Compliance officers drowning in complexity: Three tips to reduce the workload

Compliance officers often find themselvest in a vast open sea, where clear markers are few and far between. Rapid developments – in both technology and legislation – mean that many organisations have had to tailor their own compliance processes and manage them in homemade solutions and complex systems.

This has created a significant workload for many compliance officers. The feeling of powerlessness over both technology and regulatory requirements is evident – and many feel they are losing control over their organisation's collection and use of data as well as IT security.

‍The curse of flexibility

A major challenge with many GRC systems on the market today is that they come unconfigured. There are no built-in best practices in the platform, so all processes need to be built from the ground up.

In theory, this means unlimited flexibility. However, the reality is that both the implementation and operation of the GRC platform become far more demanding and complex than they should be. It's like navigating by sun, moon, and stars on the open sea – instead of using a GPS.

The consequence of this complexity is that the platform fails to help structure and connect critical compliance tasks in an easy and intuitive way. Once the system is operational, the vital knowledge about the setup of the platform often lies at the individual level. Even minor adjustments require months of help from consultants.

All this ends up creating uncertainty. What was meant to be a shortcut to simplicity and overview becomes the opposite. A system monster, where the compliance officer feels anything but secure in the processes.

That was the bad news, here comes the good.

There are, in fact, several ways for you to create clarity around your governance, risk, and compliance and reduce your workload. Here are three effective solutions to help you reduce complexity:

‍Implement best practices

Data protection and information security compliance are difficult and overwhelming enough on their own. Therefore, there is a need for best practice processes and mechanisms to ensure that the work is done in the right way. As easily as possible.

Previously, each organisation had to define and set up processes and workflows. With mixed success. In the early days of GDPR, when there was not much shared experience, it was necessary for each organisation to give their own interpretation of the rules. But today, many processes are standardised and should be considered "best practice".

Today, there are fixed recipes for the most optimal compliance processes. By implementing a GRC platform with built-in best practice in everything from vendor management to risk assessments, you can achieve better control and reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed by tasks.

‍Create a yearly cycle of tasks

Task management is a crucial tool for allocating resources and planning work. A structured overview of the year can help transform isolated compliance projects into a cohesive plan which ensures a balanced distribution of the workload throughout the year.

Instead of being overwhelmed by the annual review of risk assessments or caught in an intense period of vendor management, a well-structured task management creates an opportunity to spread tasks and ensure they fall at times when resources are available.

You can read more about how to manage tasks better here.

‍Bridge the knowledge gap

For decades, organisations have worked to promote cross-departmental collaboration and avoid silo thinking. This can be easy enough with smaller organisations but very challenging in large ones with hundreds or thousands of employees. Therefore, the knowledge gap between the compliance function and the rest of the business is often vast.

The first steps towards bridging the knowledge gap can be taken by implementing a task management module with workflows and tasks that provide you with concrete, usable answers from other departments in the organisation. When all departments are connected through a user-friendly digital platform, information can flow freely to the compliance department. And as a compliance officer, you significantly reduce your workload. Maybe it even becomes more enjoyable to go to work?

‍Take back control

With these solutions, you cannot only reduce your workload but also strengthen your organisation's compliance structure. Remember, in a time when compliance systems need to be robust, it's important to be proactive and ensure structure and overview.

Because overview equals peace of mind.

As a compliance officer, you are part of the solution. By taking proactive steps to make things simpler and more intuitive, you also take back control. You don't drown in the stormy sea of complexity – you thrive in it.

At Wired Relations, we want to strengthen your compliance processes and eliminate manual work. But we have even more for you to see.

Read our e-book and learn more about the GRC solution of the future.