A new survey has laid bare the tension between marketing and compliance departments in financial services organisations, with the overwhelming majority seeing their relationships as adversarial.
The research by Red Marker, which surveyed 521 people across the UK, US and Australia, found that 83% of compliance and marketing professionals see their relationship as adversarial.
This was reflected in 81% of marketers believing compliance is getting in the way of their jobs, with 79% believing the review process is too long and has too many steps.
The animosity was mutual, with 82% of legal and compliance professionals complaining that marketing doesn’t understand why they have to abide by complex compliance rules.
There was widespread hope that AI could make processes easier, with 95% across marketing, legal and compliance saying that AI could support a more effective review process in their organisation.
Thirty-three percent said they would like to see AI used to check standard content such as disclaimers, sources and T&Cs.
Mark Wood, COO at Red Marker comments: “The tension between marketing and legal/compliance in financial services illustrates that the delicate balance between creativity and compliance can easily become adversarial.
“Standing out in such a competitive industry relies on swift and effective marketing. Compliance teams and marketers need to find better ways of working together to ensure content is produced and approved efficiently – but also in a way that reduces risk.
“The marketing compliance process has traditionally been under-analysed and there has been a lack of optimisation, with a certain ‘we have a process’ complacency. Many organisations have built quick-fix solutions or outsourced this process, but new technology means there’s no longer an excuse for inefficiency and apathy.
“With organisations identified as having misled customers receiving publicised penalties, there’s nothing more important than ensuring the marketing compliance process is watertight. That starts at the most basic level with robust communication and openness between teams.”
