Regulatory compliance is not optional – and no matter what business you’re in, you likely have regulations to follow. Financial services enterprises must typically follow the same regulations as banks. The right regulatory compliance software can keep your organization from incurring massive fines and other repercussions of a regulatory failure.
But there are so many regulatory compliance tools available – how do you choose the right one for your organization? You need to keep your necessary specifications in mind, make sure the software has the reporting features you need, and consider your organization’s need for data security. Make sure the software solution you choose is easy for your employees to master, and scalable for when the business’s needs change.
Consider Your Specification Needs
Regulatory compliance software is not one-size-fits-all. Different solutions are intended the support different industries. There will be regulatory compliance software for healthcare, IT, and food service, just as there will be regulatory compliance software for financial services organizations. Look at solutions that are tailored to the right industry. Know what regulations you need to follow and what the challenges of regulatory compliance will be so that you can find the right compliance tool for your enterprise.
Look for the Right Reporting Features
You absolutely don’t want people generating regulatory reports manually. Doing things the old-fashioned way introduces more room for human error and takes a lot longer, too. You need reporting solutions that automate the process and reduce the potential for error. Document control and reporting are at the heart of an effective regulatory compliance program.
Choose Data Security
In the first half of 2022 alone, 53 million Americans were affected by data breaches, leakage, or exposure. Eight hundred seventeen data breaches occurred around the country in the same period. You need to take data security seriously, to protect the sensitive information your organization is privy to as a financial services enterprise.
A significant data breach could easily bring down your entire enterprise. Often, the expense of recovering from a data breach, plus the loss of your customer’s trust, is enough to cause an enterprise to have to close its doors permanently. Any regulatory compliance software you choose should follow data security best practices, including encrypting data and keeping data private. Skip any software application that shares data with a third party.
Delegation features are also an important part of how regulatory compliance software can help you protect information. Group delegation allows you to restrict access to specific tasks to just those people who need to see the documents and data in question. Organizational unit (OU) delegation lets you assign administrative rights or other access on the individual level, so you can have absolute, granular control over who has what rights and access within your organization.
Prioritize Ease of Use
No regulatory compliance software is going to be effective if no one wants to use it. It should be easy to set up an account and create a password. Ideally, you’ll want something that lets you create user profiles in large batches, so you can get everyone into the system quickly. It should be just as easy to get rid of inactive accounts or to kick someone out of the system on short notice because you don’t need old accounts hanging around after someone has been fired or quit.
You need a compliance management system that is intuitive so that your employees can easily understand how to use it. The more usable your compliance management software is, the more productive your team members will be, and the happier everyone will be at work. Some tools are as easy to use as social media and will encourage team members to keep up with their compliance responsibilities.
Scalability Is Key
Whenever you’re considering a software solution, you should take into account whether it’s able to grow with the needs of the company. As your enterprise evolves, you may need more and different functions from your technology. This is particularly important in the financial services realm, where regulatory requirements change frequently. You don’t want to have to source a new software solution every time regulations change or your company achieves some growth.
Choosing regulatory compliance software isn’t always easy. You need to make sure the software tool you choose can meet your reporting needs and isn’t too difficult for your employees to use. When you choose the right regulatory compliance software, you can worry more about serving your customers, and less about adhering to regulatory requirements.