Compliance refers to the process of conforming to various standards, rules, and requirements. Because companies operate within a legal and highly regulated environment, they must ensure that they remain compliant with relevant regulations that have been put in place.
Compliance may apply to specific parts of your business. For example, data security compliance may apply to the recent GDPR and CCPA regulations that were introduced.
Understanding Compliance During Your Project
You may be wondering what is compliance risk management, how it applies to project management- and why it’s so important. Project management compliance refers to the processes, standards, and procedures that you should follow when planning and implementing a project. Such compliance allows you to verify that your project is being carried out in accordance with pre-established cybersecurity guidelines. It's also an effective way of developing a framework that enables stakeholders to understand their specific roles and responsibilities.
By managing compliance in your project, you’ll be able to control multiple portions clearly and efficiently. For example, you can manage the scope, budget, timelines, and how deliverables are submitted. A compliance plan in project management also allows you to keep track of progress following established goals.
The following is a 5-step process for managing compliance in project management.
1. Define Specific Processes And Operations
Whether you’re looking to become compliant with NIST or CCPA guidelines, you’ll need to define the specific processes and operations of your project. For example, any project that will handle sensitive company data may need to meet additional compliance guidelines. This is why it’s critical to determine the scope of operations that your project will involve.
Determining the scope of a project sounds much easier than it is to implement. A best practice is to break down the larger project into distinct phases- a planning phase, execution, and delivery. In this way, you’ll have an easier time defining specific processes and operations that apply to your compliance requirements.
2. Develop A Framework For Making Data Accessible
During the project, you'll need to ensure that information is available to all relevant parties as necessary. This means that you'll need to balance data accessibility, security, and availability. Remember that only people of the appropriate clearance should be able to access sensitive data during the project.
Putting in place mechanisms that prevent data leaks will also help you remain compliant during planning and implementation.
3. Monitor All Operations In Real-Time
Having a robust oversight plan is one of the essential parts of managing compliance. Oversight allows you to maintain real-time control over all relevant processes being carried out as part of the project.
Close monitoring also allows you to identify any non-compliant activity promptly. In this way, you can adjust the project rules and regulations such that they meet the compliance model of your project.
4. Communication Is Also Important
It would be impossible to manage compliance without clear and effective communication channels. Indeed, communication allows you to inform all stakeholders about current compliance regulations- and what they need to do to remain compliant. A breakdown in communication is one of the leading reasons why projects may breach compliance models.
But how can you tell if you have a clear communication framework? Your communication plan should meet the following critical components:
- It should fall in line with your company’s current goals, rules, and regulations
- It should clearly communicate expectations and the consequences of non-compliance
- It should be reflective of corporate culture and the channels through which your employees best receive information
- It should be easy to review previous communications for verification purposes
5. Use Software To Keep Track Of Relevant Compliance Measures
During project management, compliance can be a lengthy and complicated process. This is why it’s critical to use tools that allow for multi-tasking, auditing, and communication.
It would be too costly and inefficient to manage compliance using trails of paper (and other manual processes). But with software, you can easily assign tasks, establish specific goals, develop compliance frameworks, and communicate with your team.
The 5-step process outlined above will put you on the path to managing compliance during any relevant project that you may initiate.