Regulatory Compliance Guide 2024
Any business that works with digital assets, consumer data, health regulations, employee safety, and private communications is subject to regulatory compliance.
The number of laws, regulations, standards, and guidelines has increased dramatically in the past hundred years, resulting in regulatory compliance management becoming more prominent for all businesses. Regardless of the industry, or company size, all businesses across the globe will inevitably be subject to regulatory compliance responsibilities that must be adhered to as part of daily operations.
With the regulatory environment constantly evolving, the compliance target is constantly moving. Just when you have achieved full compliance, something changes and you must amend your approach and adapt your business to stay compliant otherwise, your business is at risk.
Businesses need to be transparent about daily operations, their compliance processes, procedures, audits, and reporting activities to avoid the consequences of non-compliance.
Regulatory compliance varies not only by industry but often by location. The financial, research, and pharmaceutical regulatory structures in one country, for example, may be similar but with particularly different distinctions to that in another country. These similarities and differences are often reactions to the changing objectives and requirements in different countries, industries, and policies.
Organisations are legally obligated to comply with regulatory compliance laws, failing to do so, and breach regulatory compliance laws can result in damage to business reputation, corporate punishment such as removal of accreditations, hefty fines bankruptcy, business closure. or even imprisonment.
Regulated Industries
Regulatory Standards
Regulatory compliance standards are designed for specific industries, with the consideration that some industries are more heavily regulated than others.
Highly regulated industries include:
- Finance
- Environment
- Health
- Food
- Utilities / Energy
- Legal
- Engineering
- Construction
- Manufacturing
Least regulated professions include:
- Holistic healthcare
- Management consultants
- Performing Arts
- Pet Sitting / Walking Service
- Civic and Social Organisations
Industry Regulators
Care Quality Commission (CQC) are independent regulator of health and social care in England whose role is to make sure that hospitals, care homes, dental and general practices and other care services in England provide people with safe, effective, and high-quality care, and to encourage those providers to improve.
Food Standards Agency is a non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for protecting public health in relation to food in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.