What makes Connect, Onspring’s user conference, so special? It’s not just the product announcements or the sessions on the agenda. It is the people. It is the conversations in hallways and over coffee where teams share what they are building and why it matters. It is the moment when someone realizes they are not alone in the challenges they face.

Connect 2025 was full of those moments.

Across industries and roles, we heard one clear theme. When work feels easier and information is accessible, people are more confident, more engaged and better equipped to protect their organizations. That is what modern compliance looks like, and our customers are showing how to get there.

Here are the 10 key takeaways from this year’s customer showcases followed by a look ahead at the excitement around Onspring AI.

1. Centralizing compliance brings clarity.

A higher education institution shared how compliance activities were once spread across spreadsheets and inboxes, making visibility nearly impossible. After centralizing obligations in a single system, every requirement has an owner and every deadline has accountability. This improved transparency allows leaders to quickly see what needs attention and where new regulations may require support.

2. Policy management works better when workflow and content connect.

One university discussed the complexity of maintaining nearly 900 policies with varied formats and approval paths. Standardizing processes in one place helps keep everything consistent and accessible. The ability to connect policy content to external standards makes it easier for users to stay aligned with evolving requirements.

3. One source of truth reduces risk.

In healthcare, accuracy is everything. A leading healthcare provider shared how consolidating entity and governance data strengthened regulatory response times and helped protect vulnerable populations with confidence. A single view of every entity’s standing reduces uncertainty and supports expansion into new regions without unnecessary delays.

4. Global teams succeed with localized experiences.

Compliance loses momentum when users do not understand the process. A retail and consumer goods organization increased participation by offering surveys and forms in native languages. This approach also reduced the need for manual translation and corrections within internal teams.

5. Automation improves consistency.

A major player in logistics explained how manual spreadsheets slowed compliance testing and created bottlenecks. With automated workflows, tasks reach the right individuals at the right moment. Teams spend less time chasing updates and more time analyzing outcomes. Automation also preserves institutional knowledge when roles or responsibilities shift.

6. Dashboards help leaders act faster.

That same logistics team also highlighted how real-time dashboards provide the visibility needed to spot trends and issues early. Instead of searching for data, leaders can collaborate quickly and make timely decisions with confidence.

7. Better onboarding strengthens compliance.

As the organization brings new personnel and equipment into service, automated onboarding ensures nothing falls through the cracks. Structured workflows keep licenses, permits and readiness tasks on track so compliance is built into the process rather than added as an afterthought.

8. Third-party risk management should feel simple.

A leading travel and services company shared that complicated surveys were discouraging vendors from completing assessments. Moving to guided questionnaires created a smoother experience for everyone involved. It also improves data quality because users are less likely to abandon tasks or provide incomplete answers.

9. Clear guidance drives adoption.

This same organization also noted that simplifying dashboards and reducing distractions helped increase response rates. When users understand what to do and why, compliance becomes achievable rather than daunting. This shift helps risk teams build trust and establish compliance as a shared responsibility across the business.

10. Onspring scales to fit any organization.

From education to logistics to healthcare, these stories show that flexibility and resilience are a hallmark of success. Onspring adapts to each organization’s pace of change, supporting complexity without slowing progress. It gives teams the freedom to mature and expand their programs when they are ready, rather than forcing a rigid structure before the organization is prepared.

Onspring AI is Here.

One of the most exciting moments at Connect 2025 was the official announcement of Onspring AI. First released during the summer through our Early Adopters Program (EAP), Onspring gave customers a chance to explore its potential and help shape the experience before the launch. Their feedback and results set the stage for its debut at Connect. Built directly into the platform, Onspring AI offers a smarter, more intuitive way to manage compliance and governance, so teams can work more effectively and efficiently without adding tools or complexity.

Onspring AI supports the work compliance teams do every day, including:

• Creating documentation faster with suggested content that saves time and improves clarity
• Identifying patterns and relationships across controls, risks and regulations
• Providing guided next steps so every user can complete tasks with confidence
• Strengthening governance and privacy with AI that fits within existing controls
• Summarizing complex files instantly using optical character recognition (OCR) to extract key insights from reports and evidence
• Reducing duplicate work by identifying redundant content before it spreads
• Configuring prompts to match each organization so responses fit the tone and terminology

Every capability is designed with governance in mind. Onspring’s AI operates within the same secure environment customers already trust, and it can be enabled at the pace that fits each organization.

Most importantly, Onspring AI supports people rather than replacing them. It handles the repeatable work so compliance teams can focus on judgment, strategy and meaningful change. That is the real promise of AI in GRC.

Thank you for being part of Connect

You drive every improvement we prioritize and every feature we deliver. Your creativity and curiosity are what make Connect special. If you want to explore any of these solutions or bring a new idea to fruition, we are here to help.

We look forward to continuing the conversations that started in Nashville and seeing how your teams bring these ideas to life in the year ahead. Until then, thank you for your partnership and for trusting us with the work that matters most.