Essentials of Enterprise Compliance

Chapter 6. Powering Compliance

After reading this chapter, you will be able to:

• Relate trends in compliance enablement.

• Connect key legislation to enterprise compliance challenges.

Many companies face increasing pressure to comply with governmental regulations for handling business and personal information. These regulations are designed to protect against a diverse array of risks that span different industries, disciplines, and government agencies. Reasons for increased regulations include:

• The stories of corporate scandals involving large companies and government agencies have resulted in an increase in the number and scope of compliance regulations intended to protect shareholders and improve the visibility, integrity, and accountability of financial reporting.

• Concerns about the privacy of individuals and the possible abuse of personal information have prompted regulations for handling health care information.

• Risks related to food supplies and to the development of pharmaceuticals have prompted increased regulation for all industries regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

• The surge in identity theft and fraud has prompted regulations for handling personal identifiable information and informing consumers when their personal information is disclosed inappropriately.

In the United States, compliance legislation designed to address these risks affects most publicly traded companies, the health care industry, government agencies, and financial institutions. Governments ...