Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) has published a regulatory notice based on its observations on how firms transitioned to remote work and remote supervision amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Notice detailed the challenges companies faced in moving to remote working environments, executing their business continuity plans (BCPs), closing their offices and branches, and supporting customers through the changes.
FINRA has released the Notice to emphasize how small, midsize, and large companies have transitioned their employees and supervisory procedures to remote work operations. Additionally, it has also highlighted individual efforts firms have undertaken immensely to improve remote work and remote supervision, such as:
- improving customer assistance by providing information on back-up contacts for the firm, branch, or associated persons and representatives;
- implementing remote work protocols, such as requiring remote staff to report their location to their managers and ask approval before making changes in their remote location;
- providing additional support and communication, including enhanced virtual training and guidance, which helps improve facilitation of remote work and minimizing the likelihood that their employees will use personal or unapproved systems and technology during business operations; and
- providing additional guidance on confidentiality obligations and further training on possibilities of increased cyber fraud and other potential fraud risks
Furthermore, the regulatory Notice also detailed how firms addressed compliance issues, such as text messaging and call monitoring compliance. Companies have utilized various communication tools and archiving solutions, such as TeleMessage’s WhatsApp archiving, to record messages and calls securely and efficiently.
FINRA’s Notice aims to help businesses implement effective remote work practices, including maintaining supervision and preserving strict compliance with data protection regulations and record-keeping laws. For more information, see this infographic by TeleMessage.
