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If you and your compliance team are jumping between separate systems just to track Slack messages, email threads, mobile chats, and collaboration tools, you're not alone. The digital-first workplace has made communication faster, but supervision more fragmented — and riskier than ever.
Regulators like the SEC, FINRA, and the CFTC have made it clear that all business-related communications must be captured, supervised, and auditable, no matter the channel. Yet many organizations struggle with siloed monitoring approaches that slow compliance efforts and leave vulnerabilities unchecked.
The answer is a single, unified view of employee communications in one system that captures everything — what I like to call a “single pane of glass” approach.
What is a ‘single pane of glass?
A single-pane-of-glass approach consolidates communications data from multiple channels into a single, real-time dashboard. The term doesn’t just refer to all the information being visible in one place, but also its transparency, as nothing is hidden or obscured. Instead of managing different supervision separately across email, chat, social media, and mobile, compliance teams can monitor through one interface. This means a holistic view of all employee interactions, ensuring greater efficiency, clarity, and regulatory adherence.
This unified approach helps compliance teams:
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Provide real-time monitoring across multiple channels.
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Automatically flag noncompliant language and behavior across all sources.
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Streamline audits and reporting for regulatory examinations.
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Align compliance, IT, and risk teams to work together with a shared source of truth.
With a centralized system, teams can spot issues faster, reduce false positives, and strengthen their response to potential violations.
It’s also important to distinguish what a true single pane of glass is not, and that’s a dashboard packed with submodules. Everything in that kind of setup might be technically accessible, but if you’re forced to click around to find what matters, it's missing the point. Key insights get buried, messages get missed, and the whole value of a unified view falls apart.
Why fragmented monitoring falls short
Regulators have made it clear: Failing to supervise digital communications properly will lead to fines. In recent years, financial institutions have faced millions in fines due to gaps in their monitoring capabilities, particularly around unauthorized messaging apps and personal devices.
Here’s what’s at stake:
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Regulatory noncompliance: Disconnected systems make it harder to capture, search, and audit all relevant communications.
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Operational inefficiencies: It’s not uncommon for compliance teams to spend up to 12 hours a week navigating between different monitoring systems, as reported by Smarsh. That kind of manual effort adds up — and pulls focus away from higher-value tasks.
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Exposures to fines and reputational damage: Missed violations due to fragmented oversight can lead to financial penalties and unwanted attention.
Without a unified system, firms are left reacting to issues after they occur, often under intense scrutiny.
What to look for in an effective unified supervision platform
Not all single-pane-of-glass solutions are created equal. To be effective, a platform needs to deliver more than just aggregation. It should be purpose-built for capturing complex communications channels, flexible enough to adapt, and easy to use across teams.
Key features to prioritize:
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Comprehensive channel coverage: email, instant messaging, social media, collaboration tools (Teams, Slack, Zoom), SMS, and more
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Automated surveillance: automated keyword tracking, sentiment analysis, and anomaly detection to proactively flag risks and regulatory violations.
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Audit & reporting tools: easy access to communication history in the event of regulatory requests and internal reviews.
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Scalability & integration: a solution that integrates with the existing compliance infrastructure and evolves with regulatory developments.
Choosing a platform where you can leverage these capabilities can improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance risk mitigation.
How to start implementing a single-pane-of-glass strategy
Transitioning to a unified supervision approach requires careful planning, but it’s worthwhile. With the right planning, this move will deliver long-term value across compliance, risk, IT, and overall business performance.
Here’s how firms can get started:
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Assess current gaps: Identify where compliance monitoring is fragmented, incomplete, and where risks exist.
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Define key compliance goals: Ensure alignment with relevant requirements from the SEC, FINRA, the FCA (the UK), ASIC (Australia), etc., depending on your location.
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Select the tight technology partner: Look for platforms that integrate easily, offer strong customer support, and specialize in regulated industries.
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Secure cross-functional buy-in: Engage IT, compliance, and risk teams to ensure a smooth rollout and long-term adoption.
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Monitor & adapt: Continuously refine supervision policies as regulations and communications trends evolve.
A successful single-pane-of-glass strategy not only enhances compliance but also improves operational efficiency and agility in an increasingly complex regulatory environment.
The future of communications supervision is unified
With regulators tightening oversight on digital communications, compliance leaders must adopt a proactive approach. Now is the time to evaluate your current compliance framework and explore unified supervision solutions. A single-pane-of-glass approach gives compliance leaders a more efficient and scalable way to manage risk.
By consolidating communications oversight, compliance leaders can focus on strategic risk management rather than reactive firefighting, future-proofing their communications compliance programs, and ensuring they’re always one step ahead of evolving regulations.
David Clee is the CEO of MirrorWeb and a member of the company's board of directors. He co-founded MirrorWeb, bringing more than 20 years of technology leadership, computer software expertise, and executive management experience to his role with the company.
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Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
