Every day, your leaders, managers, and individual contributors work hard to find ways to increase revenue, decrease expenses, and create a more productive, engaging workplace.
Unfortunately, all that hard work can be undone by a few negligent or disrespectful employees.
According to the EEOC, in 2023, there were over 7,700 workplace sexual harassment cases filed—up 25% from the previous year. That’s a huge increase, and it only includes sexual harassment cases. When you also consider discrimination, wrongful termination, and workplace safety claims, the need for a strong culture of compliance becomes crystal clear.
Why Workplace Compliance Is an Ongoing Challenge
Every regulation a company must follow is designed to have a positive impact, whether it’s making a process safer or protecting consumers and employees. Fostering a culture of compliance is one of the most effective tips for delivering a culture of compliance that keeps employees safe and protects your organization.
While these regulations may complicate processes in the short term, they provide long-term benefits. The challenge is that employees often don’t see it that way. That’s why workplace compliance training is sometimes viewed as a nuisance rather than a benefit.
Cutting corners or relying on outdated practices might seem easier in the moment, but those decisions can lead to audits, investigations, lawsuits, and expensive settlements. In other words, disregarding compliance can be very costly.
Some organizations experience constant compliance headaches, while others operate with few issues. If your company struggles in this area, it may be time to dig deeper and identify the root cause.
How to Build a Culture of Compliance
Before you can foster a lasting culture of compliance, you must establish concrete steps and expectations for your employees. Talking about compliance isn’t enough—it must be part of your everyday culture.
Here are some tips for delivering a culture of compliance:
- Hold regular workplace compliance training sessions and evaluate knowledge with assessments.
- Use a corporate learning management system to track training completion and progress.
- Create incentives for ethical and compliant behavior.
- Schedule confidential one-on-ones for discussing sensitive topics in a safe space.
A Safe Workplace Environment Leads to Higher Performance
What is a safe workplace? It’s one where employees feel physically secure and emotionally supported. When your culture allows unsafe conditions or harassment to go unchecked, the resulting productivity losses can be just as damaging as lawsuits.
In a safe workplace environment, employees look out for one another. They clean up spills, report misconduct, and speak up when something isn’t right—even if they’re not directly affected.
Too often, bystanders don’t act in cases of harassment due to fear of retaliation. When your company lacks a foundation of integrity, it becomes too easy to ignore problems and hope someone else will fix them.
Compliance thrives when people are empowered to act in the best interest of their peers and the organization.
Don’t Let Compliance Training Be a Stumbling Block
What is compliance in the workplace? It spans a wide range of topics, including anti-harassment, workplace violence, and risk management—all of which are vital to building a safe and respectful workplace.
Effective compliance training shouldn’t be intimidating. It’s about helping employees understand what to do, not just what not to do. The more approachable and relevant your training is, the more likely employees are to engage with it.
Avoid vague hypotheticals—use real-world examples and keep the messaging clear. It’s far easier to discuss a hypothetical situation proactively than to deal with a crisis after the fact.
Make Compliance Training Part of Your Everyday Culture
Your training program should reinforce your company’s values consistently—not just during onboarding. When you offer mobile-ready, online training through a modern learning management system for corporate training, employees can access content when and where it works best for them.
This removes barriers and makes training a seamless part of the workday—not a checkbox.
Check out this video to see how Red Roof Inn and Integrated Manufacturing & Assembly improved their compliance training with solutions from BizLibrary:
Building a Culture That Lasts
Training is not a one-time event. It’s a continuous cycle of learning, application, and reinforcement. Treating compliance the same way you treat other ongoing development initiatives can transform your workplace culture.
BizLibrary understands the challenges of compliance training. Our workplace compliance training solutions include interactive, mobile-ready lessons designed to support behavioral change. Plus, our Client Success team partners with you from day one to ensure your compliance goals align with your broader business strategy.
We dive deeper into this topic in our podcast episode, Learning to Love Compliance, which shares proven strategies for aligning training with your company’s mission and goals.
By making compliance a daily habit—not just an annual training requirement—you can create a safer, more efficient organization rooted in integrity, responsibility, and long-term success.
