OPINION Compliance crossroads where to go from here? In this opinion article, Maarten van Zutphen, Movers Consultancy Group, examines the value of different standards and argues that not all compliance is equal I Maarten van Zutphen am happy to admit that, in the early days of my career, I never heard the word compliance related to the moving industry. We were, of course, aware of the need to follow national and local regulations, but the concept of compliance has expanded dramatically over time to include all kinds of customer requirements, whether they are dictated by a corporate account or government client, or, more recently, by relocation management companies acting on their behalf. If you seriously want to enter or remain relevant in the corporate and government moving market, it is no longer enough to simply meet legal requirements you must learn a completely new language. The language of compliance Compliance covers the following primary areas: 1. Regulatory compliance Regulatory compliance means following the local, national, and international laws and regulations relevant to a moving business. This is about your company following the law an important factor in establishing trust with your customers. 2. Human resources compliance Compliance in human resources covers the laws governing the welfare of employees. This includes maintaining employee documentation, your recruitment process, pay and work conditions, as well as diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I). 3. Data compliance Data compliance has become increasingly important in our industry. The nature of our business often means that we collect highly sensitive data, known as personal identifiable information (PII). Data compliance means that a company is correctly and legally collecting, storing and managing this data, and has documented processes to prove this. 4. Health and safety compliance This is also highly important in our industry. Health and safety compliance means that your employees and subcontractors can safely work without being put in danger or at risk of injury. 5. Quality compliance Quality compliance means that you are following industry best practices, in terms of communicating with customers and trade 60 FF312 Dec_Feb 23 pp60-61 Opinion.indd 60 05/12/2023 09:21