Can You Trust Your Vendor? Vetting Outsourced Compliance Training Providers
- LMSPortals
- Apr 6
- 5 min read
Compliance training isn’t optional. It protects your company from legal risk, supports ethical culture, and keeps regulators off your back. But with rising costs and evolving regulatory landscapes, many companies are outsourcing their compliance training to third-party vendors. That’s not a bad move—if you trust the provider.
The real question is: Should you?
Vendor relationships are built on trust. But when it comes to compliance, trust isn’t enough. You need evidence. You need systems. And you need to ask the right questions—because a weak training provider can expose your company to real risk.
Here’s how to properly vet an outsourced compliance training vendor before you sign the dotted line.
1. Understand What’s at Stake
Outsourcing compliance training means handing over part of your legal and reputational risk. If the training is weak, outdated, or misaligned with current laws, it could result in:
Regulatory penalties or investigations
Legal liability in the event of misconduct
Employee confusion or disengagement
Reputational damage
So it’s not just about picking a vendor who can deliver content. You need one who understands the regulatory landscape and aligns with your organization’s risk profile, industry, and culture.
2. Don’t Start with a Demo—Start with Strategy
Too many companies start with a product demo and skip straight to price. That’s backwards.
Start by defining your internal goals:
What do you want the training to achieve?
Which laws and regulations are you targeting (e.g., FCPA, HIPAA, GDPR)?
Are you training globally or domestically?
Do you need multilingual content?
Are you looking for off-the-shelf modules, customization, or fully bespoke training?
Without a clear strategy, you’ll end up buying a product that’s shiny but not effective.
3. Check Regulatory Expertise
A flashy eLearning module means nothing if the content isn’t legally accurate. You need to vet the vendor’s compliance credentials.
Ask:
Who writes the content?
Are legal experts involved in development?
How often is content reviewed or updated?
How do they handle regulatory changes (e.g., updated guidance from the DOJ or new EU privacy laws)?
Look for vendors that work with lawyers, former regulators, or compliance professionals—not just instructional designers.
Bonus points if they provide audit trails or legal citations for content.
4. Evaluate Instructional Design Quality
Compliance content is notoriously dry. Good vendors know how to make it engaging without dumbing it down.
Ask about:
Learning science behind the course structure
Use of scenarios, simulations, and interactivity
Adaptability for different learning styles or roles
Accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1, screen reader compatibility)
Mobile compatibility and LMS integration
Also, look at completion rates and knowledge retention data. A great course isn’t just completed—it’s remembered.
5. Demand Customization—But Know What You Need
Not every company needs custom content. Sometimes an off-the-shelf module on anti-bribery laws is enough. But when your risks are industry-specific or your code of conduct has unique requirements, generic won’t cut it.
Ask:
Can the vendor customize scenarios, branding, and terminology?
Do they allow internal subject matter experts (SMEs) to review or edit content?
Is the content flexible enough to integrate your policies, hotline info, or case studies?
But be careful—some vendors charge a premium for even minor edits. Know what you need, and don’t pay for more than that.
6. Ask About Global Coverage
If you operate globally, compliance training needs to reflect that. That includes legal jurisdictions, cultural context, and language.
Ask:
Is the content localized or just translated?
Do they cover local laws (e.g., China’s data laws, Brazil’s anti-corruption laws)?
Are voiceovers and subtitles available?
How do they handle cultural sensitivity in examples and tone?
Many U.S.-based vendors claim to be “global” but offer little beyond translation. Push for more.
7. Investigate Data Security and Privacy Practices
This is critical. Your training provider will likely handle employee names, IDs, emails, and training records. If they have weak cybersecurity, your employee data is at risk.
Check:
What data do they collect and store?
Where is the data hosted?
Are they GDPR, CCPA, or HIPAA compliant (if relevant)?
Do they offer data processing agreements (DPAs)?
What breach notification protocols are in place?
Also, review their SOC 2 reports or ISO 27001 certifications if available.
8. Review Integration and Reporting Capabilities
Training is only effective if you can track and prove it. Your vendor should make that easy.
Ask about:
LMS compatibility or whether they provide a standalone platform
SCORM, xAPI, or AICC compliance
Real-time dashboards for tracking completions and scores
Exportable data for audits or regulators
API access for syncing with HR or compliance tools
Also, ask if they provide pre-built compliance reports—useful when the auditors show up.
9. Check Their Client List and Case Studies
Reputation matters. So does experience in your industry.
Ask for:
A client list (or anonymized sectors if under NDA)
Case studies relevant to your regulatory environment
References or testimonials
If they’ve trained in highly regulated industries (financial services, pharma, energy), that’s a good sign.
Be wary of providers who won’t let you talk to a current client.
10. Ask the Right Questions About Pricing
Some vendors quote low but nickel-and-dime you for everything else. Others charge more but include unlimited access, updates, and customization.
Clarify:
Is pricing per user, per module, or annual license?
Are updates included in the base price?
Is there a fee for customization?
Are there limits on languages or locations?
What’s the total cost of ownership over 3 years?
A cheap vendor can cost more long-term if you’re hit with surprise charges.
11. Test Their Customer Support
Compliance doesn’t sleep. Neither should your vendor.
Test their support early:
How responsive is their team during the RFP process?
Do they offer a dedicated account manager?
What’s their average response time to technical issues?
Do they have 24/7 support or only business hours?
What’s their SLA (service-level agreement)?
Slow support during a compliance audit or launch can derail your program fast.
12. Ask How They Measure Effectiveness
Completion rates don’t equal comprehension. The best vendors help you measure actual learning and behavior change.
Look for:
Built-in assessments or quizzes
Pre- and post-training knowledge checks
Pulse surveys after modules
Metrics on user engagement (e.g., average time spent, replays)
Guidance on evaluating training ROI
If a vendor can’t show how their training reduces risk or increases awareness, they’re selling content, not compliance.
13. Trust, But Verify
Even after all the due diligence, keep your eyes open post-contract.
Review course content annually
Audit vendor updates for accuracy
Get employee feedback regularly
Set KPIs for your vendor and hold them to it
Trust your vendor—but build in accountability.
Final Thoughts: You’re Still Responsible
Outsourcing doesn’t outsource responsibility. Regulators don’t care if a third-party vendor wrote the bad training. If your program fails, the liability still lands on your desk.
So vet your compliance training provider like you’d vet a key executive hire. Do the work up front. Ask hard questions. Get documentation. And remember: the right vendor is a partner in risk management—not just a content factory.
About LMS Portals
At LMS Portals, we provide our clients and partners with a mobile-responsive, SaaS-based, multi-tenant learning management system that allows you to launch a dedicated training environment (a portal) for each of your unique audiences.
The system includes built-in, SCORM-compliant rapid course development software that provides a drag and drop engine to enable most anyone to build engaging courses quickly and easily.
We also offer a complete library of ready-made courses, covering most every aspect of corporate training and employee development.
If you choose to, you can create Learning Paths to deliver courses in a logical progression and add structure to your training program. The system also supports Virtual Instructor-Led Training (VILT) and provides tools for social learning.
Together, these features make LMS Portals the ideal SaaS-based eLearning platform for our clients and our Reseller partners.
Contact us today to get started or visit our Partner Program pages
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