Getting Started

Compliance Program Risk Catalog and Assessment

The following is a general— not exclusive—list of potential compliance risk areas that an organization may face. Choose a likelihood (L) and impact (I) scale (e.g., 1–5 or 1–10) and calculate total inherent risk (L times I) based on input received from subject matter experts and interviews with different portions of your organization.

Assess the effectiveness of your controls (E) using the same numeric scale you chose for likelihood and impact, again based on input from subject matter experts and interviews with different business functions, and then subtract the effectiveness (E) from the inherent risk to determine your residual risk (R) for each risk event.

You can then use a heat map or other visual scale to depict the top risks for your organization. You may decide to conduct this assessment on an enterprise basis, a regional basis, a department or business unit basis, a country-level basis etc. It may be conducted annually, biannually, on a quarterly basis, or some other cadence. Choose the scope and cadence that best suits the needs of your organization.

Category

Risk Event

Likelihood (L)

Impact (I)

Inherent Risk (L x I)

Controls Effectiveness (E)

Residual Risk (R)

Accounting fraud/earnings management

Financial statement inaccuracy

Embezzlement

Books and records inaccuracy or off-the-books accounts

Revenue or cost figure manipulation

Antitrust/competition law

Collusive conduct (e.g., price-fixing, bid-rigging, market allocation)

Unfair business practices or business torts (e.g., disparagement, inducing breach of contract, theft of trade secrets)

Monopolization or abuse of dominant market position

Price discrimination

Failure to make required pre-merger notifications

Prohibited tying or bundling of products

Confidential information

Use of the confidential information of others

Failure to protect the organization’s own confidential information

Inappropriate gathering of competitive information

Conflicts of interest

Excessive entertainment given to or accepted from suppliers or service providers

Excessive gifts or gratuities given to or accepted from suppliers or service providers

Ownership interests in competitors, suppliers, or service providers

Conflicting outside employment

Co-opting of the organization’s opportunities for personal gain

Family members reporting to each other

Consumer protection and treatment/advertising

Discrimination against customers

Failure to provide accommodations for customers under the Americans with Disabilities Act

Consumer safety issues

Deceptive sales practices

Inaccurate advertising, including inaccurate pricing

Weight and measure accuracy

Failure to comply with telemarketing or mail order sales rules

Product warranty issues

Record management/retention

Failure to retain documents as part of litigation holds

Use of ephemeral messaging apps that do not create a business record to conduct business

Failure to retain and destroy documents in accordance with record retention policy

Employment and labor

Failure to accommodate employees under the Americans with Disabilities Act

Failure to accommodate employee religious practices and beliefs

Inaccurate or missing I-9 documentation and/or employment of ineligible persons

Failure to comply with National Labor Relations Board regulations related to unions and organizing

Failure to comply with Employee Retirement Income Security Act relating to employee benefits

Failure to comply with Family and Medical Leave Act

Discrimination in the workplace

Failure to abide by requirements of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act

Failure to provide appropriate leave for military or military reserve service

Substance abuse by employees in the workplace, creating unsafe working conditions

Risk of gender-based pay gaps and discrimination

Harassment

Sexual harassment of employees

Harassment of employees based on other protected class (e.g., gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, veteran status, pregnancy)

Failure to provide state-manded training to prevent harassment (e.g., California and Illinois)

Workplace violence and security

Negligent hiring or failure to conduct adequate background checks

Failure to prevent weapons in the workplace

Failure to detect and prevent the potential for violence in the workplace

Workplace safety and health

Failure to comply with federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations, including injury reporting and remedying of unsafe conditions

Failure to comply with state OSHA regulations

Wages and hours/Fair Labor Standards Act

Failure to comply with regulations related to hours of work, overtime, minimum wage, exempt status, and child labor

Environmental

Failure to comply with Toxic Substances Control Act, including asbestos remediation

Failure to comply with regulations controlling the shipment of hazardous materials

Failure to dispose of hazardous substances in compliance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Failure to comply with the requirements of the Clean Air Act, including permit and reporting requirements

Failure to comply with requirements of the Clean Water Act, including permitting and release notification

Failure to comply with local right to know laws relating to environmental issues

Failure to remediate and report any underground tanks on company property

Failure to abide by endangered species or wildlife regulations

Risk of being identified as a responsible party under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act for a superfund cleanup site

Government contracting

Illegal bid-rigging

Violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute

Fraud or false claims, including failure to properly document costs for cost-plus contracts

Record keeping or time recording violations

Failure to abide by “revolving door” limitations related to the hiring of former government employees

Giving of gifts or entertainment to government employees in violation of applicable laws

Failure to comply with requirements of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, including affirmative action requirements

Failure to abide by Made in USA requirements for federal contracts

Failure to comply with requirements of the Defense Contract Management Agency

Government investigations and dealings

Failure to timely respond to an inquiry from a government agency

Intellectual property

Infringement on intellectual property of another, including software, copyrights, patents, and trademarks

Theft or misuse of the proprietary information of others

Use of music or other intellectual property without proper license

Trade compliance

Failure to comply with Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other bribery and corruption prevention laws

Failure to comply with Export Administration Regulations, International Traffic in Arms Regulations, and other export control laws

Failure to comply with Office of Foreign Assets Control regulations and other economic sanction and boycott laws

Failure to comply with U.S. Customs and Border Protection regulations, tariff, and other import laws

Failure to comply with national security and espionage prevention laws

Failure to abide by anti-money laundering, know-your-customer, and other financial regulations

Risk of underpayment of duties and penalties resulting therefrom

Risk of fraud or corruption by customs brokers and service providers

Political contributions/lobbying

Failure to abide by lobbying, reporting, and disclosure laws and limitations

Failure to abide by political action committee rules and limitations

Product warranty and safety

Failure to comply with product warranty requirements, including reporting and disclosure requirements

Product safety issues and violations

Quality control issues resulting in consumer complaints or litigation

Privacy

Failure to abide by jurisdiction-specific regulations (e.g., General Data Protection Regulation, California Consumer Privacy Act)

Failure to provide privacy and opt-out notices for consumers

Failure to protect employee privacy

Failure to provide required disclosures and notices related to monitoring of employee email and instant messages

Failure to discover a data breach

Failure to provide timely notice to regulators of a data privacy breach

Reputational damage resulting from data breach

Consumer complaints and litigation resulting from a data breach

Supply chain

Risk of undisclosed conflicts of interest resulting in self-dealing and unnecessarily high pricing

Risk of employees demanding a kickback in order to choose or continue to use a supplier

Risk of supply chain disruptions due to weather, climate change, labor shortages, or other issues

Risk of human trafficking and forced labor in your supply chain and reputational damage resulting therefrom

Risk of supplier insolvency

Risk of supplier quality issues or fraud

Risk of fraud, accidents, or safety violations by logistics, transportation, and warehousing service providers

Risk of using conflict minerals in the manufacture of goods

Taxes

Improper reporting and payment of sales and use taxes

Failure to account for duty impact of advanced transfer pricing agreements entered into with foreign tax officials

Errors in employee tax withholding

Use of aggressive tax deferral and savings strategies that carry risk of regulatory scrutiny and penalties

Securities laws

Errors in compliance with Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act

Risk of insider trading

Failure to comply with Sarbanes–Oxley internal control requirements

Failure to comply with stock exchange disclosure, reporting, and listing requirements (e.g., New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ)

Failure to abide by internal governance requirements (e.g., board of directors, shareholder meeting, and other similar requirements)

Failure to abide by employee stock plan requirements

Failure to abide by executive compensation disclosure and calculation requirements

Industry-specific regulations

Consider whether your industry has specific regulatory requirements that create additional risk in the event of noncompliance:

  • Pharmaceuticals

  • Aviation

  • Securities

  • Healthcare

  • Banking

  • Power/energy

  • Telecommunications

  • Agriculture

  • Food processing and safety

  • Transportation

  • Technology

  • Education

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