By description, a business process is a set of activities that, once completed, will accomplish an organizational goal.  Likely several processes come to mind as you consider this description: sales, marketing, finance/accounting, product development, etc.

 

Now think about compliance.  Rather than viewing compliance as a burden, an extraneous requirement or waste of time, instead consider the ways in which compliance, when well managed as a business process, helps accomplish a variety of business goals:

• Affirmative Action or Equal Employment Opportunity compliance supports innovation: diversity of customers and markets supporting organizational growth
• Selection/hiring compliance supports staffing: the right people with the right skills in the right positions to meet customer and business goals
• Wage & hour compliance supports organizational stability and corporate citizenship: regulatory updates are managed with a reduced threat of disruption or legal challenge.

 

Meeting external, statutory requirements (i.e., compliance) as a routine business process:

• Supports a culture of positive employee engagement and trust
• Frees employees throughout the organization to focus on the business rather than on covering or explaining marginal activities or wondering where perceived gray lines may be
• Focuses resources on planning and implementing what is or can be known and
• Avoids the turmoil, expense and bad press of potential legal challenges.