Moms: The Original Compliance Officers
With Mother’s Day approaching, I got to thinking about mom as rule maker and compliance officer. That’s what we do as parents, of course. Our job is to create a compliance management system for our families—which includes training and enforcing, by the way. The whole point of this exercise? To keep our household’s customers, employees and company safe. A mother’s job is to raise a child to be a good human which will keep that child and those around him safe.
What Can We Learn from Compliance Officer Mom?
Okay, cheesy way to link compliance with Mother’s Day, but I thought about this from a Compliance Officer’s perspective.
As I write this, I recall the tactics my mom used to accomplish her goal of raising a good human. As far back as I can remember, there was always a reason for the rules, and they were explained to me. When I was told not do something like climb too high in a small tree, she gave me two reasons for this: she didn’t want me to fall and break my fool neck, and I might damage the tree.
You might find this interesting: Code of Conduct Cheat Sheet
The Lesson From Mom: Communicate the “Why”
It’s important for people to understand the “why” behind a rule. When employees see the reason behind the rules it’s easier to understand the value. The main goal behind most rules is to protect the employee and the company from litigation. This also protects the company’s reputation, which means that employees will keep their jobs and customers will continue to be satisfied.
As you go through your day as a compliance officer or as a compliant employee, remember your mom and lessons you learned from her. Also call her and tell her you love her.
