Excellent reading on Social Media Compliance Training.

I spent the morning going over some rather interesting discussion from the National Examination Risk Alert provided by the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations.  While not an official Securities and Exchange Commission Publication, this “Investment Adviser Use of Social Media” provided some interesting perspectives on Social Media Compliance that I believe have validity and application to other industries as well.

First of all, this article addresses how registered investment advisers (“RIAs”) should be careful of how they use Social Media to ensure that they are compliant with federal statutes and SEC rule making.  Some of the information presented in the article is RIA specific but other thoughts apply across the board. Most notably is the discussion on Social Media Compliance Training.

Do you have a Social Media Compliance Training Program?

If you already have a program or policies in place, what are you doing at the start of the New Year to evaluate that policy?  It is not enough to simply have a policy in effect, but you must also implement that policy and evaluate its effectiveness.

How would you go about creating a Social Media Compliance Training Program?

Here is a chronological list of questions that should aid in the creation of a social medial policy:

1. Company specific: Is your company a public or private company?
2. Regulated industry: Are you in a regulated industry?  If so, what regulations affect your use of Social Media?
3. Company Size/Resources:  What resources do you have to implement, train and monitor your employee’s use of Social Media?
4. Social Media Goals:  What goals do you have in implementing a social media program?
5. Data retention:  Have you considered data retention for your social media usage?

What I can do to help?

From small to large programs, I can help you create your Social Media policy based upon the above factors, train you and your employees on that policy and provide certification of completion.  Please let me know how I can help you today!