EU Compliance
The Designated Officer: Role, Duties and Legal Responsibilities
How to appoint, empower and protect the person responsible for your internal reporting channel.
Szerző: Alexandru Cojoaca
Who can be the designated officer?
National laws typically allow appointment of an internal employee (compliance, legal, HR senior) or an external specialist (law firm, DPO service). Independence and absence of conflicts of interest are essential.
Core duties
- Receive and document reports
- Send 7-day acknowledgement
- Conduct or coordinate investigation within 3 months
- Maintain the electronic register
- Ensure confidentiality and data minimisation
- Report to management / board where required
- Cooperate with regulators if external escalation occurs
Documentation requirements
The appointment decision should be in writing, reference the applicable national law, define scope and resources, and be communicated to staff. QReportly includes Word templates adapted per country.