A new update from the FCA reminds firms that remote and hybrid working practices are still subject to risk.

The Financial Services industry encompasses a variety of businesses, and so too do these companies employ a variety of working practices. Many companies shifted from office to work-from-home based approaches as a pandemic protection measure. This has led many companies to realise that, outside of a crisis, there can be many benefits to allowing employees to continue to work partly or entirely remotely.

However, while many companies are embracing the new ‘work-anywhere’ age, a disparate workforce may have an impact on your firm’s compliance abilities. This has been underscored by a recent update from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which has made headlines for stating that its power to make visits to locations of work or business includes residential addresses.

As regulated firms and the regulator itself have a duty to protect consumers, competition, and market integrity, and to prevent financial crime, the FCA reminds firms that: “any form of remote or hybrid working adopted should not risk or compromise the firm’s ability to follow all rules, regulatory standards and obligations, or lead to a failure to meet them.” Not only do Compliance Officers have the challenge of managing regular compliance control functions and internal audits—and perhaps even fellow compliance staff—across multiple environments, but they must also ensure that the conducting of regulated activities across multiple environments does not create additional risks.

So how can compliance officers achieve this?

Practically speaking, the rise of regtech usage to manage compliance and execute work can also help ensure that compliance is maintained across remote and hybrid work environments. For example, using one centralised digital platform to conduct activities such as managing enterprise risk or regular compliance monitoring ensures that compliance can be maintained regardless of where employees are working from. Additionally, software which provides a secure digital location for activities such as remote attestations or document-sharing can assist with both remote oversight and workflow management and with providing clear audit trails for the regulator.

The regulator is also looking for compliance with the SM&CR scheme. Having an appointed Senior Manager with oversight over compliance activities, wherever they are conducted, helps with improving culture, governance, and accountability within your firm. Senior Managers in financial services firms—and indeed managers of various kinds in industries where staff can work remotely—often benefit from using dedicated digital tools to help maintain oversight and assign tasks.

Being a Compliance Officer or Senior Manager in the current ‘new normal’ of work is not without its challenges, from keeping up with industry developments and regulatory expectations to overseeing an ever-evolving workforce. Taking advantage of the security and connection offered by regtech and compliance management platforms is a simple yet highly effective step that can help firms stay on top of their many risk and compliance demands.

Find out more about how the ComplyPortal platform can help remote-and hybrid-working Compliance professionals at: https://complyportal.uk/modules

About ComplyPortal:

First developed in 2011 by compliance professionals for compliance officers, ComplyPortal offers workflow, automation, and several modules to help firms with control and regulatory compliance monitoring.

ComplyPortal simplifies financial services regulatory compliance management on an easy-to-use cloud-based comprehensive compliance platform. It enables compliance officers, risk officers and senior management to keep track of their firm’s regulatory responsibilities and workflows. Our platform includes the following modules, among others:

• Monitoring: a year-round schedule pre-populated with monitoring questionnaires to ease compliance processes.
• Registers: lists controlled by the Compliance officer, but easy for staff to view.
• Risk: map and control risk areas to effectively identify and manage risk for your firm.
• eKYC solution: perform comprehensive searches, including client identity verification, document authenticity, and more for a comprehensive KYC and AML approach

CLICK HERE TO GET STARTED!

Find out more about how our Monitoring module can make your compliance management much easier

Compliance monitoring is necessary, but does it have to be done manually? Here at ComplyPortal, we don’t think so. We know that digitising compliance helps to remove elements of human error while ensuring that your important – but potentially repetitive and time-consuming – compliance tasks are completed. This frees compliance officers and teams to use their all-important human skills and expertise to tackle more complex compliance tasks.

Read on to find out how our Monitoring module can help you.

Who is it for: regulated firms monitoring Governance, Risk, and Compliance

Key features:

• Monitoring questionnaires for the whole year
• Records of completed monitoring activities
• Reminders of monitoring tasks that are due or upcoming
• Full reporting and audit trail
• Assignable tasks to group or individuals
• Configurable to meet firms bespoke requirements

How it benefits you:

All your past, present, and future compliance monitoring activities can be housed in one place using our Monitoring module – making it much easier to keep track of and manage compliance tasks. ComplyPortal makes life easier for those using the system. You can even monitor compliance remotely from your home office, supporting work from home needs and keeping entire team on the same page. ComplyPortal can be used to stay on track on mobile and tablet devices as well as PCs.

Find out more about our Monitoring module and the rest of the ComplyPortal platform at: https://complyportal.uk/modules

About ComplyPortal – Compliance software since 2011:

First developed in 2011 by compliance professionals for compliance officers, ComplyPortal offers workflow, automation, and several modules to help firms with control and regulatory compliance monitoring.

ComplyPortal simplifies financial services regulatory compliance management on an easy-to-use cloud-based comprehensive compliance platform. It enables compliance officers, risk officers and senior management to keep track of their firm’s regulatory responsibilities and workflows. Our platform includes the following modules, among others:

• Monitoring: a year-round schedule pre-populated with monitoring questionnaires to ease compliance processes.
• Registers: lists controlled by the Compliance officer, but easy for staff to view.
• Risk: map and control risk areas to effectively identify and manage risk for your firm.
• eKYC system: perform comprehensive searches, including client identity verification, document authenticity, and more for a comprehensive KYC and AML approach

Technology may help with optimising work, but compliance professionals are just as important as ever

It is no secret that ‘going digital’ has been the trajectory for financial services for some time – even before the Covid-19 pandemic sped up the digitalisation process. The fourth industrial revolution has seen many industries turn to technology to gain efficiencies and seek greater digital transformations in their business – whether that be software that can carry out tasks once completed by humans, or digital methods of managing work. At ComplyPortal we know just how useful regtech and other compliance management software can be, but we believe technology is becoming more and more necessary to help compliance professionals do their day-to-day jobs.

The Appeal of Compliance Technology

Regulatory and compliance management technologies have been developed to provide solutions for compliance professionals. Regtech specifically exists to provide digital ways of fulfilling compliance obligations – for example, improved record-keeping to demonstrate compliance to the regulator, or detailed analysis and monitoring to minimise enterprise-wide risk. Compliance management technology supports organisations by offering more efficient methods of task management or better access to important documents. What’s more, with many staff still working from home, or combining remote and office-based work, the ability to manage workflows and access data remotely continues to be a key benefit of compliance technology.

The Limitations of Software

While technology provides efficiency and ease, it cannot replace particular human skills. For example, consulting with colleagues or external clients requires skills in interpersonal engagement, communication, and complex problem-solving. People management, compliance education, and creating a culture of compliance within an organisation are all tasks which also require a human touch, although they may be supported by the use of technology.

Modern Compliance – The Hybrid Approach

The responsibilities and challenges of modern compliance demand a modern solution: combining the human and the digital. Compliance professionals juggle multiple responsibilities but dividing these into tasks that must be done manually and tasks that can be done digitally optimises the compliance process and culture in an organisation. Digitalising tasks or using regtech to fulfil compliance responsibilities can lead to being better able to demonstrate compliance to senior staff and the regulator and increase productivity by giving compliance teams more free time for tasks that require a particularly human touch.

How ComplyPortal Can Help

Visit https://complyportal.uk/modules/ to find out more about our straightforward, comprehensive compliance technology solutions. You can also book a software demo or talk to one of our expert advisors to discuss how our compliance technology can meet your and your organisation’s needs.

About ComplyPortal – Compliance software since 2011:

First developed in 2011 by compliance professionals for compliance officers, ComplyPortal offers workflow, automation, and several modules to help firms with control and regulatory compliance monitoring.

ComplyPortal simplifies financial services regulatory compliance management on an easy-to-use cloud-based comprehensive compliance platform. It enables compliance officers, risk officers and senior management to keep track of their firm’s regulatory responsibilities and workflows. Our platform includes the following modules, among others:

• Monitoring: a year-round schedule pre-populated with monitoring questionnaires to ease compliance processes.
• Registers: lists controlled by the Compliance officer, but easy for staff to view.
• Risk: map and control risk areas to effectively identify and manage risk for your firm.
• eKYC system: perform comprehensive searches, including client identity verification, document authenticity, and more for a comprehensive KYC and AML approach

CLICK HERE TO GET STARTED!