In April 2018, the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics and the Health Care Compliance Association released a report: The Relationship between the Board of Directors and the Compliance and Ethics Officer.
This report includes (among others) the following compliance officer survey findings:
- About half of compliance officers report to the board
- 46% of compliance officers believe the board “values compliance a great deal”
I don’t know if the boards that receive regular compliance reports are the same boards that value compliance a great deal. - that wasn't part of this survey. But it’s a good guess that they are. Do the boards who receive regular compliance reports value compliance more? Maybe. I’ll go out on a limb and opine that it’s highly likely.
How can a board value compliance if it isn’t aware of compliance activity?
How can a board appreciate the role of compliance if it doesn’t hear about compliance successes?
How can a board lead and be responsible for a compliance program if it isn’t informed on compliance?
It can’t.
Is your organization part of the 50% where compliance doesn’t report to the board – or the 50% that does?
If the compliance officer does report to the board, how often? According to the HCCA & SCCE report, 35% of compliance officers report to the board four times a year, and another 29% report five or more times a year. If reporting is new in your organization, quarterly reports will bring you in line with many others in the industry.
