As the geopolitical picture becomes increasingly tense and complex, companies without solid compliance systems will face severe consequences if the OFAC comes knocking. The good news? Regulators tend to show leniency towards companies who showcase foresight and preparedness. I recently contributed an article to SupplyChainBrain that outlines how to fortify your compliance plan to avoid situations that could quickly become extremely damaging. In part:

“While many larger firms have good plans in place, I’ve found that mid-sized ones tend to treat compliance risks as check-the-box exercises. Maybe they think they’re covered because they closely monitor a database that screens incoming sanctions announcements from the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control or other bodies.

That works until an alert flashes about new OFAC sanctions on one of the company’s third-party suppliers, for example. At that point, the firm will need much more than a database to avoid a situation that could quickly turn expensive and disruptive.”

READ THE FULL ARTICLE – Having a database isn’t the same as having a process when regulators knock at the door.