Legal
Running compliance for several clients
A firm or consultancy with twenty clients: the same thing twenty times, without mixing it up.
Running compliance for twenty companies has a double problem: doing the same thing twenty times without it getting mixed up, and being able to show separately, client by client, what was done and when — because whoever answers to an inspection is each client, not you.
The three risks specific to this work
| Risk | How it shows up | How to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation getting mixed | One client's file ends up in another's | Real separation, not folders with similar names |
| Missing a deadline | Twenty calendars in two people's heads | Due dates with warnings and an owner, per client |
| Being unable to show what was done | The client says you never warned them | Communications recorded in their file |
Important
The third affects you directly. If a client fails at something you warned them about, your defence is being able to show when you told them. If that warning lived in the inbox of someone who has left, it does not exist.
How to organise it
- 1
A space per client, not a folder per client
Separation must be effective, especially if two clients compete.
- 2
An obligations calendar per client
With warnings and an owner inside your team.
- 3
Every relevant communication, in their file
Warnings, deliveries, reminders. Not in the inbox of whoever handles them.
- 4
And what the client supplies, through their own route
Let them upload it, with a record, rather than emailing you.
Watch out
The fourth point saves more time than it looks. Much of a compliance consultancy's work is not analysis: it is chasing clients to send their material. Having each client supply via their link, with automatic reminders, removes nearly all of that.
What the client should see
That transparency cuts the "how are we doing?" calls and, above all, makes what you do visible: much of this service's value is invisible until it is shown.
Worth knowing
It applies equally to an employment adviser, a safety consultancy, an accountancy firm or a practice handling clients' data protection: the obligations list changes, the mechanics do not.
›Can one client see another's material?
No, if they are properly separated. That is this model's main requirement.
›What if a client wants to take theirs away?
Their complete file is exported; it is theirs.
›How do we bill extra work?
With the record of what was requested and delivered in front of you, which is exactly what usually goes missing.
A real case
The situation
A consultancy runs compliance for eighteen companies using folders and email.
What you do
- Separates by client and builds the obligations calendar with owners
- Has each client supply via their link
What you get
Stops chasing by email and can show, client by client, what it warned and when.
The situation
Each client has their own circuit and none resemble each other.
What you do
- Uses one adaptable template
What you get
Improvements reach everyone.
The situation
What needs reviewing per client and when gets lost.
What you do
- Schedules the reviews by calendar
What you get
The cadence keeps itself.
The situation
A client asks for evidence of one specific control.
What you do
- Checks that client's record
What you get
It is provided without reconstructing.
The situation
The person handling a client changes.
What you do
- Keeps the file independent of individuals
What you get
The handover does not lose context.
The situation
A gap is found at one client and there may be more.
What you do
- Checks the same point across the rest
What you get
What is learned at one serves all.
This article answers
- managing compliance for several clients
- consultancy running outsourced compliance
- keeping each client's documentation separate
- obligations calendar per client