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What Does a Compliance Manager Do?

What Does a Compliance Manager Do

Regulatory compliance has become increasingly important as regulatory agencies have started to heavily regulate every industry, especially the healthcare industry and the financial services industry. That’s why organizations have started to hire a compliance manager to assist them with their compliance issues.

The compliance department works with the legal department to ensure all other departments and company is compliant with the relevant laws, rules, and compliance standards of the industry. Since each industry has different compliance standards and regulations, you’ll find industry-specific compliance experts.

Compliance professionals tend to spend years learning about corporate compliance, legal requirements, and more. Their specialization determines what industry they’re going to be an expert in.

In this article, we’ll take a closer look into the roles, job duties, job responsibilities, skills, and qualifications of the compliance manager. If you’re interested in learning via video, then click play. Otherwise, skip ahead.

https://youtu.be/CS-hdoc3c5c

Let’s jump right in.

What Does a Compliance Manager Do – Typical Roles in Organizations

Compliance managers often work with corporate compliance officers and compliance specialists. The compliance manager usually oversees all the company policies, compliance practices, and corporate compliance programs.

Smaller organizations tend to have a limited compliance team, usually consisting of a compliance manager only. In most cases, they just outsource corporate compliance because it can be expensive to hire a compliance manager in-house.

Larger organizations and enterprises have entire departments dedicated to compliance management. They work closely with the legal, human resources, and finance departments. Other than that, they work closely with the auditing, business administration, and risk assessment teams.

The compliance manager’s role changes according to different industries and organizations. For example, in the financial services industry, the compliance manager’s job is crucial to the success of the company as they will be conducting internal audits, implementing policies, and more.

On the other hand, a compliance manager in the restaurant industry would only be responsible for maintaining good kitchen conditions, fire hazard safety, and real estate compliance.

Working in different industries gives compliance managers varying perspectives. However, it’s always advisable to work in one single industry and develop a reputation in it.

Some of the most common industries compliance managers can specialize in include:

  • Financial Services
  • Healthcare
  • Insurance
  • Medical Device
  • Pharmaceutical
  • Manufacturing

The compliance manager job description usually varies according to each industry and organization. Things like the job title and compensation can vary, depending on how many years of experience you have top.

Many compliance managers tend to work as consultants because it provides them with more experience, range, and opportunities. However, if you have a large organization, it’s best to hire a compliance manager in-house to consistently maintain regulatory compliance.

What Does a Compliance Manager Do – Duties and Tasks

Each compliance manager can have slightly different duties, tasks, and responsibilities that vary according to the industry and company. However, the general gist of their job remains the same.

There are always a clear set of duties for each compliance manager, and on top of that, there are some industry-specific responsibilities. Those industry-specific duties tend to increase if it’s a heavily regulated industry.

The following duties, tasks, and responsibilities are what the typical compliance manager has to manage.

  • Manage and work with compliance analysts, compliance officers, compliance specialists, general counsel, and other stakeholders.
  • Monitor and identify any existing and new compliance issues that require investigation or a follow-up.
  • File any relevant compliance reports with the appropriate regulatory agencies.
  • Discuss ongoing compliance issues with the management and employees to ensure everyone’s on the same page. Inform each party about the various compliance reporting systems, practices, and company policies.
  • Consult with the legal team, corporate attorneys, and other stakeholders to address legal compliance issues.
  • Maintain the necessary documentation of compliance activities, including things like internal audits, investigation outcomes, complaints, and more.
  • Conduct, direct, and oversee any internal investigation or corporate compliance audits related to compliance issues.
  • Ensure that the company follows local, state, and federal government regulations so there are no issues.
  • Ensure ethical integrity in all compliance and company matters.
  • Oversee the workflow of the compliance team.
  • Develop new written and verbal policies and regulations within the company.
  • Conduct regular audits to ensure everything is on track.
  • Evaluate each team member and employee’s knowledge about work-related laws and federal regulations.

The duties, tasks, and responsibilities listed above are what’s expected from every compliance manager. Each task may have an industry-specific element involved. Similarly, there are also some industry-specific duties that may pop up.

What Does a Compliance Manager Do – Skills and Abilities

Compliance managers work with a very specific set of skills and knowledge. Their duties and responsibilities may vary slightly, but their skills and abilities remain the same. The only difference you may notice is if a certain industry requires you to have particular skills and knowledge.

However, on average, the compliance manager is expected to have the following skills and abilities.

  • The compliance manager needs to know everything about conducting compliance checks, audits, and more.
  • Needs to be able to make sense of information technology.
  • You need complete proficiency in all Microsoft Office products, including Excel, Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and SharePoint.
  • Should have a working knowledge of compliance software.
  • It’s important to know how to use various compliance tools and auditing software.
  • Keeping a close and healthy relationship with regulators and regulatory agencies is critical.
  • Excellent organization skills are required for effective management.
  • Top-notch interpersonal and communication skills are crucial to manage compliance teams and report to senior management. Strong people skills ensure compliance managers can keep everyone at the same level of understanding.
  • Effective problem-solving skills are needed to quickly resolve compliance issues.
  • Critical thinking ability is necessary for quick assessment and interpretations of situations.
  • Need to be extremely creative, have integrity, and great decision-making skills.
  • Complete knowledge about business technology is crucial.
  • A complete understanding and knowledge of regulatory law, guidelines, and security policies is crucial.
  • Research and analytical skills are necessary in case you need to know about new laws and regulations.

The abilities and skills listed above are what each compliance manager should possess, regardless of their specialization and industry. However, once you’ve decided on an industry, you should focus on getting industry-specific skills and abilities too.

What Does a Compliance Manager Do – Qualifications

Compliance managers need to have some specific qualifications that are required by every industry and company. Some companies may ask for some industry-specific qualifications too. However, the major qualifications you need include the following.

  • A high school diploma is required, or anything equivalent. A Bachelor’s Degree in business, law, accounting, or a related field is also necessary. A Master’s Degree is expected but isn’t absolutely necessary.
  • At least 5-10 years of experience in compliance management, auditing, and analysis is required.
  • Should have completed some training modules so it shows you’re familiar with compliance practices.
  • Have some compliance certifications under your build, including the CRCM (Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager), CRISC (Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control, and ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) certifications, among others.

The qualifications listed above are what every compliance manager should be aiming for.

How to Become a Compliance Manager

Compliance managers can earn varying amounts because they work in-house and as consultants in some cases. That’s why it’s hard to pin one accurate salary figure.

However, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average compliance manager or officer earns around $72,850 per year.

On the other hand, according to Glassdoor, the average compliance manager salary is around $81,353 per year. Furthermore, the average range is between $55,000 and $116,000, with the higher end being offered in places like New York, California, and New Hampshire.

The compliance manager salary mostly depends on the industry, as heavily-regulated industries tend to have higher compliance salaries. However, it also depends on the organization, experience, and overall reputation.

It takes years of experience to reach a level where you can apply to become a compliance manager. Typically, here’s how the career path for a compliance manager goes about.

  1. Earn your bachelor’s degree and any necessary certifications
  2. Start with an internship in compliance management
  3. Start to apply in entry-level positions
  4. Once you’ve gained proficiency, get some related certifications.
  5. After the required experience, qualifications, and certifications, start to apply for compliance manager positions.

Meanwhile, polish your communication, problem-solving, decision-making, and analytical skills. Keep up to date with all compliance news. The best way to do that is to follow some compliance newsletters.

Develop and implement corporate compliance plans, programs, and enact new policies to maximize your experience.

Most importantly, build a working relationship with regulators and regulatory agencies.

Becoming a Great Compliance Manager

While compliance manager job descriptions may change up a bit, their general duties remain the same. If you want to become a great compliance manager, you need to set up a clear career path.

To do that, choose one industry you want to specialize in and focus on getting compliance roles in that industry. It’s advisable to work in specific organizations to further specialize and build a niche for yourself.

Once you do that, focus on getting relevant certifications, and gather as much knowledge about regulatory practices, laws, and programs as you can.

Most importantly, build great relationships with regulatory agencies and other compliance professionals.

However, your number one priority as a compliance manager should always be to avoid conflicts of interest and favor compliance standards and laws in all cases.

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What Does a Compliance Specialist Do?

What Does a Compliance Specialist Do

Over the last few decades, the importance of regulatory compliance has increased a lot, especially in heavily-regulated industries like the financial services and healthcare industry. That’s why a lot of companies now hire a compliance specialist or compliance analyst.

The compliance team works with the legal team to ensure that the organization is compliant with all the relevant laws, rules, compliance standards of the industry. Since each industry will have different compliance standards, compliance specialists would need to be experts of specific industries.

However, there are different levels of compliance specialists, such as Compliance Specialist I, Compliance Specialist II, and so on. That determines whether they’re general compliance specialists or specialize in a certain industry or niche.

In this article, we’ll take a closer look into the roles, job duties, job responsibilities, abilities, and qualifications of the compliance specialist.

Let’s dive right in.

What Does a Compliance Specialist Do – Typical Roles in Organizations

Compliance specialists are often called corporate compliance officers in some organizations. However, in bigger companies, there’s a difference between compliance specialists, compliance officers, and compliance analysts.

Smaller organizations tend to have a very limited legal and compliance team. At times, they outsource corporate compliance because it can be expensive to hire in-house compliance experts.

Alternatively, medium and large organizations have complete legal and compliance departments that are dedicated to regulatory compliance. Enterprises have separate departments for different compliance issues, such as auditing, benefits administration, risk management, and more.

Depending on the industry and organization, the compliance specialist role changes due to differentiating job descriptions. For example, compliance specialists in smaller companies will also be managing compliance officer and analyst duties.

On the other hand, bigger companies would hire compliance specialists depending on their specialization. For example, if a company needs a compliance specialist for auditing, they would start looking for compliance specialists who specialize in financial services and auditing.

As a compliance professional, you have a lot of flexibility in choosing where to work and what industry to work in. That’s why most compliance specialists work as third-party consultants.

In any case, you’ll find plenty of compliance specialists in the following industries.

  • Healthcare
  • Medical Device
  • Insurance
  • Biotechnology
  • Financial Services and Banking
  • Pharmaceutical
  • Manufacturing

Furthermore, compliance specialists can have varying roles in different industries and capacities. Some common roles include the following.

  • Business Compliance Specialist
  • Contract Compliance Specialist
  • Trade Compliance Specialist
  • Environmental Compliance Specialist

Each compliance specialist role ties to a specific business function. That’s why compliance specialists tend to specialize in any single industry, company type, and department.

That’s also why many compliance specialists work as consultants. It’s convenient for both them and the organizations to find a compliance specialist with relevant knowledge rather than hiring some full-time.

What Does a Compliance Specialist Do? Duties and Tasks

Since each compliance specialist may be specializing in something different, they will have varying duties, tasks, and responsibilities. It mostly depends on the industry and the organization, but also on what the compliance specialist chose to focus on. However, there are still some pretty clear set of duties and tasks that every compliance specialist needs to be able to perform.

In any case, the following duties, tasks, and responsibilities are what the typical compliance specialist has to manage.

  • Report to senior compliance specialists, compliance managers, compliance heads, corporate compliance officers, or chief compliance officers. Relay any necessary information regarding the latest changes in laws, compliance standards, and more.
  • Continually research different rules, laws, and regulations by reviewing government bulletins, federal updates, news briefs, and other sources of information.
  • Update all the relevant departments on any changes in the compliance standards or company rules. That includes the finance, human resources, legal, and other departments. Compliance specialists have to update them on compliance guidelines, regulatory filing information, and the appropriate documentation process.
  • Ensure that the organization is up to date on all the relevant regulatory and licensing requirements. Make sure that it’s in accordance with the company, industry, state, and federal regulations.
  • Develop, implement, and enforce procedures and policies related to the company’s processes, products, facilities, and more.
  • In case of violations, conduct relevant audits and investigations. After that, recommend areas for improvement by developing roadmaps for remediation.
  • Work with other third-party auditors if required.
  • Help other employees get the necessary regulatory documentation, training, or reports whenever it’s required.
  • Enact any necessary corrective actions wherever it’s required.

The duties, tasks, and responsibilities listed above are what every compliance specialist needs to be able to do. However, each organization will have some company-specific duties in their job descriptions.

What Does a Compliance Specialist Do – Skills and Abilities

The compliance specialist job can have varying duties and tasks, but the skills and abilities required mostly remain the same. The only difference that may come may be due to different industries requiring specific abilities and knowledge.

On average, the compliance specialist is expected to have the following skills and abilities.

  • Should know how to conduct complete corporate compliance audits, compliance checks, and more.
  • Need to be able to understand and work in information technology.
  • You need a complete understanding of all Microsoft Office products, including Word, SharePoint, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. Furthermore, you should also have a working knowledge of compliance software.
  • You should know how to use various auditing and compliance tools.
  • It’s crucial to have excellent research and analytical skills to keep updated on all existing and new laws, rules, and regulations.
  • It’s also best to have a good relationship with the regulatory agencies.
  • Ideally, you should know your way around various online sites like LinkedIn.
  • Critical communication skills are necessary to work with other compliance professionals in the company and to communicate with external stakeholders.
  • Knowledge about various laws and regulations, such as the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulation, is required.
  • Problem-solving skills are crucial to rectify any compliance issues that will pop up. It’s important to instantly remediate any issues to avoid long-term problems.
  • Strong verbal skills and technical proficiency is needed to relay relevant information easily and quickly.
  • There is also a need to be extremely detail-oriented to notice any slight changes immediately.
  • Excellent follow-up skills are required to keep up with the projects, tasks, corporate compliance plans, and remediation tasks.

The abilities and skills listed above are what each compliance specialist should possess, regardless of their specialization. However, it’s also important to work on getting industry-specific skills.

What Does a Compliance Specialist Do – Qualifications

As a compliance specialist, you need to have some specific qualifications that are required by every industry and company. Some of the major qualifications you need to become a compliance specialist include the following.

  • A high school diploma is required, along with a college degree. A Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Accounting, or any related field will work.
  • A Master’s Degree is not a requirement but can be very useful when looking for a job.
  • At least five years of experience in compliance auditing, compliance analysis, or any relevant compliance job is required.
  • Prior experience in big companies like Microsoft, Wells Fargo, and the likes of them is beneficial.
  • It’s best to have at least one corporate compliance program under your name.
  • Getting certifications in industry-specific compliance fields can be helpful, such as being certified in healthcare compliance.

The qualifications above are what the ideal compliance specialist should be aiming toward for maximum job eligibility.

How to Become a Compliance Specialist

Compliance specialist salaries tend to fluctuate because they’re very different for in-house and consulting compliance specialists. In any case, you can still find the average salary of a compliance specialist on various sites.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average compliance specialist or officer earns around $72,850 per year.

Alternatively, according to Glassdoor, the average salary for a compliance specialist is $55,229. Furthermore, the average range is between $38,000 and $79,000, with the upper end being offered in cities like New York, Dallas, Arlington, and Los Angeles.

For the most part, the compliance specialist salary depends on the industry. The more regulations and laws the industry has, the more knowledge you need. For example, in the financial services industry, you can earn the most because there are a lot of laws, rules, and regulations in finance.

The compliance specialist job is not an entry-level job; it requires years of experience. That’s because you’re specializing in a specific industry and department. You need to have ample experience as a compliance officer or auditor to consider becoming a compliance specialist.

Furthermore, you need to polish your research and analytical skills. That’s because as a compliance specialist, you’ll constantly be researching regulations and analyzing company compliance standards.

Lastly, it’s best to keep a working relationship with regulatory agencies, regulatory bodies, and various regulatory personnel.

Becoming a Great Compliance Specialist

The job title of a compliance specialist may vary depending on the company, but your general duties and career paths will remain the same.

Becoming a great compliance specialist is all about having the right experience in the right industry. Once you choose your industry, try to work in specific types of companies and start specializing in any one thing, such as auditing.

Get all the relevant knowledge and qualifications required while also working on getting industry-specific certifications.

Build great relationships with regulatory bodies and also with fellow compliance professionals.

Most importantly, as a compliance specialist, always avoid conflicts of interest and favor compliance standards.

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What Does a Senior Compliance Analyst Do?

The regulatory requirements of the business world have been increasing, especially since the last two decades. That’s more true for heavily-regulated industries, such as the financial services and healthcare industry. That has led to companies hiring various compliance experts like the senior compliance analyst. 

The senior compliance analyst has to work with compliance officers and the legal department to ensure there’s minimal risk of lawsuits, fines, or other issues. Their role involves a lot of research, monitoring, and analysis. 

In this article, we’ll take a closer look into the roles, job duties, job responsibilities, and abilities of a senior compliance analyst. 

What Does a Senior Compliance Analyst Do – Typical Roles in Organizations 

The senior compliance analyst position is the next in line after the compliance analyst position. Senior compliance analysts have to maintain legal and regulatory compliance through proper research and analysis. They have to ensure regulatory requirements are met and that they have the necessary approvals. 

Some organizations tend to mix up different job types within the compliance department. For example, some organizations consider senior compliance analysts and senior compliance officers to be indifferent. Many job postings often use both the job titles when posting new jobs. The job alerts mostly depend on the company size and how the human resources department works there. 

However, in larger organizations, the roles are more distributed. That is why you’ll find compliance analysts, senior compliance analysts, compliance officers, compliance specialists, compliance managers, and more. In heavily-regulated industries, you might find specific roles like the senior financial analyst, data analyst, or risk analyst. 

In the United States, most organizations differentiate between different compliance roles due to increased regulation. As a result, there has been an increase in senior compliance analyst jobs and an even bigger difference in the senior compliance analyst salaries. You’ll find that most organizations tend to have different job descriptions now. 

Smaller organizations still focus on having a single compliance specialist rather than a complete department. In some cases, they outsource compliance services from various subject matter experts. 

In any case, senior compliance analysts tend to work with compliance officers and legal counsel. They offer support to compliance analysts, research compliance risks, and help develop new and improved compliance programs. 

The compliance head usually enlists the help of the senior compliance analyst during internal audits, surveys, and more. That’s because the senior compliance analyst is expected to be updated on all recent regulatory compliance requirements. 

What Does a Senior Compliance Analyst Do – Duties and Tasks 

Each senior compliance analyst will have slightly different duties, tasks, and responsibilities. The change usually occurs due to different industries, company types, and organizational structures. Therefore, you might find that some senior compliance analysts have to take on the duties of compliance officers, too, in some cases. However, there is a clear set of responsibilities and duties that every senior compliance analyst has to perform. 

In any case, the following duties, tasks, and responsibilities are what the typical compliance analyst has to manage. 

  • Report to the compliance lead, compliance manager, compliance lead, corporate compliance officer, or chief compliance officer with the necessary research, analysis, and advice. 
  • Research various laws, rules, and regulations by viewing the latest regulation news, federal updates, and more. Be up to date with the regulatory issues of major companies like the recent Citi regulatory issues. 
  • Keep all the departments up to date on the latest regulatory requirements documentation processes, and regulatory filing information. That includes legal, human resources, finance, accounting, IT, and other departments. You may have to write and communicate the guidelines to effectively relay the information. 
  • Obtain all the approvals from upper and compliance management by revising relevant rates, forms, and other documentation. 
  • Compile information on various compliance issues and update the necessary information. 
  • Maintain a working knowledge of the essential regulations, laws, and rules, such as the GDPR Data Privacy Regulations, the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) law, HIPAA, and more. 
  • Understand various employee compliance issues relating to things like sexual orientation, gender identity, personal information security, and more. 
  • Maintain a working relationship with regulatory agencies, regulatory bodies, and various regulators by developing better contracts and timely resolving concerns. 

The responsibilities, tasks, and duties listed above are what the average senior compliance analyst should be able to do. 

What Does a Senior Compliance Analyst Do – Skills and Abilities 

Senior compliance analysts may have varying duties and responsibilities, but the skills, qualifications, and abilities required tend to remain the same. The primary difference in qualifications and skills comes in different industries as the senior compliance analyst would be expected to have industry-specific certifications. 

On average, the senior compliance analyst is expected to have the following qualifications, skills, and abilities. 

  • A bachelor’s degree in business, accounting, or any related field that’s relevant in the industry. A master’s degree is preferred but not necessary. 
  • At least five to seven years of experience in compliance analysis, compliance auditing, or as a compliance analyst/officer is needed. Related experience in different companies and industries is also preferred. 
  • Getting a veteran status in compliance fields is preferred, such as in auditing, regulatory compliance, or any other field. 
  • Should be able to work with different computers and have a working knowledge of Microsoft products, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and SharePoint. 
  • Have work experience in risk management, risk assessments, and with various business units. You should be able to develop and take corrective actions in the case of compliance issues, 
  • Excellent research and analysis skills are required to find and examine relevant regulations, laws, and rules. 
  • Problem-solving and critical thinking skills are needed to identify compliance issues, risks, and problems and develop solutions around them. 
  • Good communication skills are required to work with other compliance professionals, departments, and stakeholders. 
  • Interpersonal skills are needed to develop good relations with all relevant stakeholders. 
  • It’s imperative to have the technical proficiency, verbal, and written skills to relay information effectively. 
  • It’s crucial to be detail-orientated to meet deadlines and achieve compliance standards. 

The qualifications, abilities, and skills listed above are what every senior compliance analyst should have. However, it’s best to get some industry-specific certifications and qualifications too. 

How to Become a Senior Compliance Analyst 

Since the senior compliance analyst and senior compliance officer jobs tend to overlap, their salaries overlap too. However, you can still find the average salary of a senior compliance analyst in various industries. 

According to Glassdoor, the average salary for a full-time senior compliance analyst in the United States can be rounded up to $67,973. Furthermore, the average salary range is between $48,000 and $96,000, with the upper end being offered in cities like New York, Ashburn, and Washington, DC. 

The senior compliance analyst salaries mostly depend on the industry and organization. Heavily-regulated industries tend to pay more because they require more work experience, knowledge, and better qualifications. Other companies may consider the job as an entry-level job compared to other compliance professionals. Smaller companies may pay less but have more responsibilities. In any case, the overall salary and compensation package depends on the industry, organization, and overall job duties. 

The senior compliance analyst job is a mid-level job in most organizations. You need appropriate experience in different compliance fields, and prior experience as a compliance analyst certainly helps. It’s also advisable to have experience in auditing, accounting, and legal fields. 

Other than that, you should have extremely strong research and analysis skills. It’s crucial because you need to find and extract relevant information on new and existing laws and regulations according to the organization’s needs. That requires massive amounts of reading, skimming, and going over various sources of information. 

It’s best to keep good relationships with fellow compliance professionals, regulators, regulatory bodies, and regulatory agencies. 

In any case, having a clear career path will lead you to become a senior compliance analyst. 

Becoming a Great Senior Compliance Analyst 

Becoming a great senior compliance analyst is about getting relevant work experience in your industry. It’s advisable to choose one industry and stick with it, especially if you need to get industry-specific certifications. 

You should sign up with various compliance newsletters and publications to get the latest updates on all compliance-related news. It’s also best to get some experience in auditing, accounting, and legal work to have a better understanding of compliance management. 

More importantly, it’s important to keep good relations with other compliance professionals and assist them in their duties at times. 

Most importantly, avoid all conflicts of interest and work in the interest of both the law and the company.

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What Does a Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer Do?

Companies today regularly face corporate ethics and regulatory compliance matters while expanding operations. In light of that, they need a compliance program and an ethics program, and someone to help develop and oversee both. That’s where the chief ethics and compliance officer job description comes in.

In case you’re interested in a career as a chief ethics and compliance officer and want to know what they do, keep reading.

In this article, I’ll give a complete breakdown of the chief ethics and compliance officer job role and its prerequisites.

Let’s get started.  

Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer [Job Overview]

Simply put, a Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer (CECO) develops and maintains ethical and compliance standards that companies follow whenever expanding operations, recruiting, acquiring further assets, etc. 

They lead the ‘s corporate compliance efforts, analyze and implement all applicable laws pertaining to business operations, and directly address various compliance issues.

On the ethics side, they ensure proper -wide code of conduct, develop equal opportunity hiring strategies, and implement user experience enhancements for employees.

CECOs are part of the executive management and report directly to the chief executive officer or vice president. 

Responsibilities of a Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer

The CECO role may come with a multitude of responsibilities, depending on the host . 

However, there are some basic responsibilities that every chief ethics and compliance officer has to perform. 

Here are some of the job roles of a chief ethics and compliance officer in 2021.

1. Ethical Culture Development

Most modern companies operate on progressive cultures that are reflected in every aspect of their business operations and activities.

 The chief ethics and compliance is responsible for devising and then putting together the building blocks of such a culture. 

This includes:

  • Working with human resources and analyzing ethics best practices for the entire
  • Meeting with various teams and training them on ethical best practices 
  • Providing ethics and compliance training to the executive team and senior management
  • Developing a progressive training program for all incoming employees
  • Continuing ethical oversight of all -related operations

Additionally, CECOs are responsible for researching corporate ethics and administering disciplinary measures on ethical violations. 

2. Compliance Audit and Monitoring

Compliance audits are a series of inspections that ensure there are no instances of legal/regulatory noncompliance. 

A chief ethics and compliance officer is responsible for coming up with ideal audit strategies for their while considering the compliance requirements applicable to it. 

Their basic responsibilities are:

  • Creating compliance audit plans with legal representatives and general counsel 
  • Developing compliance benchmarks for long and short-term audit plans
  • Collaborating with the CCO and management teams to enact compliance functions 
  • Generating compliance audit reports and forwarding them to external regulatory bodies
  • Monitoring and maintaining the -wide state of compliance

Furthermore, CECOs assist outside (, state, and federal) regulators in performing external audits.

3. Risk Program Development

Aside from maintaining ethical and legal compliance, CECOs are responsible for creating and implementing risk management programs.

In addition to that, they provide oversight for legal teams while the latter implement risk plans, as well as maintain communication between the board of directors, major stakeholders, and employees.

This role includes:

  • Performing risk assessments with in-house legal teams and counsel
  • Functioning as the primary point person for all compliance risk management activities
  • Collaborating with general counsel to assess legal risk before each new venture
  • Creating custom risk-management programs for the over extended periods
  • Assisting leadership in making calculated and compliant decisions

CECOs also ensure that every merger, transaction, acquisition, and operations shift gets passed after their assessment and approval. 

4. Organizational Ethics Management

Ethics and compliance officers are the first line of defense against any human resource issues arising within the employee ranks or with regards to external parties. 

Additionally, they also develop the ethical outreach and community involvement programs that the takes part in. 

In this capacity, CECOs are responsible for:

  • Analyzing the specific needs of the community that subscribes to or surrounds the  
  • Develop incentive programs for the community and employees
  • Provide ethical management training to managers and staff that are reaching out to the community
  • Add values between the organizational culture and organizational outreach framework
  • Work with the department to successfully develop community members into viable candidates for positions

In some companies, the chief ethics and compliance officers may have a more strategy-centric role, while some companies may require them to be directly involved in ethical management.

5. Operational Process Assessment

Regulatory compliance applies to all operations, expansion efforts, employees, assets, and leadership. The CECO is the point person for all matters related to compliance oversight.

In this capacity, the chief ethics and compliance officer is responsible for going through all the current operations and making sure that they are up to , state, and federal regulatory codes.

In light of this, CECOs:

  • Develop working lists of all on and off-site operations and organizational processes
  • Cross-reference those procedures with regulatory requirements to ensure everything is performed in a compliant manner
  • Ensure that employees adhere to internal policies
  • Maintain ethics and compliance standards according to the function and role of each department.
  • Coordinate with regulators to implement all new regulatory requirements across the board.

This is one of the responsibilities for which companies can hire consultants. However, bigger companies will almost always have an in-house professional for this role.

Qualifications for a Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer

Generally, CECOs have either a Bachelor’s degree with extensive experience or a Master’s with brief mandatory experience.

Nevertheless, the requisite qualifications for CECOs are:

  • Master’s degree in business administration (with a focus on corporate ethics and compliance)
  • Bachelor’s degree in a legal, business administration, human resources, or program management capacity
  • 7-8 years of experience with at least 3 years of corporate compliance investigation and fraud examination experience
  • Extensive practical experience in a private or public sector apprenticeship

Candidates with a GED or high-school diploma (United States-specific) can also gain some experience in this capacity by applying for a junior administrator position in a smaller while studying for a Bachelor’s.

Additionally, candidates looking to work in a government area such as health  and economics should pursue courses specific to those areas. 

Skills Required for a Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer

Aside from the obvious theoretical and practical knowledge, senior ethics and compliance officers need to have a set of general skills in order to succeed in their position.

These skills include:

  • Efficient Problem-Solving: A successful CECO is able to look at a complex compliance issue and immediately come up with a solution based on their regulatory experience and subject matter knowledge.
  • Extensive Industry Expertise: The chief ethics and compliance officer should have considerable experience in administering compliance measures either in the private or government sector.
  • Excellent Communication Skills: Good communication is the basis for ethics and compliance management. A CECO should always be able to communicate legal issues to all parties involved and ensure ethical knowledge delivery throughout the . 
  • Project Management: Some companies may require a chief ethics and compliance officer to develop extensive compliance plans. This calls for effective project management and multitasking skills on the part of the CECO.

In addition to this, the ethics and compliance officer should be empathetic towards all employees, irrespective of caste, creed, color, sexual orientation, and/or social status. 

How to Become a Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer in 2021 and Beyond

It’s no secret that learning has diversified to a great degree and high-level positions such as that of a CECO are coming with a greater variety of responsibilities.

This called for a variety of skills which can only be achieved by taking online courses in subjects and practical applications related to the CECO position.

These online courses deliver learning that candidates will rarely get while at a university.

On top of that, they prepare prospective chief compliance and ethics officers for the challenges of a more ethically demanding corporate environment in the future. 

Final Thoughts

Ethics and smart ethical management are more important now than ever. That said, one can’t deny the importance of maintaining strict compliance either. 

Anyone who wishes to manage both at a needs to understand both concepts to the nth degree before applying for the position. 

In conclusion, it pays to have a diversified set of skills related to ethics and compliance when you’re looking to make a career out of it.

Categories
Conferences Job Descriptions

Best Compliance Conferences in 2021

As compliance professionals, we’re always under pressure to stay on top of regulatory changes, learning about emerging technologies, and expanding our knowledge. Besides networking with industry peers or and following blogs, a great way to stay up-to-date is to attend a compliance conference or two every year.

Whether you’re an in-house attorney, regulator, financial advisor, or anyone with the slightest relation to their ’s corporate compliance program – keep reading. 

In this article, we’ll list and review some of the best corporate compliance conferences to look forward to in 2021 (along with their pricing, venues, and dates).

Let’s get started.

What is a Compliance Conference?

A compliance conference is a social event that’s usually meant for professionals like corporate compliance officers, founders, general counsel, regulators, risk managers, etc. The goals of such a conference are to learn from leading experts, share insights, and network with industry peers.

Compliance conferences can be about anything, ranging from discussing anti-corruption programs in the modern world to examining how to overcome the challenges of cyber-security.

Hundreds of compliance conferences take place every year in the United States and beyond, where professionals get the opportunity for continuing education, expanding their network, and getting better at their jobs.

Top 7 Compliance Conferences to Look Forward to in 2021

The year 2021 has exciting events in stores for compliance enthusiasts.

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, some of these will be held as virtual events, while others will be held as traditional face-to-face conferences.

With that out of the way, here are 7 corporate compliance conference that you should definitely consider attending:

1. CEFLI 2021 Compliance Fundamentals Training Conference

Date: May 6 – 7, 2021

Venue: The Union Station Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee

Price: TBA

Let’s start off with the basics.

The 2021 Compliance Fundamentals Training Conference (CFTC) presents a wonderful opportunity to young compliance professionals, seasonal professionals, and other individuals belonging to the life insurance industry to set strong foundations of compliance and/or revisit the fundamentals.

It’s being held by the “Compliance & Ethics Forum For Life Insurers” (or “CEFLI” for short) – a platform for the ethics and compliance professionals in the life insurance industry.

Companies looking to train their new compliance staff should definitely explore this conference.

The event will focus on the key risk areas and fundamentals of compliance, including anti-fraud, anti-corruption, form filing, and handling complaints, among other things.

Furthermore, attendees will get the opportunity to network and learn from the best.

The Compliance Fundamentals Training Conference was originally scheduled for May 2021, but due to unforeseen circumstances, it was rescheduled to 2021. 

Register here 

 

2. AMLFC 4th Anti-Money Laundering & Financial Crimes Conference

Date: April 21 – 23, 2021

Venue: JW Marriott Marquis Miami, Florida

Price: $549 (1 Day Conference: AMLFC Institute) and $1,459 (3 Day Combo: AMLFC Institute & ComplianceAid Conference)

The Anti-Money Laundering and Financial Crimes (AMLFC) institute offers certifications in Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Countering Financing Terrorism (CFT), and Financial Crimes Prevention to both graduate and undergraduate students.

Every year, the institute holds a compliance conference that attracts industry professionals from all over the world.

In 2021, AML and FC enthusiasts are in for a treat. The 4th Anti-Money Laundering & Financial Crimes Conference will discuss the latest trends and tips in executing AML/FCP/CFT procedures.

Attendees will get the chance to interact with regulators, and learn about country-specific AML/CFT issues, trends, regulations, and much more.

Additionally, attending the conference can earn you up to 18 CPEs recognized by NASBA.

You can find the complete agenda and other important details on the official event page.

Register here

 

3. HCCA 2021 Managed Compliance Conference

Date: February 1 -3, 2021

Venue: Virtual Conference

Price: TBA

Every year, the Health Compliance Association (HCCA) – an association with more than 12,000 members – arranges the Managed Compliance Conference. 

This event is focused on educating compliance professionals belonging to the health industry on the latest issues, trends, and developments.

Due to health and safety concerns related to COVID-19, the 2021 edition of the Managed Compliance Conference will be held online.

Regulators, auditors, and other industry experts will be invited to speak on topics (in the form of webinars), including, but not limited to:

  • Building and transforming a compliance program
  • Risk areas and enforcement trends
  • Medicaid fraud trends and reporting to regulators

This conference is perfect for compliance officers, data privacy officers, auditors, fraud examiners, and other relevant professionals belonging to the health industry.

As of now, the association hasn’t shared the agenda, pricing information, or the list of speakers. Keep an eye out for more details.

Learn more 

 

4. NRS Spring 2021 Compliance Conference

Date: May 17 – 21, 2021

Venue: Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Bonita Springs, Florida

Price: $1,495

The National Regulatory Services (NRS) is a leading provider of registration and compliance products targeted to financial institutions/wealth management companies.

Their Spring 2021 Compliance Conference is aimed at broker dealers, investment advisers, chief compliance officers, general counsels, and more, who want to learn about the latest trends in regulatory compliance.

Top-level industry experts, who know the secrets to navigating around the compliance challenges in the financial sector, will grace the event with their presence. Attendees will get the chance to learn with real case studies, expert insights, and discussions.

Additionally, exhibitors and sponsors will also get the opportunity to promote their products and services.

As of now, the NRS hasn’t disclosed the agenda and the list of speakers. But judging from the massive success of the last conference (held in 2019), it’s safe to assume that this event won’t be any different.

Pre-register

 

5. ABA Regulatory Compliance Conference

Date: June 13 – 16, 2021

Venue: Hyatt Regency San Diego, California

Price: TBA

The American Bankers Association (ABA) holds the Regulatory Compliance Conference every year.

This conference – targeted at compliance professionals in the banking sector – is aimed at discussing the latest compliance issues in the industry.

The Regulatory Compliance Conference is a 4-day event, where professionals from all over the country gather to soak in the latest compliance information through 50+ insightful sessions.

Right now, it’s still too early to share any further information about this conference. You can sign up to receive updates.

Learn more

 

6. 2021 FINRA Annual Conference

Date: May 18 – 20, 2021

Venue: Marriott Marquis Washington, DC

Price: Varies (shared below)

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) prides itself as a rare, government-backed private firm that regulates broker-deals in the United States.

If you’re a compliance professional, especially one who’s related to brokerage services, you should definitely look forward to their annual conferences.

Their 2021 conference, which was on cyber-security, attracted compliance officers, IT professionals, business founders, and security officers from all over the US, who gathered to exchange insights, network, and learn from the best.

The agenda for the event scheduled for 2021 has not been disclosed yet, but industry peers should definitely anticipate a highly informative experience.

Here are the pricing details:

  • Individual Attendee – $,1,395 (FINRA member firm), $495 (FINRA member small firm), $995 (government/regulator), $1,695 (attorney), and $1,995 (non-member).
  • Group – $,1,180 (3 to 5 – FINRA member firm), $1,000 (6 or more – FINRA member firm), $370 (3 or more – FINRA member small firm), $1,440 (3 or more – attorney), and $1,690 (3 or more – non-member).

 Register here

 

7. COMPLY (The Compliance, Risk, and RegTech Conference)

Date: May 4 – 5, 2021

Venue: Tribeca 360 & Rooftop New York City, New York

Price: $1,495 (individual) and $1,295 (group rate – 3+)

If you want to learn about the most recent developments in the compliance, risk, and RegTech spheres, you can’t afford to miss out on COMPLY 2021.

Originally scheduled for 2021, the conference was rescheduled for the upcoming year. 

In addition to networking and in-person learning, COMPLY 2021 also offers different credit-earning opportunities for continuing education.

Conference attendees will include a diverse set of professionals, ranging from regulators to investors.

Industry leaders from companies like ABA, Deutsche Bank, and PerformLine, are invited to speak on topics such as risk management, compliance, and cutting-edge regulatory technology.

You can view the complete agenda, read through the FAQs, and register on COMPLY’s official website.

Register here

Wrapping it Up

With so many amazing events to look forward to, it’s safe to say that 2021 will be an exciting year for compliance professionals.

If you’ve never attended a compliance conference before, there’s no time like the present to give it a shot.

And remember – you can always speak to your employer about sponsoring your ticket, in case you can’t afford it from your own pocket. Good luck.

Categories
Career Path Job Descriptions

What Does a Deputy General Counsel Do?

Government agencies and private corporations alike require legal oversight to stay on the right side of the law. That’s why every large organization needs a general counsel. And in their absence, a deputy general counsel takes the reigns.

A deputy general counsel has pretty much the same responsibilities as a general counsel – the only way they differ is in terms of the authority they have over their department and decisions.

In this article, we’ll break down the job description of a typical deputy in-house counsel, review general counsel compensation, and lay down a career roadmap for young attorneys.

Let’s get started.

Who is a Deputy General Counsel?

A deputy general counsel is a senior attorney who offers their legal services to a company as a full-time, part-time, or contractual employee. In an internal legal department, they are second only to the main general counsel /chief legal officer, and act as their backup.

A deputy general counsel works with the general counsel and the rest of the legal team to ensure that their organization complies with the law, guide corporate governance, provide legal representation when needed, and anything else that falls in their domain.

Deputy general counsel reports directly to the chief general counsel (or the CEO, when the GC is unavailable), and is responsible for supervising the assistant general counsel, associate general counsel, and the rest of the legal team. In that sense, you can think of them as the vice presidents of their department.

Why is a Deputy General Counsel Needed?

Not every organization has a deputy general counsel.

This begs the question – why does this job title exist anyway?

Here are two broad reasons why an organization might need a deputy general counsel for their office of general counsel:

  • Assisting the CLO – in an organization where the chief legal counsel has their fingers in many pies, the deputy general counsel assumes some of the responsibilities to make things easier for the general counsel. In other words, they act as the right hands of the general counsels.
  • Offering Additional Legal Expertise – in certain organizations where advice on legal issues is always needed (such as the US Department of Justice), having an extra senior-level attorney in the management team can be really helpful.

At the end of the day, titles vary. Some companies have senior associate general counsels instead of a deputy GC, whereas others have both, in which case, the latter has more authority.

Typical Duties and Responsibilities of a Deputy General Counsel

The exact duties of a deputy general counsel are not the same across all companies.

However, there are certain areas that are considered universal to some extent within the United States.

This is what most deputy GCs do:

 

  • Provide Legal Advice to Their Employer

 

The most basic responsibility shared by in-house attorneys of all levels in any organization is to provide expert advice on various legal matters to the senior management.

The deputy general counsel, as the second most-senior attorney, is consulted by the management to ensure that the organization complies with the law. 

These could include different state, federal, and international laws addressing areas such as equal opportunity, employee/customer privacy, copyright infringement, etc.

Furthermore, the deputy general counsel also oversees the legal research process. This entails supervising paralegals/clerks (if available) to make sure that they stay on top of any developments taking place in statutes and regulations.

 

  • Developing and Implementing Policies

 

Providing legal consultancy is the easy part – especially for a deputy general counsel who has spent close to a decade (or even more) doing legal work.

The challenging bit is to establish, implement, and track a framework that will ensure corporate compliance with the law.

This mainly includes working with the chief GC, board of directors, and the human resources creating and imposing internal policies that promote compliant behavior throughout the organization.

Of course, not every deputy general counsel may be required to create policies from scratch whenever they join a new company, given that there are policies already in place. However, they still need to carefully assess the existing legal landscape and tweak existing policies if needed.

 

  • Handle Litigation for the Company

 

Another major responsibility of the deputy general counsel is to oversee and manage litigation for the organization.

As the company’s senior attorney, it is their duty to protect the interests of their organization, such as their intellectual property, right to manufacture something, etc. This involves providing legal representation to the company both when prosecuting and defending. 

The company may also seek the legal services of an outside counsel, but usually, the deputy general counsel, together with the in-house general counsel, handle lawsuits.

Not every company will handle lawsuits every day. But whenever they do, the deputy general counsel supervises everything and reports to the general counsel.

 

  • Oversee Business Transactions

 

From time to time, large businesses and government departments sign deals with huge implications for their future.

These include deals like the acquisition of new real-estate, business mergers between two companies, right to manufacture and/or sell a product, etc.

Since such deals are so important, the deputy general counsel oversees them to ensure everything is alright.

This entails negotiating better terms on the behalf of their employer, drafting the contract, and advising the management, among other things. 

 

  • Manage Risk

 

Corporate law can be tricky.

One small misstep, and the organization can lose a fortune, and more importantly, all of its respect overnight.

To that end, the deputy general counsel consistently assesses the different risk areas – activities where there’s a risk of non-compliance – and comes up with plans to address said risk areas. All of this falls under the umbrella of risk management – an important part of corporate legal practice.

Of course, the deputy GC doesn’t do this alone. They have the assistance of the entire legal team at their disposal.

 

  • Lead the Legal Team in Absence of the General Counsel

 

Last but not least, the deputy general counsel is responsible for leading the in-house legal team, especially in the absence of the general counsel.

They have the authority to make large-scale decisions, such as budgeting, recruitment, strategy, etc.

Additionally, they’re also responsible for liaising with the outside counsel to ensure everything is in order.

How Much Do Deputy General Counsels Earn?

Since deputy general counsels have a huge level of responsibility on their shoulders, they are well-compensated all over the US.

Let’s look at the average general counsel salary figures collected from the following trustworthy resources:

 

  • Glassdoor – on average, deputy general counsels earn $210,859 per year. This figure is only based on 55 reports.
  • Salary.com – according to this platform, deputy general counsels, on average, earn $291,290 per year. 
  • PayScale – as per reports on PayScale, the average deputy general counsel salary is $187,597. The platform also suggests that the highest paying cities are New York, San Francisco, Washington DC, Boston, and Philadelphia.

 

Salaries tend to vary greatly, especially from city to city. This is due to the difference in the cost of living.

If you’re a recruiter, make sure to factor in everything before creating a compensation package. In case you’re a candidate going for interview, conduct thorough research before giving your potential employer a number.

How to Become a Deputy General Counsel?

All things considered, the deputy general counsel is one of the most senior level positions in any organization.

But how do you go about becoming one?

Here’s everything you need to know:

  • Get the Right Education – since all deputy general counsels are attorneys, the candidate must have a Juris Doctor (JD) degree from an accredited law school and must have passed the state bar exam.
  • Build Up Ample Experience – employers typically require the candidates to have between 5 to 10 years of experience in a law firm, government position, or any other similar position of legal practice.
  • Apply for Open Positions – finally, start applying for open deputy general counsel jobs over the internet. 

Of course, all of the above sounds a lot easier than it really is. You can’t expect to become a senior counsel overnight. But by staying consistent, having a clear goal, and keeping your eyes on the prize, you’ll get there eventually.

Ending Note

The deputy general counsel is, more or less, accountable for the performance of the legal team – especially when the general counsel isn’t available.

Hopefully, by now, you have a good understanding of what their job entails, why some organizations prefer to hire them, and what makes them so important.