Could You Get Shark Tank to Invest in Compliance?

The Preframe

Calling all CEOs, Boards, and leaders across organizations, small and large, as they consider how best to embed ethics and compliance in their organizations.

Welcome to the latest edition of the Untold Compliance newsletter. This week, we’re focusing on an unsung hero of the compliance toolkit: the art of "selling" compliance. To illustrate the point, I’ve reimagined compliance as a pitch to Shark Tank investors.

This article draws inspiration from Mark Cuban’s Master Class and his 13-year run as a shark on Shark Tank. Mark’s straightforward, innovative approach to business has impacted countless companies. One of his standout lines is:

“Learn to sell. In business, you’re always selling: to your prospects, investors, and employees. To be the best salesperson, put yourself in the shoes of the person to whom you’re selling. Don’t sell your product. Solve their problems.”

This idea resonates profoundly when we consider how we "sell" compliance. Compliance isn’t just a process; it’s a solution to prevent organizational risks. But are we "selling" it effectively to employees, leaders, and stakeholders?

Drawing on the insights of compliance education expert Jason Meyer and experts in marketing and compliance, Alan Tepper and Robin Lee 李显龙 as well as my work with hundreds of compliance teams and thousands of employees, I asked myself: Could we pitch compliance to the sharks and secure their investment?

Let’s find out.

About this newsletter

This newsletter isn't just another read; it's a whole new way of looking at legal and compliance. By integrating insights from a diverse array of fields—think psychology, neuroscience, economics, physics and beyond—with seasoned legal and compliance expertise, we're crafting a narrative that legal, ethics and compliance in organisations is a catalyst for innovation.

The information in this newsletter is not intended to be used as legal advice. I would be happy to provide specific legal or compliance advice if you have any specific questions. Just email me at nicole@untoldcompliance.com.

Alternatively consult with a qualified professional for advice tailored to your specific situation.

If Compliance Was a Product, Would It Make It on Shark Tank? 

For the uninitiated, Shark Tank features a panel of investors ("sharks") who hear business pitches and decide whether to invest their own money. They ask hard-hitting questions, probing for weaknesses. The goal is to determine whether the product or service being pitched has the potential for growth and profitability. 

Now imagine compliance as a product. We’re pitching it to the sharks. 

Pitching Compliance: The Pitch

I start strong:

"Sharks, we have a unique product called Compliance. It safeguards your business, protects your reputation, and helps you sleep better at night. With it, your employees will make better decisions, your operations will run smoothly, and you’ll stay out of legal trouble. It’s a no-brainer!" 

The sharks nod. Then come the questions: 

Shark: Who Will Run the Business?

Me: “I’ve got a great Chief Compliance Officer and a team of experts—all trained in legal, audit, and compliance. They ensure we meet every regulatory requirement."

One of the sharks leans forward.

Shark: "Sounds top-heavy. Where’s the marketing and sales leadership?"

Me: We rely on HR, Marketing, and L&D to communicate compliance messages and push out training to employees.

Shark: "So, no dedicated team responsible for ‘selling’ compliance to employees every day?"

Me: “Well, no,” I admit. “Our compliance experts handle it alongside their other duties.”

The sharks exchange glances, sensing a gap.

Sales, Marketing, and Customer Experience Gaps

Shark: "How are you getting employees to engage with compliance every day? Who’s leading that effort?"

Me: "Our compliance team includes it as part of their role, but they’ve picked up communication skills on the job."

Shark: "How about repeat business from your existing customers?" He then goes on to explain I hate it when organizations give the best deals and attention to new customers. He then quotes his marketing adviser, Alan Tepper of TepFu:  

 “Companies that only speak to you when it's renewal time aren’t buying relationships and that increases the cost of sales for most. Retention is still cheaper than recruitment.”  

 Me: “Well, um” I stumble again “all employees can go through the onboarding process at anytime, I guess.”  

The sharks press on, highlighting more gaps:

Shark: "Do you have a strategy that reaches neurodivergent employees, visual learners, or those who prefer interactive content?" 

I don’t have an immediate answer to this, and in my pause the sharks share a shake of their heads.   

Shark: "What market research have you done? Have you asked employees how they want to learn? What’s your strategy for keeping compliance engaging over time?"

Me: I stumble, explaining that "we have policies and annual training."

But the sharks are unimpressed.

Shark: "And what kind of investment do you need?"

Me: "Simple. You need to give time and resources to every employee so they can read our policies, attend training, and apply it daily."

The Overconfidence Syndrome (OCS) 

At this point, I begin to understand one of the issues: Overconfidence Syndrome (OCS). We often assume employees know what to do because the information is available—whether through policies, annual training, or the onboarding process. Yet, like drivers who overestimate their abilities, many employees think they understand compliance, but they may not act on it consistently. 

Psychology Today references research to show that 93% of American drivers rate themselves as better-than-average drivers (Ola Svenson, ‘Are We Less Risky and More Skillful than Our Fellow Drivers?’, Acta Psychologica, 47 (1981), 143–51). It’s a statistical impossibility! Similarly, compliance teams often overestimate how well employees grasp the material, assuming “they should know better.” 

In reality, compliance failures often result from employees’ lack of awareness, even if the policies and training exist. 

Transforming Compliance from a Feature to a Product

Many might see asking for investment in compliance (whether time or money) as overly simplistic for something so complex. But as my friend Robin Lee 李显龙 , GM for APAC HAWK:AI, (AI for transaction monitoring, screening, and customer risk rating) shares:  

 “Let me quote Steve Jobs when he made a 9 figure offer to the founder of Dropbox. He famously underestimated it calling it “a feature and not a product.  Dropbox walked away."   

Dropbox ended up creating something so popular that ‘Dropbox me’ became a common phrase. That never would have happened if they had accepted being ‘just a feature.’"

Compliance, like Dropbox, should never settle for being just a feature—it must be a valuable product in its own right. To get there, compliance must be marketed and positioned as a product employees embrace. We have to approach compliance with the same care as any leading product: with smart marketing, clear benefits, and ongoing engagement.

Using a Product-Led Approach for Compliance

Product-led growth (PLG) focuses on the product driving user engagement. For compliance, this means making it accessible and engaging right from the start. Instead of overwhelming employees with policy documents, break it down into interactive modules or micro-trainings that show the value of compliance in their daily work.

The User Experience: Integrate compliance into employees’ everyday tasks, demonstrating how it supports them. When they see compliance as a tool rather than a burden, they’ll engage more fully, leading to better outcomes.

How to Get the Sharks to Invest 

Here’s how I would reframe the pitch to the sharks: 

• Multidisciplinary Team: Build a team with skills that not only include compliance, legal, and audit experts but also marketers, communication strategists, and tech professionals to create engaging content and a compelling compliance product. This may mean outsourcing some parts and I highly recommend Alan Tepper for Campaigns and Marketing, Celina Guerrero for internal branding and marketing on platforms such as yammer and Jason Meyer and, of course, Untold Compliance for producing engaging training and communications.

• Customer-Centric Strategy: Develop compliance as a user-friendly product that evolves based on feedback. It needs a brand and customer journey—an experience that employees enjoy engaging with, not just tolerate. 

• Marketing and Sales Leadership: Ensure your team is dedicated to continuously "sell" compliance internally, emphasising the value to employees. For more ideas on this, check out my article following my interview with Marc Lawn Using Compliance to Enhance Job Performance: Critical Thinking the Compliance Way

• Retention Focus: Treat existing employees like repeat customers—don’t wait for annual training to interact with them. Instead, provide ongoing, engaging touch points that remind them of compliance in creative ways. 

7 Action Items to Make Compliance a Shark Tank-Worthy Product 

1. Develop a Marketing Plan: Build an internal marketing plan for compliance, with clear strategies, target audiences, and messaging. 
2. Rebrand Compliance: Position compliance as a product to be embraced, not a service to be endured. 
3. Refine the Compliance Product: Continuously improve compliance by seeking employee feedback and refining training methods and communications based on real-world application. 
4. Focus on Customer Retention: Engage employees regularly—don’t just rely on annual training. Use micro-learning, videos, internal comms such as Yammer and regular touch points to maintain engagement. 
5. Simplify Policies and Training: Use clear, concise language and formats tailored to all learning types (visual, auditory, kinesthetic). 
6. Create Cross-Functional Teams: Bring in experts from marketing, communications, and tech to help package compliance into an attractive product. 
7. Invest in Communication: Treat your internal compliance messaging with the same level of sophistication and care as external marketing. 

Final Thoughts 

Pitching compliance to Shark Tank isn’t just an exercise in imagination—it’s a reflection of how we need to rethink ethics and compliance programs in our organizations.

If we can sell compliance as a product, not just a feature, we’ll create a more engaged, responsible, and legally protected workforce.

Compliance can—and should—be a bestseller. 

Thanks for reading.

Nicole

Nicole Rose

Untold Compliance Co-host of the Eight Mindsets Podcast

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