We help our clients design, build, implement and run comprehensive, yet pragmatic, compliance programmes to help them better manage their often potentially severe legal and regulatory risk exposures.

 

Sometimes viewed as the organisation’s ‘police force’, as well as a necessary evil or a ‘tick-box’ exercise, we are passionate about helping compliance professionals overcome organisational resistance to, and unfair perception of, the Compliance function. By taking a genuine interest in the organisation's operations first and then working with existing processes and cultural nuances, rather than against them, we can help you tailor and embed the necessary compliance requirements into business as usual activities, helping to drive improved stakeholder engagement, visibility of benefits / value of compliance and, ultimately, the sustainability and effectiveness of the programme.

 

MERC & CO benefits from a combination of significant experience in establishing and running group Compliance functions which coordinate compliance efforts enterprise-wide, with a bench of SMEs who possess a deep knowledge of specific laws and regulations, such as anti-bribery and corruption, sustainability standards etc. Further, we have several sector-aligned specialists, combining years of experience of compliance in industries including, for example, Life Sciences, Construction & Engineering, and Metals & Mining.

 

How do we help?

 

MERC & CO can support clients with a wide variety of consulting services, from end-to-end compliance programme builds to outsourced managed services. A selection of our potential support is listed below:

 

• Compliance programme effectiveness reviews and maturity benchmarking

• Compliance framework design, component development, and implementation support

• Compliance function strategy development and target operating model design / re-design

• Compliance risk assessments

• Development / enhancement / streamlining of Compliance policies and policy governance

• Creation of Compliance Risk and Control Matrices (RACMs)

• Compliance risk indicators development

• Code of Conduct development

• Compliance training design and delivery

• Development of your third parties’ compliance frameworks

• Monitoring of adherence to Compliance policies and other controls

• Third party compliance monitoring programmes

• Compliance software selection and configuration

• Enhanced Compliance reporting

• Tailored development and coaching plans for Compliance leaders / managers

• Assurance over Compliance programme performance

 

In addition to our technical advisory support we also provide a range of transactional services to provide interim solutions, capacity and good practice cost-effective execution of compliance activities. These include:

 

• Outsourced and co-sourced Compliance function activities

• Interim CCO / Head of Compliance secondment

• Compliance committee membership