Compliance Training Checklist

Compliance training is more than a box to check. Done well, it can boost employee confidence, strengthen your culture, and even improve operational efficiency. Done poorly, it’s a forgettable, one-and-done event that checks a requirement but fails to change behavior. The result is an investment that fails to reduce risk to the company and employees.

A strong program not only meets regulations, it prevents costly mistakes, protects your reputation, and equips employees to handle high-stakes situations with confidence. But creating that kind of program isn’t always straightforward…

One of the toughest parts of developing custom compliance training is finding the sweet spot between legal accuracy and learner engagement. Regulations are often written in complex, technical language, but your employees need to understand and apply the concepts in real-world situations. The more you can translate dense rules into relatable examples, clear guidance, and meaningful practice, the more likely your training will stick and keep your organization and employees protected.

Whether you’re building a program from scratch or updating an existing one, this checklist will help you cover every detail so nothing slips through the cracks. Use it to make sure your compliance training is relevant, engaging, and effective every time.

1. Confirm Regulatory and Legal Requirements

⬜ Identify all relevant laws, regulations, and industry standards your training must address.

⬜ Verify requirements with legal, compliance, or risk management teams before design begins.

⬜ Document the exact learning objectives tied to these requirements so nothing slips through the cracks.

2. Pinpoint Organizational Needs

⬜ Go beyond legal mandates by considering company policies, cultural values, and internal risk factors.

⬜ Interview stakeholders (compliance officers, department heads, safety managers) to understand specific areas of concern.

⬜ Identify historical problem areas from audit results, incident reports, or employee surveys.

Pro Tip: Build a library or shared document site where you track updates to laws and regulations by industry and region. This living resource can be quickly referenced when compliance rules change, saving you from scrambling during annual reviews.

3. Define Your Audience

⬜ Determine which employees need the training and how their roles differ in responsibilities.

⬜ Segment audiences where appropriate (e.g., managers vs. frontline staff, new hires vs. experienced employees).

⬜ Consider language, accessibility, and cultural nuances to make the training inclusive and effective.

Pro Tip: Think about creating two separate compliance modules, when appropriate: one for senior managers and another for hourly associates. By tailoring scenarios to each group’s responsibilities, you can increase engagement and cut average course time by 15% (which reduces some costs) without losing content depth.

4. Choose the Right Delivery Format

⬜ Decide whether the training will be in-person, online, or blended.

⬜ For high-risk topics (e.g., safety, harassment prevention), consider interactive scenarios or role-plays for stronger retention.

⬜ Keep the format in line with any regulatory specifications (some require live or proctored sessions).

⬜ Consider piloting your delivery method with a small audience before rolling it out to the entire workforce. This helps identify potential technology issues, confusing navigation, or content gaps early.

Pro Tip: Avoid the trap of picking a delivery method solely because it’s quick or familiar. A format that works for cybersecurity compliance might fall flat for safety drills, and vice versa. Always match the method to the complexity, sensitivity, and risk level of the topic.

5. Build Engaging, Relevant Content

⬜ Avoid generic, one-size-fits-all modules by customizing scenarios to your industry and company.

⬜ Use real-world examples to show employees how compliance applies to their day-to-day work.

⬜ Incorporate active learning elements such as decision-making exercises, simulations, and quizzes to reinforce understanding.

Pro Tip: Compliance content often comes directly from legal text, but it doesn’t have to sound like it. Partner with your legal or compliance teams to ensure accuracy, then rewrite the language in plain terms and anchor it in scenarios employees might actually face. This not only improves understanding; it also reduces the chance of costly errors down the line.

6. Integrate Performance Support Tools

⬜ Provide quick-reference materials such as job aids, flowcharts, or FAQ sheets that employees can use after the training.

⬜ Make resources easy to find on your intranet or learning platform so employees can access them on the job.

⬜ Update these tools as policies or regulations change to ensure ongoing accuracy.

Pro Tip: Performance support tools extend the life of your compliance training and reduce the need for costly retraining. When employees have easy access to the right resource in the moment of need, they’re more likely to follow procedures correctly the first time.

7. Schedule and Track Completion

⬜ Create a clear training schedule that aligns with compliance deadlines.

⬜ Use your LMS or tracking system to monitor completion rates in real time.

⬜ Set automated reminders for employees approaching their due dates to reduce last-minute rushes.

Pro Tip: Assign a specific person or small team as the “content owner” for each compliance module so accountability for updates is clear.

8. Assess Knowledge and Application

⬜ Include knowledge checks throughout the course, not just at the end.

⬜ Consider scenario-based assessments to test real-world decision-making, not just recall.

⬜ Track post-training behavior changes through audits, observations, or follow-up interviews.

Pro Tip: A few months after your compliance training, run a quick pulse check using short interviews or scenario-based quizzes. You might discover that while the policy is clear, employees still stumble when applying it in complex situations. Address these gaps with a mini-module or job aid that directly addresses those scenarios.

9. Document Everything

⬜ Keep records of attendance, assessment results, and content updates for audit purposes.

⬜ Store documentation in a secure but accessible location for compliance officers and auditors.

⬜ Include training outlines, objectives, and facilitator credentials where required by regulation.

Pro Tip: Share real-world stories of compliance successes and failures during team meetings to make the importance of compliance more relatable and memorable.

10. Maintain and Update Content

⬜ Schedule periodic reviews of your compliance training content to reflect new laws, industry shifts, or internal policy updates.

⬜ Gather feedback from learners and supervisors to identify areas for improvement.

⬜ Incorporate recent case studies, incidents, or regulatory changes to keep content relevant and credible.

Pro Tip: If a specific compliance topic is required annually, consider ways to change up the content without overhauling the entire course. For instance, swap in new scenarios or add an interactive decision-making exercise while keeping the core compliance messages intact. This keeps repeat learners engaged year after year without unnecessary redevelopment work.

Compliance training doesn’t have to be dry, overwhelming, or a last-minute scramble to meet deadlines. By following a structured checklist, you ensure that your program meets regulatory requirements, aligns with business goals, and gives employees the tools they need to act confidently and correctly in their roles.

With the proper structure in place, compliance training becomes more than a legal checkbox. It becomes a true business asset. Whether you need to update a single course or overhaul your entire program, Michaels & Associates can help you deliver training that employees remember and regulators respect.