Compliance in risk management is one of those essentials every business recognizes, yet many continue to struggle with it. Most teams focus on the obvious: avoiding fines, staying on top of tax filings, and updating policies when new laws are enacted. However, compliance risk management extends far beyond checklists and paperwork.
What Is Compliance Risk Management?
Compliance risk management is the process of identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks that arise from non-compliance with laws, regulations, internal policies, or industry standards. In simple terms, it's how a business makes sure it stays on the right side of legal and regulatory requirements while avoiding fines, lawsuits, or reputational damage.
Assess your organization's compliance risks with the Atlas Compliance Risk Calculator today!
Key Elements of Compliance Risk Management
The core components of compliance risk management include:
Risk Identification: Spotting potential compliance issues, such as labor law violations, data privacy risks, or financial reporting errors.
Risk Assessment: Analyzing how serious these risks are and what impact they could have on the business.
Controls and Policies: Creating clear internal policies, training programs, and monitoring systems to prevent violations.
Monitoring and Auditing: Regularly reviewing business practices, records, and employee actions to ensure compliance.
Reporting and Response: Having processes in place to report violations, investigate issues, and take corrective actions quickly.
At Atlas HXM, we bring these compliance risk management elements together through our global Employer of Record (EOR) platform and expert teams, helping organizations not only manage compliance risks but turn them into opportunities for safer, faster growth worldwide.
Why Compliance Risk Management Matters
Compliance risk management is crucial for:
Legal Protection: Helps avoid fines, penalties, or even business shutdowns.
Reputation: Builds trust with customers, employees, and stakeholders.
Efficiency: Standardized compliance processes reduce confusion and errors.
Global Business Expansion: This is especially important for international companies that must comply with local labor, tax, and employment laws in multiple countries.
Compliance Risk Management by the Numbers
Data shows just how high the stakes are when it comes to compliance risk management — and why organizations can't afford to overlook it.
Lack of experienced staff, insufficient resources, and a poor corporate culture were the top three reasons given for why teams didn't feel confident in their capacity to manage compliance risks.
In 2023, 61% of companies faced a regulatory proceeding (LegalDive).
Global regulatory fines hit a record $19.3 billion in 2024 (Corlytics).
According to the 2025 Global Atlas Report, 86% of HR leaders managing international workforces report that ensuring compliance with foreign labor laws remains one of their greatest challenges.
Overlooked Steps in Compliance Risk Management
While most businesses understand the basics of compliance, the real risks often lie in areas that receive insufficient attention. These overlooked steps in compliance risk management move beyond surface-level checklists and policy updates. They advance towards a more holistic and integrated approach that strengthens resilience and supports long-term growth.
Step 1: Go Beyond Basic Compliance Risk Assessments
Most organizations recognize the need for a risk assessment, but many stop at the surface level. They'll check a few boxes, document obvious threats, and move on. An effective risk compliance management strategy digs deeper.
These detailed assessments matter because:
Risks evolve as your business grows. An assessment from last year may already be outdated.
Industry-specific regulations (think HIPAA in healthcare or SOX in finance) need to be revisited regularly.
Global businesses face different standards in every market — the GDPR in Europe, the CCPA in California, and AML rules worldwide.
Strengthen compliance in risk management by:
Conducting regular assessments, not just annual ones.
Involving cross-functional teams (Legal, HR, Finance, IT) to uncover hidden risks.
Ranking risks not just by likelihood but also by business impact — a small error in one country could be devastating globally.
At Atlas HXM, we treat risk assessments as living documents. They're reviewed, updated, and tied to decision-making. That's how compliance moves from reactive to proactive.
Step 2: Treat Training as a Culture Builder, Not a Checkbox
Too often, compliance risk management training is treated like a chore. Employees watch a video, click through a quiz, and forget about it. That isn't training—it's just paperwork.
This step gets overlooked because:
Companies assume compliance is “someone else’s job.”
Training isn’t tied to real-world scenarios.
Leaders often underestimate the significant impact of daily behavior on compliance outcomes.
Instead of treating compliance training as a one-off task, here are practical ways to make it meaningful and effective across your organization:
Make training ongoing. Not once a year— but woven into everyday work.
Use examples employees actually see: Phishing emails, handling customer data, and onboarding vendors.
Encourage open communication: A culture where people feel safe asking compliance questions is stronger than one where people stay silent.
At Atlas, our Learning & Development program ensures every employee has access to regular training and real-world compliance scenarios.
Step 3: Include Third-Party and Supply Chain Risks
Many organizations focus solely on internal risks, overlooking the risks associated with partners, suppliers, and vendors. In today's connected world, risk management and compliance extend far beyond internal walls. Supply chain failures can cause reputational and financial damage, vendor fraud or corruption can put your business at risk of legal trouble, and business identity theft and third-party breaches are on the rise.
Avoid supply chain risks by:
Running due diligence checks before onboarding partners.
Monitoring vendors continuously, not just at the start.
Assigning risk levels based on geography, industry, and past compliance history.
Industry-Specific Compliance Risks
Compliance risk management challenges don't look the same across industries. A one-size-fits-all plan rarely works:
Finance: Banking regulations, AML laws, and consumer protection rules require strict reporting and ongoing audits.
Healthcare: Patient data protection under HIPAA and HITRUST demands constant monitoring and airtight cybersecurity.
Supply Chain: Vendor compliance, customs rules, and ethical sourcing can expose risks across global networks.
At Atlas, we tailor risk and compliance management strategies to each sector. Our regional experts and technology platform track regulatory updates in real time, while our EOR model ensures businesses stay compliant across every industry.
Step 4: Leverage Technology Without Losing the Human Touch
Another overlooked step in compliance risk management is the failure to leverage technology effectively. Too many businesses still rely on spreadsheets, emails, and manual audits to track compliance. That slows things down and leaves room for errors.
Technology helps with:
Automating evidence collection and audit trails.
Real-time monitoring of regulations (GDPR, HIPAA, ISO, PCI DSS, etc.).
Dashboards for leaders to instantly view compliance posture.
Technology is a tool, not a replacement. You still need people to interpret risks, apply judgment, and make strategic calls. The most effective approach is to combine automation with human expertise. At Atlas, our global teams utilize advanced systems while remaining vigilant by rechecking previously cleared entities, monitoring watchlists, and adapting to emerging risks.
Step 5: Align Compliance Risk Management With Global Growth
Tying compliance directly to business growth is another crucial step that businesses often overlook. Many see compliance as a cost center. In reality, it can be a competitive advantage.
Business Impacts of Global Expansion
When your business grows internationally, compliance can make or break the journey. Here are some of the most significant business impacts of global expansion to keep in mind:
Entering new markets requires compliance with local labor, tax, and data laws.
Failing to comply can prevent expansion from even starting.
Strong compliance builds trust with regulators, investors, and partners.
Turning Compliance Into an Advantage
Instead of seeing regulatory compliance risk management as a barrier, treat it as a business enabler. Here's how you can turn strong compliance into a true competitive advantage:
Prove credibility with customers and partners by demonstrating strong oversight and control.
Unlock new markets with strict entry requirements.
Protect your brand reputation as you expand globally.
At Atlas, compliance is at the heart of our EOR model. Our compliance risk management plan adapts to local regulations while maintaining a unified global strategy.
How Atlas Simplifies Compliance Risk Management
Expanding globally is exciting — but it comes with serious compliance risks. From labor laws to payroll regulations, even a minor mistake can result in fines, lawsuits, or a stalled expansion. That's where Atlas makes the difference.
Why Choose Atlas’ EOR Model for Risk and Compliance Management?
Partnering with Atlas means:
160+ countries covered: We handle employment laws, payroll, and benefits everywhere you grow.
Built-in compliance risk management expertise: Our legal and compliance teams stay on top of global regulations in real time.
Technology that works: Atlas’s platform streamlines compliance tracking, audits, and reporting.
Regional specialists: Experts in APAC, EMEA, LATAM, and North America manage local compliance challenges.
Comprehensive risk mitigation: From worker classification to data privacy, Atlas reduces risks before they become liabilities.
The Atlas Advantage
Instead of juggling multiple vendors and hoping nothing slips through, you get a single partner that owns risk and ensures compliance everywhere. That means:
Faster, safer global expansion
Less time worrying about fines and penalties
More trust from employees, regulators, and partners
With Atlas, compliance risk management stops being a burden and becomes a growth driver.
Reduce Risk and Strengthen Compliance with Atlas HXM
The reality is that most companies only focus on the obvious steps in regulatory compliance risk management. But it's the overlooked areas that make the most significant difference. At Atlas, we believe compliance isn't just about checking boxes. It's about building trust, enabling expansion, and creating a resilient business.
Contact Atlas HXM to simplify compliance and reduce risk across borders.
FAQs
What is compliance and risk management?
Compliance risk management is the process of identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks to ensure an organization adheres to laws, regulations, internal policies, and industry standards.
How often should companies update their compliance risk management plan?
At least annually — but also after significant events like new regulations, entering new markets, or launching a new product. Some industries (finance, healthcare) may need quarterly updates.
What’s the difference between compliance management and risk compliance management?
Compliance management is about following rules. Compliance and risk management go further by analyzing how non-compliance could hurt your business, then building systems to prevent it.
How does compliance risk management support global expansion?
Strong compliance makes global growth smoother. It ensures you meet local regulations, avoid penalties, and build trust with new partners and regulators.