It is the desire of many people to start their own businesses. However, only a few make this a reality. The business journey is challenging and has a relatively poor long-term success rate. Keeping a small business in compliance is even more difficult, and a study showed that 90% of businesses fail compliance. Fortunately, you don’t have to be a part of the statistics. Here are a few things you can do if you are struggling to keep your business in compliance. 

1. Check if your business is in good standing

The state provides a certificate of good standing to indicate that you are authorized to operate your business. And it is critical to verify that you are in good standing. The document generally communicates your business compliance status. It is good to have this certificate since potential partners, including lenders and the state, may demand it before doing business with you. 

2. Determine your business structure 

Determining your business structure is one of the most important things to do before starting your business. You can pick between a Doing Business As, a Corporation, and an LLC. However, every type of business structure presents its own advantages and disadvantages. For instance, your business structure can determine how much you pay in taxes, fundraising opportunities, paperwork, and management requirements. For this reason, it is advisable to decide which structure is the best match for your business. It is best to seek professional help if you don’t know so much about the basics of accounting ethics. This can save you a lot of trouble down the line. 

3. Create a policy handbook for your employees 

It would help if you had an employee handbook whether you have one worker or more. This guide aids in clearly expressing, communicating, and ensuring your staff agrees with your business’s rules. Ensure to outline everything in the handbook, from permissible computer usage to acceptable workplace behaviors, storage and management of business data, and so on. The employee handbook also orients employees to your business mission, culture, and operational procedures. 

4. Centralize business communications 

Keeping to one communication medium can reduce the odds of mix-ups and risks associated with using multiple channels for business communication. For instance, your business can choose emailing or intra-office messenger for communication. Adopting one medium, either texting, emailing, or social media, can also make it easy to maintain the integrity of information shared among your employees. Businesses would be wise to mandate one medium for all office communication now that data protection and privacy measures such as GDPR and the CCPA are in place.

5. Stay current with compliance changes

Maintaining compliance isn’t one of the easiest things to do, especially when trying to avoid the associated troubles, fines, and penalties. However, it is mandated by various local and international legislative authorities. Fortunately, you can use compliance calendars and HR automated tech to receive relevant business updates. You can also hire compliance-savvy HR experts to cultivate a compliance culture in your small business.