The other day, one of my fellow Broadcats was talking about a request she found on a compliance message board that went something like this: I’m new to policy writing and would greatly appreciate anyone’s suggestion on webinars, tutorials, etc. as I hope to glean as much as I can on what makes them more effective.
First, I want to say kudos to the messenger for putting themselves out there! Policies are a cornerstone of a good compliance program, and we love it when folks ask for help making them effective rather than “how long should it be?” or “how do I quiz people on it?”
So let’s talk about how to write an effective policy—the kind people can actually understand, follow, and use in real life. Because when it comes to mitigating risk and providing guidance, a policy that just sits on your intranet collecting virtual dust isn't doing anyone any favors.
🚨 But first! Ask yourself, does this even need to be a policy? (Don’t have an existential crisis! We can help you untangle that question here.)
If the answer is “yes!” keep reading.
Start with what people need to do
Vague policies are basically corporate nonsense, and busy people who are trying to do their jobs the right way don’t have time to sift through mission statements and manifestos.
So, lead with action.
Instead of a ten-paragraph treatise on the history of the FCPA, the morality of bribery, and a link to the Fyre Festival documentary, just tell folks:
“Do not accept gifts valued at more than $50. Contact your manager or the Compliance Department with questions.”
Along those same lines, hyper-specificity can also get your point across.
Let’s look at the above example again. It doesn’t say “Do not accept expensive gifts.” It gives a clear dollar value and how to handle next steps.
Finally, do not include legalese or corporate jargon.
That said, yes, I know this is real life and sometimes you need to include all that nonsense for some arbitrary organizational hierarchical reason (which is a total bummer, and I’m sorry! 😩). If that’s the case, appease the powers-that-be with summaries! Let your headers do the heavy lifting and include an “about the policy” section (for the higher-ups). Then, use a policy overview template for an at-a-glance what-to-do (for the people who will actually use the policy).
Here's what this looks like based on our previous example.
About Corporate Gifting and Bribery:
At our company, we achieve synergy in part by staying up-to-date on legislative acts. Pursuant to the June 2025 Blanche memo, the FCPA has been revised to include…
Corporate Gifting: What to Do
Do not accept gifts valued at more than $50. Contact your manager or the Compliance Department with questions.
Ultimately, you’ll want to keep this central question in mind: if someone can read your policy and still say, “Wait, but what am I supposed to do?,” then it’s not a good policy.
Form follows function
You’ve heard this cliché, right? Basically, it means that something needs to work correctly first, and look pretty second. The same principle applies to your policy. First and foremost, it needs to be a good policy. (Remember: It needs to tell people what to do.)
Then, it needs to be presented in a way that makes sense. If it looks like a wall of words from a college textbook, it’s going to be ignored. (Did you read your college textbooks? Exactly.)
But don’t overcorrect! If it looks like a modernist masterpiece on display at the Met, it’s not really doing the trick either.
This is not a good dress code policy. | Source: FX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia via Giphy.com
The fix? Use headings, lists, bold text or italics, and white space. Feeling a little wacky? Try charts! Or icons! Or literally any of the products we offer in the Design Club! Once you see how well they work, you’ll realize they’re not that wacky after all. 😉
Finally, don’t let yourself fall into the “make it pretty” trap. Pretty for the sake of pretty is for TikTok skincare influencers. Pretty in pursuit of influencing behavior is for you.
Check your work
Think about some of the DIY projects you’ve worked on. If you’re like me, you’ve probably embarked on quite a few with energy and enthusiasm, only to have those feelings replaced after a while by fatigue and annoyance. And a mistake or twelve.
The point: Mistakes tend to happen when you’ve been working on something for a long time and are eager to get it done.
Need I say more? | Source: HBO's Game of Thrones via Decider.com
That’s where the concept of “fresh eyes” comes in. No matter your profession, it’s a best practice to have someone completely uninvolved in the development check your work.
This idea is especially true when you’re working on a group project. If you’ve got a handful of egos who insist that their section needs to be included, you could end up with a policy that’s more difficult to follow than some L.A. parking signs.
Source: Medium.com
In fact, even the DOJ is guilty of doing just that! (We think.) Our founder, Ricardo, had this theory about the weird organization of their antitrust guidance from six years ago:
Way #2. It was organized around the three fundamental questions at one point, but far too many people worked on this through far too many revisions and no one with fresh eyes actually mapped out the organization before going live to see if it still made sense.
Pro tip: Don’t make this harder than it needs to be. There’s a “how to check your policies” manual in the Clubhouse!!
Finally, the hard truth is, if you’ve run your checks correctly, you’ll likely have more work to do after you get your feedback. But don’t let that dissuade you! It means the people you’ve asked for help are genuinely interested in making this policy work well. And isn’t it nice when people actually care? 😻
The best policy
If you only have one takeaway from this entire post, let it be that the best policy is one that works. By adhering to these keys to drafting an effective policy, you’ll unlock your policy-writing potential and be a pro in no time.
And to the original message board poster—if you happen to be reading this, please let us know how your policy-writing goes. We’re rootin’ for ya!