MyComplianceOffice Blog

Compared with other industries, the financial services industry inherently has an elevated risk of conflicts of interest. In particular, connected persons and close personal relationships can influence decisions that result in significant business and financial impact. After all, we’re all human and sometimes act based on emotion. Unfortunately, those human, emotional connections can sometimes lead to severe conflicts.

Let’s talk about remote employees working at two jobs. Have you come across this before? A recent Wall Street Journal article covers stories of employees taking advantage of working from home to make more money and double their salary. The article says there is a rise of such practices among white-collar workers in industries ranging from tech to banking to insurance.

Many of the firms that I work with, both large and small, work with representatives that are independent contractors. I am frequently asked how technology can help firms supervise their independent reps, especially in these days of remote work. The past few weeks have seen FINRA impose significant fines and sanctions against a range of firms for supervisory failures. Firms must have processes in place to monitor activities and mitigate this risk.

I really enjoyed the opportunity to be an exhibitor at this year’s FINRA Small Firm Virtual Conference. Although the format might have been different this year, the sessions were still filled with the same focus on effective compliance practices for smaller firms.

One of the key themes I heard at the event throughout the sessions was the need for consistency in policies and procedures, and for complete and consistent documentation.