One of the ways that chief compliance officers and compliance practitioners can improve their compliance programs is through the use of the social media platform Twitter. A lot of professionals stay away from Twitter because they don't know what to make of it, or how to get value from it. But by regularly posting to Twitter and engaging with those who are also using it, you expose yourself to a huge universe of new information, ideas, and insights that ultimately leads to you having better ideas.

Twitter was created to allow people to connect with one another and communicate about their activities, from the mundane to the profound. While a lot of companies use Twitter for marketing, there is a deeper value and understanding to be had. For the compliance practitioner, one thing you want to consider is to align your Twitter and great social media strategy with your compliance strategy.

You should have a list of compliance practitioners that you follow on Twitter. These other compliance professionals tweet about their own blog posts and podcasts on compliance related topics or retweet other relevant and useful information on compliance. But as a compliance professional, you should also be aware of the outbound power of Twitter. This means that not only can you contribute to the global compliance conversation on a daily basis, you can also build your own personal Twitter brand if you follow a few quick, simple, and easy steps each day.

By regularly posting to Twitter and engaging with those who are also using it, you expose yourself to a huge universe of new information, ideas, and insights that ultimately leads to you having better ideas.

First off, follow a list of compliance professionals active on Twitter each day. You can set up a feed to receive their tweets, or, better yet, go to their site and request to be a part of the daily delivery of their blog or podcast. From there, simply retweet their articles each day. This action will put your name in the compliance conversation each day and will facilitate greater learning and knowledge within your twitter community. I have been an active user of Twitter since 2010, and it was Twitter which in many ways first put me on the compliance map. The power of this tool is still great, and it can work for you as well. You just need to keep at it consistently.

The same has become true for LinkedIn and the various groups dedicated to compliance on that platform. Each day, there is a wealth of articles relating to compliance that can be most helpful for the compliance practitioner. By sharing these articles, you not only contribute to the greater compliance community, but you also further your own compliance brand in the marketplace.

One thing about compliance which is different than any other discipline is the level of sharing about compliance programs, challenges, and approaches to issues. There are no trade secrets in compliance. The 10 Hallmarks of an Effective Compliance Program are the well-known standards for every compliance program. There are other standards, however, which are just as publicly available and may have nuances more suited to your compliance program in the risk environment in which your company operates.

Twitter can be a powerful tool for the compliance practitioner. It is one of the only tools that can work for you to both obtain information for your compliance program and for your ongoing professional growth in compliance. It is equally powerful as an outbound tool to create your own personal brand, which is not something to be discounted. You should work to incorporate the techniques I have laid out to help you and your internal efforts to grow and improve your program … and to do the same for yourself personally.

Topics