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3 Biggest Corporate Compliance Mistakes in Chicago, Illinois

By: Ted Banks

It seems that more organizations are finally opening their eyes to the risks and perils of corporate compliance issues. More and more companies are understanding the value that corporate compliance programs add to their organization. A well-oiled compliance program will protect your revenues, drastically reduce your liability, and promote ethical decision making. After all, you work incredibly hard to grow your business. Why should one mistake or one unethical employee negate all the blood, sweat, and tears you have poured into your business? Chicago has a dire need for flawless compliance programs and you need to avoid these three mistakes to increase your business’s chance of succeeding.

Lacking Adequate Controls: Trust Will Only Take You So Far

Though we like to think that we can trust our coworkers, bosses, and subordinates, trust alone will not help mitigate compliance risks. Even if you have the best HR department in the country and hire the best employees that money can buy, there will always be individuals who are tempted to lie, cheat, and steal for personal gain.

While trust is a key element to fostering a pleasant work environment, you still need to cover your bases to protect against the unknown. All it takes is one unethical employee to take advantage of the system to raze your business to the ground. Without adequate controls and procedures that protect against mistakes, errors, and unethical behavior, you leave yourself wide open to Chicago compliance liabilities.

Non-centralized Compliance Control

No matter how large or small your business is in Chicago, compliance affects everyone. However, it is a mistake to spread out your compliance activities and management to each component and level of your organization. This may lead to differences in policies and procedures among different departments and operations teams that limit the effectiveness of your corporate compliance program. Instead, your compliance program needs to be centrally managed and coordinated to ensure efficiency, standard processes and procedures, and internal communication.

Failing to Identify and Respond to All Threats

Failing to do your due diligence by identifying all potential risks and threats to your business can wreak havoc on your organization. Inadequate risk assessment will lead to an ineffective compliance program that is ill suited at protecting your resources and guarding you from the ravages of the law. All it takes is one failure to comply with the government or regulatory agencies to find yourself in a world of hurt.

This is why risk assessment is such a big deal. It is the foundation of your compliance program and a weak foundation will leave you vulnerable to a whole host of threats. Due to the sheer number of businesses and people in the Chicago area, there is an increased need for rock solid compliance programs. One stray employee could cost your business thousands up thousands of dollars in penalties. We advise you to do your due diligence and identify all of the threats to your business by seeking our expert counsel.

If you have any questions or concerns about your corporate compliance program contact us today for a free consultation.