subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs.

How to review your services in line with the new ACQS - Go1

How to review your services and supports for daily living in line with the new ACQS

Here at Go1, we work to partner with high-quality content providers across various topics so that we can cover all our customers’ training needs. That is why we’re excited to introduce two content partners who are helping us provide training across the professional development, safety, and compliance training spaces.

Sarder Learning offers over 200 courses and more than 450 byte-sized lessons on the world’s best business practices, all available in Go1 Premium. Their content leverages the expertise from Fortune 1000 corporate leaders, Ivy League professors, and best-selling book authors, including:

Peter Senge - author of The Fifth Discipline and MIT professor
 

Henry Paulson - former US Secretary of the Treasury and former CEO of Goldman Sachs
 

Jeanne Beliveau-Dunn - Chief Knowledge Officer at CISCO
 

Tiger Tyagarajan - President and CEO at Genpact
 

ERI Safety Videos is a US-based work health and safety content provider with over 580 courses in Go1 Premium. 

With over 30 years of experience creating employee training products, ERI Safety Videos produces courses that engage and motivate workers while delivering key safety lessons in an efficient manner. Their slogan, “Preventing Injuries Through Employee Training,” reaffirms their commitment to creating safety training products that speak to real workers about the safety issues they need to know about to prevent workplace injuries. They believe that employee safety training products need to accomplish more than just OSHA compliance; they must also be powerful and motivational. 

ERI releases new programs four times a year, ensuring that their training is always fresh and applicable.

At Go1, we work to partner with high-quality content providers so we can cover all our customers’ training needs. That is why we’re excited to introduce two content partners.

Go1 partners with leading professional development, safety, and compliance training

Regardless of company size or industry, remaining compliant with current laws and regulations is imperative. At the same time, it’s essential for employees to stay compliant with internal policies and rules. With both, an organization runs smoothly, safely, and effectively. The best way to protect your business is by adopting the right corporate compliance program, one specific to your type of operation.

Compliance programs cover a wide variety of topics. For instance, implementing machine guards as part of a manufacturing process, using a properly rated fire suppression system in an internet data center, installing a ventilation system in a restaurant, or as in the case of Medicaid, saving a minimum of $5 million a year under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 are all examples. Regardless of the situation, an effective program accomplishes multiple goals, including:

Operating in accordance with current laws and regulations

Meeting high professional and ethical standards

Maintaining a culture of integrity and honesty

Identifying compliance issues early on, followed by taking prompt corrective action

Developing employee and customer confidence and trust

What it comes down to is corporate compliance programs ensure your company and workers follow all applicable laws and regulations mandated by the government, along with ethical practices and standards established in-house. 

By not meeting all compliance guidelines, your company could be at significant risk. Perhaps the most critical concern is it changes the legal status, making your business vulnerable to government audits, hefty fines, lawsuits, and even failure. Following are a few examples of how a non-compliant issue could severely compromise your company.

Not paying your staff minimum wage plus required overtime pay would put you at risk of violating your state’s compliance laws. Once someone reports it, you could expect an audit and possible lawsuit, not to mention losing valued employees and damaging your company’s reputation.

In recent years, the government has come down hard on businesses with unethical and even illegal hiring practices. As an example, you can’t discriminate a job interview or actually bringing someone onboard due to age, race, gender, sexual orientation, and so on. Make sure your HR Director is up-to-date by visiting the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s website.

For multiple businesses like law firms, hair salons, day spas, and automotive repair shops, staying compliant requires them to maintain all necessary business licenses and permits. For instance, a convenience store that sells alcohol must have a current license from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.

One of your greatest responsibilities as a business owner is to provide your employees with a healthy and safe work environment. The great thing about compliance programs is they ensure everything is in order from the floor to the ceiling. Even one accident leading to an injury could prove catastrophic to your company. 

Often, the requirements to remain compliant are complex, which is why becoming educated and having the right leadership team in place is crucial. Thanks to compliance programs, which include training courses offered online through a reputable Management Learning System platform, you have a way to protect both your financial and legal standing.

Compliance programs are a formal solution based on current laws and regulations combined with your company’s policies, procedures, and actions. The ultimate goal is to prevent, detect, and fix issues. This type of program goes well beyond a standard “code-of-conduct” policy by focusing on specific risks within your organization and then addressing them by taking the appropriate measures. 

Even if you have a compliance program in place, it may not offer the maximum level of protection that you need. In fact, the wrong program could be wasting valuable time, money, and resources. Instead of a “hit and miss” system, meaning some things are compliant while others aren’t, you need to implement a comprehensive program. With that, your company leaders can detect all potential problems quickly. 

Whether you need to develop a corporate compliance program for the first time or fine-tune an existing program, it’s essential that you keep it focused and simple. After all, your HR Director, Risk Management team, and corporate trainers need to communicate the details of the program to their staff in a way that’s easy to understand and adhere to. 

From day one of bringing a new employee onboard, your HR Director needs to have information prepared to ensure that person has what he or she needs to follow compliance laws, regulations, and policies. Again, during orientation and training, it is imperative your leaders provide the same information.

As for your current employees, they need the same details. Any time a compliance law, regulation, or policy changes, the respective department’s manager should pass down the information to every employee. If you receive a fine, get audited, or face a lawsuit, ignorance isn’t going to help. Fortunately, there’s an abundance of videos, podcasts, and articles available online that cover a broad range of compliance topics.

Every corporate compliance program worth adopting consists of specific core elements. Knowing what these are will help you develop or refine a program that protects you, your business, and your employees. The benefits of building a successful corporate compliance program far outweigh the risks. 

The program works to develop a work environment based on accountability, starting with the top executive level and moving down. A well-developed program also makes it easier to identify and address issues, document all pertinent information, and evaluate the efforts made.

Have a credible Compliance Manager as part of your team. It’s this person’s responsibility to understand current laws, regulations, and policies, educate employees, detect potential risks, correct issues, and create detailed reporting. Overall, the Compliance Manager protects the company from fines, audits, lawsuits, and failure. This individual will lead the way in building compliance into your company’s operations.

On a periodic basis or as compliance laws, regulations, and policies change, it’s critical to identify both internal and regulatory compliance needs. At the same time, the program scope should properly align with responsibilities across the organization. 

For some people, the only way they will open up about a potential problem is if they feel comfortable going to their direct manager. For that reason, provide your leadership team with training resources that help them improve communication and build relationships with their staff. You want your managers to have an “open door” policy so that employees feel safe to bring up even sensitive topics.

Unless there are distinct and clearly defined objectives, your employees will struggle to achieve the set goals. As part of your strategic planning process, make sure to include a list of well-defined objectives based on both internal and external mandates.

Your HR Director, Compliance Manager, and L&D Manager all play a critical role when it comes to identifying risks and probabilities. As trusted leaders within your organization, they need to develop their knowledge, giving them a keen sense of what to look for, how to report it, and what corrective measures to take. These three positions, in particular, need a clear understanding of their roles in relation to compliance.

Especially if you have a company with more than one location, it’s vital to provide training to ensure the culture matches across the board. In other words, your Compliance Manager might be on top of things at headquarters while at a remote site, non-compliant issues exist. This is a prime example of why education and training are crucial for all employees regardless of position or level of authority.

The last thing you want is to receive notification from a state or federal entity advising your company is being audited due to a possible non-compliant issue. To avoid embarrassment, risk, and fine, develop an internal monitoring system into the corporate compliance program.

You also need a place within the program for keeping your leadership team abreast of results, changes, and other pertinent information. Cross-communication about internal and external matters is of significant importance when it comes to compliance.

Remember, maintaining compliance requires a joint effort by many different people within your organization. However, it starts with the people you put in positions of authority. For the program to work, it must contain the following core elements. Even one oversight, whether intentional or not, could bring your entire company crashing down.

Designated Compliance Manager (and other members of your leadership team)

Quick response using appropriate corrective action for any identified problem

Enforce standards based on clear disciplinary guidelines

 As for the seventh core element, “enforce standards based on clear disciplinary guidelines,” you want your HR Director to work alongside your L&D Manager to create a set of internal policies and procedures. You need to provide this information to all new hires, as well as current employees. Your entire staff must understand the risks of being non-compliant and what their role is in reporting an issue. 

Not only does this give your staff better direction and expectations on what you expect from them, but it also helps them invest more in the company. In other words, understanding how critical their insight is into possible compliance issues will make them feel valued and respected. After all, you depend on them to report anything suspicious. In return, you’ll find your employees more dedicated to achieving the company’s broader goals.

Those three words are the epitome of what an effective corporate compliance program is all about. Prevention covers your written policies and procedures, having a qualified Compliance Manager on staff, and ensuring that everyone within the organization has the proper training and education. 

As for detection, this includes your manager’s “open door” policy for communication. Now, if you have a sizable company, you should consider setting up a toll-free hotline. That way, your employees can report an issue quickly but also anonymously if they choose to do so. Detection is also about internal auditing and reporting.

Then there’s corrective action. Included in this is the investigation process that commences after detecting a potential compliance issue, followed by determining the best remediation and taking action. Your disciplinary policy for failure to report or causing a compliance problem also falls under this category.

Of particular interest are the written policies that you include in your code of conduct or code of ethics policy. For this, you need documentation for two levels. First, your leadership team needs complete details about the program, how it works, and the implementation process. Keep in mind; this goes beyond your HR Director, Compliance Manager, and L&D Manager.

Second, you want information compiled that goes out to every person working within your organization. These details should stress the urgency of staying compliant and what non-compliance could mean for the company and their employment. Again, recirculate information on both levels whenever laws, regulations, or internal policies change.

You also want the right person in the position of Compliance Manager. As a critical player in your company, this individual should have a bachelor’s degree at a minimum, experience, and compliance certification specific to your industry. A lot falls on this role, so having a qualified individual serving as your Compliance Manager is vital.

However, for your compliance program to work, your Compliance Manager can’t carry all the burden. This person needs an excellent support team. For this, consider establishing a committee that meets anywhere from two to four times a year. Along with other leaders in your organization, you can include outside experts.

During compliance committee meetings, the group would discuss trends, new and amended laws, regulations, and policies, reporting, grievance monitoring, additional employee training requirements, and any other topics of interest or concern.

According to LW Consulting, Inc., when it comes to leadership, “A successful compliance program is fully endorsed by senior management. In addition to support and endorsement by senior management, a company’s board of directors should also be involved in the process.” It went on to say, “When senior officers take compliance seriously, employees are more likely to follow suit.” Talk about spot on.

Allow us to help with your compliance program

For a broad range of compliance topics, as well as those covering leadership responsibilities such as communication, motivation, building morale, and more, we have a vast library of professionally created training courses available. Especially in today’s world, you can’t afford to have any non-compliance issue. Start developing or refining your program today for optimum protection.

How to establish or refine corporate compliance programs

Compliance is the one thing a lot of companies fear yet the same thing enhances overall safety in the work environment. For you to keep your company in line with current laws and regulations, it’s imperative that you provide your staff with compliance training. As a result, they’ll have the ability to spot potential problems and know the correct way to handle them.

Before going into the specifics about the value of training, you should understand the consequences of non-compliancy. For whatever reason, some companies do not take compliance seriously, that is until they get caught. Then, they realize just how impactful their mistake was. While some of these companies recover, others don’t, meaning they actually fold.

One key factor to keep in mind is non-compliance is not only damaging to your business, but it’s against the law. Another critical thing to remember is because compliance laws and regulations change, it’s vital that you stay on top of current requirements. In other words, your business might have been compliant in 2016, but now in 2019, it’s not. Thanks to training, there’s no excuse to fall behind and end up paying the costly consequences.

Following are just a few examples of areas where your company might not be compliant.

Especially with discrimination, your HR Director and other leaders who hire need to understand the rules to follow. As a prime example, there are acceptable and unacceptable questions to ask job candidates. This becomes somewhat tricky considering potential employees need to meet a minimum age requirement, possess specific skills, have the ability to perform certain tasks, and so on.

The person hiring needs to gather critical information without breaking the law. By posing the wrong questions, there’s an excellent chance of someone filing a lawsuit against your organization. Again, thanks to compliance training for 2019, the members of your staff have all the needed guidelines to hire the right people while staying compliant.

Another potential problem area has to do with paying your employees the correct amount for the work performed. If you have workers who put in approved overtime yet you fail to pay them, you become non-compliant. Not only does that put your company at risk for a lawsuit but the state could also penalize you.

Along with paying your employees the correct amount of wages, you must pay them on time. Whatever schedule you set up for your business, you need to follow. If you have a payroll schedule for the 1st and 15th of the month, you can’t hand out paychecks on the 5th and 20th. For this, you need to provide your HR Director and Payroll Manager with the appropriate training.

Depending on your type of business, you must maintain specific licenses. As an example, a convenience store owner needs licenses to sell alcohol, tobacco products, and lottery tickets, along with the standard business and health licensing. The fact is without obtaining and posting your licensed credentials, you could have your operation shut down.

Without question, workplace safety is one of the most significant areas where companies fail to stay compliant. For every industry, there are set safety standards. By failing to meet them, especially if a worker sustains an injury, you could end up paying out tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation, perhaps even more.

 When it comes to workplace safety, there are multiple things to consider, including machinery, processes, technologies, and so on. For the sake of compliance, you need a skilled Compliance Manager onboard – someone who knows the current laws and regulations and enforces them. 

Just a few of this person’s responsibilities include assessing all security measures, identifying potential threats and risks, and determining the likelihood of an accident. Your Compliance Manager plays a vital role within your organization, ensuring the safety and security of all personnel.

This too is another significant area to focus on considering the high number of breaches, identity theft, and even holding companies for ransom. You need a leader who has both experience and training to protect the integrity of your entire IT system. Failing to stay compliant could cost you in several ways. 

For one thing, you could face a civil penalty, which typically covers cases of wrongful neglect. There’s also the risk of a criminal penalty if someone discloses proprietary information, whether intentionally or unintentionally. If your business is healthcare, HIPPA could also hit you with a substantial fine. 

Failing to meet even one compliance law or regulation could have substantial consequences. Along with putting your employees at risk, whether an accident or by sharing personal information, this could permanently damage your company’s reputation. After all, customers want to do business with an organization of high integrity and honesty.

As stated in a Forbes publication, “A professional compliance officer understands the various nuances that can ultimately protect your company from problems and save your company’s bottom line and reputation.” This is why having an experienced and knowledgeable Compliance Manager on your staff is critical.

Compliance laws and regulations affect companies of all sizes and industries. Regardless of the type of business you have, it’s imperative that you provide not only people of authority but also all your employees with the necessary compliance training for 2019.

With compliance, you have a bona fide method for protecting your company, employees, and even your customers. Although there are multiple players when it comes to regulatory compliance, three, in particular, stand out.

 As the acronym for the “Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act” established in 1996, this affects any business that deals with personal health records or health information, including doctor’s offices, clinics, hospitals, laboratories, pharmacies, psychology firms, nursing and assisted living homes, and dentists.

HIPPA protects a patient’s personal and medical information. Only after giving authorization can a healthcare professional or facility release these details. 

SOX, which stands for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, is a federal law that protects businesses from accounting and corporate scandals. According to this compliance law, organizations must handle things in a specific way such as financial reporting, auditing, and corporate governance.

 PCI, or the “Payment Card Industry,” protects credit card information. All the major players, including MasterCard, Visa, Discover, and American Express, must follow the data security standards as part of this Act in an effort to reduce credit card theft and fraud.

As you can see, compliance stretches across all areas of an organization, from safety to patient information to credit card processing, and more. If your company doesn’t follow these and other compliance laws and regulations, you can anticipate a severe punishment that ranges from a financial penalty to actual jail time. Just one example, failing to stay compliant with SOX could result in a $10 million fine or more, as well as up to 30 years in jail. 

Instead of putting your company, employees, and customers at risk, take advantage of a vast library of online training courses. Updated to correspond with current laws and regulations, this provides an excellent opportunity to stay compliant throughout your organization.

With so many resources at your disposal, there’s no reason for your company to have any non-compliant issues. Especially as the digital footprint becomes more prominent in companies of all types and sizes, it’s essential that you gain insight into current compliance training trends.

For starters, a lot of employees prefer to take control of their learning. With advanced yet easy-to-use technology, you can offer your staff members a host of training opportunities, for both business and personal growth. Your L&D Manager would take the lead, but with overwhelming demand, an online course streamlines compliance training. 