A recently released study casts light on the ongoing tension between marketing and legal/compliance departments in the financial services sector. This strain is exacerbated by outdated approval processes for marketing materials that are increasingly seen as unfit for the current, complex environment.
The study, commissioned by software company Red Marker, surveyed 521 senior professionals in the fields of legal, compliance, and marketing across financial services companies in the UK, US, and Australia. The surveyed firms include retail and investment banks as well as asset management firms, each employing over 5,000 staff.
According to the study, 83% of senior compliance and marketing professionals see their relationship as adversarial. Furthermore, 81% of marketers believe compliance interferes with their work, while 83% of compliance specialists think that marketing teams would rather shift blame than take responsibility when their content faces external challenges.
Mark Wood, COO at Red Marker, said: “The tension between marketing and legal/compliance in financial services illustrates that the delicate balance between creativity and compliance can easily become adversarial.” Wood elaborated on the need for a more efficient relationship between the two departments. He added: “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 study also revealed that the teams largely agree on the need for technology to streamline the review process. A resounding 95% of the professionals surveyed think that an AI-based tool for scanning and highlighting marketing content for compliance and brand risks would be beneficial. However, there are concerns about accountability should the AI tool fail to identify a risk.
Wood concluded: “One of the key barriers between these teams is the stereotypes: marketers seeing legal and compliance as being deliberately hindering, versus legal/compliance teams seeing marketers as too ‘gung-ho’.” He emphasized that cooperation is essential for improving business processes and meeting overall goals, stating, “That means having constructive conversations – and it could also mean using AI-driven technology to enhance processes by focusing on automation and standardisation.”
