Tag: Gap Analysis

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31 Days to More Effective Compliance Programs

One Month to a More Effective Compliance Program: Day 20 – Gap Analysis for HR

Join Tom Fox in this episode of the 31 Days to a More Effective Compliance Program podcast to delve deeper into the significant role of HR in implementing compliance programs. Hopefully you now understand that many of the traditional functions of Human Resources (HR) can be seen as compliance internal controls. At every touchpoint in the lifecycle of the employment relationship there is a HR touchpoint. Fulfilling those touchpoints can be controls for compliance. If you think of multiple HR functions as compliance internal controls, one of the questions becomes how can you determine if HR is meeting the standards of a best practices compliance program? One place to start is with a gap analysis to determine what HR has in place that can facilitate your company’s compliance program.

The role of HR in implementing compliance programs is a critical aspect of maintaining best practices within an organization. Traditional HR functions can serve as compliance internal controls, and that every touch point in the employment relationship can serve as a control for compliance. Fox’s insights are derived from his extensive experience and deep understanding of the compliance and HR environment. He emphasizes the importance of conducting a comprehensive gap analysis and fostering collaboration between HR and business units to enhance the compliance program.

Finally, work with HR to create a consolidated Human Resources Compliance Audit Checklist that can be used to audit (and document) the company’s HR Compliance Program. The key to compliance, in my opinion, is having the proper structure to identify the issues, implement policies and procedures to address the issues, audit for compliance and “Document, Document, and Document”.

 Three key takeaways:

  1. A gap analysis is a key component in the risk assessment process.
  2. The ultimate responsibility should lie with the business units and functional discipline to fully operationalize compliance.
  3. The role of the compliance department is to oversee, provide subject matter expertise and coordinate.

 

For more information, check out The Compliance Handbook, 4th edition, here.

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Blog

Day 21 of One Month to Better Compliance Through HR-Human Resources Gap Analysis for Compliance Issues

  • Does the HR department have an inventory of policies, procedures, laws, and regulations covering employees and employment-related matters applicable to the company’s business?
  • If yes, do you have a specified person in charge of updating the inventory?
  • If not, what system does the HR department utilize to ensure that it is aware of the various compliance laws and regulations and has a process to comply with them?
  • What evidence would the HR department be able to produce to the government to support a finding that the company has a solid compliance program for applicable labor and employment laws and regulations?
  • What types of compliance training are mandatory for all employees, which are optional, and how do HR track and document completion? How is the training performed? Is it provided in the native language of the employee or only in English?
  • What enforcement actions predominate in the compliance arena for your industry or where your organization does business? How is such data tracked in your company?
  • Are employees within the HR department specifically trained to understand compliance requirements applicable to your organization?
  • Does the HR department provide senior management with periodic updates on monitoring results, key risks, and compliance violations within HR?
  • Has the HR department established escalation criteria to ensure that high-risk compliance issues are reviewed at the corporate level?
  • Does the HR department have compliance monitoring standards in place?
  • Does the HR department perform periodic audits to ensure that the policies and procedures are complied with?

These are only a few of the questions that you may want to ask to begin the process of assessing how compliance and the role of HR apply to your company. My final suggestion is to work with HR to create a consolidated Human Resources Compliance Audit Checklist that can be used to audit (and document) the company’s HR Compliance Program. The key to compliance, in my opinion, is having the proper structure to identify the issues, implement policies and procedures to address the issues, audit for compliance, and document, document, and document.

Three Key Takeaways

  1. A gap analysis is a key component in the risk assessment process.
  2. The ultimate responsibility should lie with the business units and functional discipline to fully operationalize compliance.
  3. The role of the compliance department is to oversee, provide subject matter expertise, and coordinate.

This month’s series is sponsored by Advanced Compliance Solutions and its new service offering, the “Compliance Alliance,” which is a three-step program that will provide you and your team a background into compliance and the FCPA so you can consider how your product or service fits into the needs of a compliance officer. It includes an FCPA and compliance boot camp, a one-month podcast series sponsorship, and in-person training. Each section builds on the other and provides your customer service and sales teams with the knowledge they need to have intelligent conversations with compliance officers and decision-makers. When the program is complete, your teams will be armed with the knowledge they need to sell and service every new client. Interested parties should contact Tom Fox.

Categories
31 Days to More Effective Compliance Programs

Gap Analysis


A gap analysis is a method of assessing the differences in performance between a business’ internal controls to determine whether business requirements are being met and, if not, what steps should be taken to ensure they are met successfully. Moreover, it is a determination of the degree of conformance of your organization to the requirements of an internal controls standard. A gap analysis is mainly a document review or a “show me the evidence” type activity, evidence which usually will come in the form of a record or document. During a gap analysis, there is some auditing accomplished, through key stakeholders providing the evidence they may have – or not – for each of the requirements set forth in the relevant internal controls standard. In this episode, I am joined by AMI’s Eric Feldman to explore this topic.
3 Key Takeaways

  1. Now is the time for a gap analysis.
  2. Add a Fraud Risk Assessment to your gap analysis.
  3. Culture is a foundational internal control.
Categories
31 Days to More Effective Compliance Programs

Compliance Gap Analysis for HR


Hopefully you now understand that many of the traditional functions of HR can be seen as compliance internal controls. At every touchpoint in the lifecycle of the employment relationship there is a HR touchpoint. Fulfilling those touchpoints can be controls for compliance. If you think of multiple HR functions as compliance internal controls, one of the questions becomes how can you determine if HR is meeting the standards of a best practices compliance program? One place to start is with a gap analysis to determine what HR has in place that can facilitate your company’s compliance program.
Finally,  work with HR to create a consolidated Human Resources Compliance Audit Checklist that can be used to audit (and document) the company’s HR Compliance Program. The key to compliance, in my opinion, is having the proper structure to identify the issues, implement policies and procedures to address the issues, audit for compliance and “Document, Document, and Document”.
 Three key takeaways:

  1. A gap analysis is a key component in the risk assessment process.
  2. The ultimate responsibility should lie with the business units and functional discipline to fully operationalize compliance.
  3. The role of the compliance department is to oversee, provide subject matter expertise and coordinate.

 

Categories
Blog

Day 21 of One Month to Better Compliance Through HR-Human Resources Gap Analysis for Compliance Issues

  • Does the HR department have an inventory of policies, procedures, laws and regulations covering employees and employment-related matters applicable to the company’s business?
  • If yes, do you have a specified person who is in charge of updating the inventory?
  • If no, what system does the HR department utilize to ensure that it is aware of the various compliance laws and regulations and has a process to comply with them?
  • What evidence would the HR department be able to produce to the government to support a finding that the company has a solid compliance program for applicable labor and employment laws and regulations?
  • What types of compliance training are mandatory for all employees, which are optional and how does HR track and document completion? How is the training performed? Is it provided in the native language of the employee or only in English?
  • What types of enforcement actions predominate in the compliance arena for your industry or where your organization does business? How is such data tracked in your company?
  • Are employees within the HR department specifically trained to understand compliance requirements applicable to your organization?
  • Does the HR department provide senior management with periodic updates on the monitoring of results, key risks, and compliance violations within HR?
  • Has the HR department established some type of escalation criteria to ensure that high-risk compliance issues are reviewed at the corporate level?
  • Does the HR department have compliance monitoring standards in place?
  • Does the HR department perform periodic audits to ensure that the policies and procedures are being complied with?

These are only a few of the questions that you may want to ask to begin the process of assessing how compliance and the role of HR apply to your company. My final suggestion is to work with HR to create a consolidated Human Resources Compliance Audit Checklist that can be used to audit (and document) the company’s HR Compliance Program. The key to compliance, in my opinion, is having the proper structure to identify the issues, implement policies and procedures to address the issues, audit for compliance and document, document, and document. Three Key Takeaways

  1. A gap analysis is a key component in the risk assessment process.
  2. The ultimate responsibility should lie with the business units and functional discipline to fully operationalize compliance.
  3. The role of the compliance department is to oversee, provide subject matter expertise and coordinate.

[tweet_box design=”default” url=”http://wp.me/p6DnMo-3iM” float=”none”] How a gap analysis can help you to operationalize your compliance program. [/tweet_box] This month’s series is sponsored by Advanced Compliance Solutions and its new service offering the “Compliance Alliance” which is a three-step program that will provide you and your team a background into compliance and the FCPA so you can consider how your product or service fits into the needs of a compliance officer. It includes a FCPA and compliance boot camp, sponsorship of a one-month podcast series, and in-person training. Each section builds on the other and provides your customer service and sales teams with the knowledge they need to have intelligent conversations with compliance officers and decision makers. When the program is complete, your teams will be armed with the knowledge they need to sell and service every new client. Interested parties should contact Tom Fox.  ]]>