Jennifer, I think you're largely on target. "Due diligence" as you describe it is often a polite way of saying "sheep-dipped." E.g., if as a corporation I've required all my employees to complete a course on EEO and sexual-harassment rules, then if someone sues because an employee violates those rules, I have an immediate defense that all employees knew, or should have known, the requirements.

The first thing the lawyers will ask for in discovery is the content of the training course; the second is the roster that proves you attended it. Arguments about how learning occurs won't go far in court.

For most of last year, I was heavily involved in procedures relating to pharmaceutical manufacturing. I haven't thought too much about what the alternative would be to the existing system of voluminous standard operating procedures combined with employee training, much of it "read and understand." (That is, read the update to the SOP, and sign to say you understand what you read.)

I say "alternative" in terms of what could demonstrate capability to, say, the Food and Drug Administration.