Data without Meaning is Just…Data: Understanding Key Stakeholder Needs and Delivering Data that Matters

Why do strategic partnerships with key stakeholders matter? What visualization methods are best for displaying data for your Ethics & Compliance (E&C) program? How can data collection lead to risk identification and mitigation?

Read on to explore these topics and more.

Without question, the effective use of data analytics is critical to the successful operation of an ethics and compliance (E&C) program. In addition to compliance-process monitoring, analytics and metrics are valuable tools for surfacing emerging risks to stakeholders.

The Ethics & Compliance Initiative (ECI) whitepaper on Metrics, Data Analytics, and Key Stakeholders: Driving a High-Quality and Tailored Compliance Program emphasizes the value of understanding E&C program maturity, relevant best practices, and key stakeholder interests. It illustrates how an E&C program that recognizes and harnesses such insights can most effectively focus its data analytics and metric visualizations so that program stakeholders may readily understand risks and be better positioned to address them.

Using the five principles of a High-Quality Program (HQP) identified by the ECI as a foundational framework for an effective E&C program, this whitepaper provides an extension of those principles to key stakeholders by offering metrics that can fortify E&C partnerships within an organization.

What to Expect

Key Audiences and Stakeholders

Targeted sections that highlight key audiences and stakeholders that E&C professionals may consider for further collaboration and partnership. Each section provides the following information:

  • Relevant HQP Principles – A curated list of HQP principles that are relevant to specific stakeholders and the stakeholder’s role in driving specific elements of an effective E&C program.
  • Potential Key Interests – Provides several key interests commonly associated with an E&C program and stakeholder groups.
  • Examples of What to Measure – Here you will find sample metrics that can be leveraged to inform and drive engagement with stakeholders.

Data Visualization

Effective use of data visualization is essential. The visualization method you choose can influence your stakeholders’ ability to comprehend and make decisions about the data you present.

  • Why Data Visualization Matters – Readers are encouraged to consider the narrative behind their data, which includes visualization strategies.
  • Data Visualization Tips – Throughout the whitepaper, you will find suggestions for maximizing engagement with specific stakeholders.

Tools for Your Data

Many compliance professionals can relate to the notion of trying to find the “perfect magic wand” for aggregating, maintaining, and monitoring compliance metrics. While we might be enticed by the latest and greatest methods, it is important to recognize what works for the current state of your E&C program and how you can set the program on a path towards continuous improvement.

  • Selecting a Tool – This section offers strategies to consider when selecting a tool for compliance metrics.
  • Available Tools – A variety of tools, from Excel spreadsheets to compliance software, are used by compliance professionals. Five categories of tools are outlined in this section, including data collection and data science; examples are provided for each category.

E&C programs are most effective when key stakeholders are recognized as partners and engaged to contribute towards the program’s continued evolution. Likewise, understanding the key interests of program stakeholders can help E&C improve its partnerships across the organization. Metrics are a powerful tool to strengthen collaboration and proactive engagement with stakeholders.

This ECI whitepaper, Metrics, Data Analytics, and Key Stakeholders: Driving a High-Quality and Tailored Compliance Program  is the result of a collaborative effort by more than 20 ECI members representing various industries and corporate E&C programs. It is intended as a resource to aid E&C practitioners as they build stakeholder relationships and tailor their E&C programs.

Members of ECI can collaborate with other leading E&C professionals by joining working groups on a variety of topics. For more information about upcoming working groups and how you can get involved, please contact membership@ethics.org.

Authors: Jennifer Lee and Natalie Norris, Ethics and Compliance Professional
Editor: Danielle Bartos, Ethics & Compliance Professional

By: Editorial Team