Compliance management
No company wants to be perceived by the public as serving only its own purposes and completely disregarding the welfare of society.
This raises the question of what legal requirements actually exist and how they can be complied with.
A compliance management system can clarify this question.
Compliance refers to the legally compliant, ethically and morally irreproachable conduct of a company and all its employees with regard to compliance with legal, industry-standard and company-specific rules and prohibitions.
As a legal entity, a company must also comply with laws as prescribed in the Administrative Offences Act (OWiG) in order to avoid fines, sanctions, claims for damages and imprisonment. Damage to reputation and the loss of trust can be just as real consequences.
Objective:
Compliance should identify potential offences in a targeted manner and ensure that they are prevented so that an appropriate response can be made. This reduces the economic consequences and, in the event of intentional misconduct, may reduce liability at management level.
Proactive, transparent communication of the company’s own value objectives in areas such as environmental protection can also enhance credibility.
Implementation:
Implementation is carried out via a customised compliance management system (CMS) that communicates clear compliance objectives. This is based on the pillars of prevention, early detection and response.
To this end, it is essential to form a compliance team. Representatives from all relevant risk areas should be included in this team. It is also conceivable to use external experts such as lawyers or management consultants. A compliance officer is also such an expert who supports and advises companies in the implementation of CMS.
This team serves to determine the current status within the company in order to define a target status. Which rules are already being followed and where is there still a need for action?
Once this has been clarified, implementation follows through employee training and incorporation into employment contracts. Clearly defined measures for violations or sanctions must be specified here.
Proof of compliance:
The international standard ISO 19600 – Guidance on compliance management systems – supported by over 160 countries, sets out international framework conditions and requirements for compliance management systems. It enables the certification of a compliance management system via a risk assessment in order to confirm its regulatory compliance.
If you have any questions about the process of implementing a compliance management system, please feel free to contact us at any time via the contact form.