Legal and industry compliance standards can help you become a globally trusted organization. However, not having enough knowledge about them can make things confusing. Thus, this article puts forward the definition and importance of regulatory compliance standards, a list of common regulatory standards, and the best practices you can execute to comply with them efficiently. Grab a seat in a quiet place, and read this post to ensure that you don’t miss out on some amazing perks due to knowing least about the said standards.

What Are Legal and Industry Compliance Standards?

Legal and industry compliance standards are the guidelines and regulations that organizations must follow to ensure they meet specific legal, ethical, and operational requirements, maintaining their reputation globally. However, these standards are not constant; they vary by industry and region.

Legal and Industry Compliance Standards List

The most common legal and industry compliance standards include HIPPA, SOX and accounting standards, COSO, COBIT®, SAS, PCI DSS, GLBA, EU GDPR, FISMA, and CCPA.

• HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act): Any entity that gathers or processes electronic protected health information (ePHI) must comply with HIPPA.
• SOX (Sarbanes–Oxley Act) & Accounting Standards, COSO, COBIT®, SAS: These standards are defined to protect the public against corporate misrepresentation and fraud. US public companies must comply with them.
• PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard): Service providers and merchants who deal with credit card payments must adhere to PCI DSS to ensure the privacy of the customers’ financial data.
• GLBA (The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act): The US financial institutions must comply with GLBA to ensure the privacy of personal information, accurate and fair credit transactions, the safety of internet-based services and products, and anti-terrorism.
• EU GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation): Any organization that processes the personal data of EU residents must comply with EU GDPR.
• FISMA (Federal Information Security Modernization Act): It defines a framework of security standards and guidelines to protect government data and operations. The US federal agencies must meet it.
• CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act): It’s a state law that allows residents to know about, delete, and opt out of the sale and processing of their personal data. Any business that uses, collects, or sells the personal data of California residents must comply with it.

Importance of Regulatory Compliance

IT Governance USA states that regulatory compliance is important to protect employees, customers, and assets by ensuring adherence to applicable regulations, laws, and industry standards. Moreover, it helps organizations avoid the costly fines, penalties, and reputational damage that occur in case an organization fails to comply with the law.

Furthermore, considering and complying with the legal and industry compliance standards allows you to maintain the integrity of your business operations, and protect stakeholder and public interest. It proves that you are executing your organizational tasks ethically and fairly.

How to Meet Regulatory Compliance Standards Effectively?

You can meet regulatory compliance standards by following a series of best practices, including hiring a compliance officer, understanding the regulations and standards, conducting a compliance audit or gap analysis, creating a compliance strategy, and using a compliance document management system.

• Hire a Compliance Officer: You can hire a compliance officer or a complete compliance team to look after the compliance tasks.
• Understand the Regulations and Standards: Ensure that your compliance team fully understands the regulations and standards. It will help them to identify their requirements efficiently.
• Conduct Gap Analysis: Ask your compliance officer to conduct a gap analysis, giving you a clear idea about your organization’s compliance status.
• Create a Compliance Strategy: Plan the steps and procedures that you’ll execute to achieve compliance with various standards and regulations.
• Use Compliance Document Management System: Automate your compliance document management process and compliance-related tasks by using an efficient compliance DMS like ComplyNexus.

ComplyNexus Overview

ComplyNexus is an AI-driven, cloud-based regulatory compliance management software. It contains advanced features and functionalities that streamline your organization’s compliance process. It’s a scalable, flexible, easy-to-use, and efficient tool you can offer to your compliance team to improve its productivity and ability to manage compliance documents.

A Good Read: Manage compliance tasks in multiple sites using ComplyNexus.

FAQs

Are All the Compliance Standards Mandatory?

No, not all the compliance standards are mandatory. There are certain standards that you must comply with depending on state, local, federal, or international laws.

Is It Mandatory to Comply With ISO 27001 Standards?

No, it is not mandatory to comply with ISO 27001 standards. However, achieving an ISO certification presents your company as a secure platform in front of global customers and stakeholders.

Conclusion

We believe that you now understand the concept of legal and industry compliance standards and that you are all prepared to take a step toward aligning with their requirements. Here is the post recap:

• Legal and regulatory standards are guidelines and regulations that organizations must follow to build their reputation.
• The said standards vary based on region and industry.
• You can meet the compliance standards by hiring a compliance officer who understands the standards and compliance tasks.
• A compliance document management system like ComplyNexus makes it quite easier to deal with compliance tasks.

Remember that using the right tools and having compliance professionals in your organization can streamline your compliance process, letting you reap its benefits without waiting much.