What is employee risk management?

Employee risk management's importance 

Since it equips a company with the tools it needs to effectively assess and control possible threats, employee risk management is a crucial activity. When a danger is recognized, it is simple to minimize it. Additionally, risk management gives a corporation a foundation on which to make wise decisions. 

The greatest strategy to lessen the potential harm risks might do to your company is to build risk management procedures into the design of your enterprise, one of the best ways is to incorporate the culture of compliance. 

What does the culture of compliance mean? 

When compliance is a fundamental and unchangeable component of the corporate culture, a corporation is said to have a compliance culture.

However, this process takes time. Ethics must be present at every level of the organization for there to be a strong culture of compliance. 

Compliance is a fair frame by which to examine the organizational culture, much as the idea of risk culture. It is the effect of people within the organization's common beliefs, norms, attitudes, and behaviours on the compliance process. Acknowledging the compliance culture entails realizing how culture affects the entire compliance procedure. 

Why is a compliance culture an integral part of every business? 

Corporate compliance is a crucial component to keep your company running. Everyone is aware that engaging in unethical business practices will ultimately have negative effects.

Compliance, however, goes beyond simply adhering to industry laws - it also involves fostering an atmosphere in which professionals want to work.

According to research done by Gallup it is clear that an engaged staff is 21% more productive. 

Regulators are paying more attention to these initiatives, so executives must establish and nurture a culture that actively encourages compliance.

In order to detect and deter criminal activity, companies must build their compliance processes in accordance with the framework provided by federal sentencing guidelines. 

Culture on compliance statistics 

• 86% of the businesses questioned concurred that cutting-edge digital technology had aided in the detection of financial wrongdoing. 
• Programs for risk and compliance are developing. According to Navex Global, the proportion of "mature and advanced" risk and compliance programs increased by 29%, while the proportion of "reactive and basic" programs decreased by 35%. 
• 80% claim that having a business continuity strategy in place helps them deal with the effects of the epidemic. 

The price of not complying 

• A single non-compliance event costs an organization $4 million in sales on average. 
• 50% of firms reported devoting 6–10% of their revenue to compliance expenditures. 
• $213.9 billion is the estimated global average cost of financial crime compliance across all financial institutions. 

How can a compliance culture be created? 

Having a culture of compliance means that all workers, from the top to the bottom, of a company, are aware of their responsibility for compliance and take it seriously. 

Train employees

Companies should spend money on staff education that clarifies company rules and what conduct is forbidden. The development and upkeep of an ethical culture need ongoing work. All directors, officers, pertinent employees, agents, and business partners should, at the very least, get training sessions on the policies, practices, and regulations that have an impact on ethical decision-making.

Along with routine policy reviews and personnel evaluations, training should be continuous. Although investing in a successful compliance program is costly, it is preferable to the many expenses of noncompliance. 

Start with leadership

A culture of compliance must be established from the top. In deciding compliance strategy and best practices, the board is crucial in making sure that remuneration reflects actions consistent with business values. Besides, leadership behaviour is a role model for employee.

To guarantee an organization is successfully managing its legal and regulatory duties, leadership should be personally involved in and coordinate the progress of the compliance program. 

Effective communication

Effective communication is the determining factor. Preferable type of communication varies depending on the department or just a particular person. Email may be preferred by some people while phone call may be preferred by others.

For maximum effectiveness, the mechanism of message transmission must be defined individually rather than centrally.  

Code of conduct

The firm's code of conduct should always be taught to new hires as their first lesson. Employees have to be aware of what is expected of them in your business, including how they are to act and what to do if they observe non-compliance.

Ascertain that the code of conduct for your business clearly outlines the moral and legal requirements for the position. 

Involve employees right away

From the beginning, the emphasis should be on ethics, morality, culture, and corporate values. Hiring managers should expect new hires to comprehend the significance of employee risk management, and employees should realize from the beginning that commitment is essential to their work.

This will lay a solid basis for workers to understand what is expected of them. Inform the stakeholders of the organization's requirements for compliance in a clear and timely manner, as well as to your staff. 

Rules and procedures are easily accessible

Making them available will guarantee that everyone in your organization understands the rules and has them in writing to refer to. Having them located in a central location and making sure they are regularly discussed through internal channels, can guarantee that established policies are always available and clear. 

Assess, evaluate, and adjust. Put the appropriate controls in place to get the data you need to identify the areas where things are starting to deteriorate and to gain some understanding of why. 

Compliance culture conclusion  

Building a compliance culture provides advantages for businesses that go well beyond just making it simpler to avoid breaking the rules, laws, and regulations that businesses and their workers are subject to.

There is virtually no good reason for businesses not to begin fostering a culture of compliance right away, given the benefits to reputation and the beneficial ripple effects that promoting ethical and compliant behaviour may have on other facets of a firm's culture.