As organizations navigate complex regulatory landscapes and strive to uphold ethical standards, compliance officers play a pivotal role in ensuring that laws and regulations are followed meticulously.
Whether you’re just starting your career or looking to make a transition into this field, understanding the steps and skills required to become a compliance officer is essential.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to become a compliance officer, step by step, and explore this intellectually interesting and financially rewarding career path in detail — including what it involves and much it pays.
What is a compliance officer?
Compliance officers ensure an organization adheres to laws, regulations and internal policies. They often manage ethics hotlines, allowing employees to report concerns confidentially, and oversee investigations into potential violations, thereby fostering a culture of transparency and ethical behavior.
What are the different types of compliance jobs?
Compliance is a broad profession that covers a wide variety of specialties. These include:
- Corporate compliance officers, who ensure company policies and practices adhere to applicable laws, regulations and internal standards across all departments
- Environmental compliance officers, who monitor and enforce adherence to environmental laws and regulations to prevent pollution and ensure sustainable practices
- Financial compliance officers, who oversee financial operations to ensure compliance with relevant laws, preventing fraud and mismanagement
- Healthcare compliance officers, who ensure healthcare practices meet legal, regulatory and ethical standards, focusing on patient care and billing practices
- Regulatory compliance officers, who ensure an organization adheres to industry-specific regulations and standards, often working across various sectors
What does a compliance officer do?
Regardless of their specialty and the specific industry they work in, compliance officers generally share the same duties and responsibilities. A typical day will often involve:
- Staying up to date on laws and regulations, and developing and implementing compliance policies and procedures
- Training employees and promoting a culture of adherence to policies
- Conducting regular audits and assessments to ensure ongoing compliance and to identify potential issues
- Identifying compliance risks, developing mitigation strategies and investigating violations or misconduct
- Maintaining accurate records of compliance activities, and reporting findings to management and regulatory bodies
What is their work environment like?
Compliance officers mainly work in an office setting, particularly for large corporations, financial institutions, healthcare facilities, government agencies, consulting firms and non-profit organizations.
Some roles, meanwhile, cover several locations and consequently require traveling across the country — or even internationally — to conduct audits or training, or to attend conferences or meetings organized by regulatory bodies.
How many hours do they work?
Most compliance officers are employed on a full-time basis, working a typical 9-to-5 schedule, Monday to Friday.
Although 40-hour workweeks are the norm, the job often requires working longer hours or handling a heavier workload at peak periods (such as during audits, regulatory changes or when new compliance programs are being implemented). Meanwhile, the job sometimes requires being on call to deal with any urgent compliance issues that may arise, or to respond to a regulatory investigation or legal matter.
Part-time compliance officers generally enjoy fewer hours or have a more flexible schedule, depending on the organization’s needs.
What are the occupational hazards of compliance officer jobs?
While the job of a compliance officer might not be as physical or dangerous as that of, say, a firefighter, it does come with its own unique set of challenges and occupational hazards.
The most common of which is the high stress that comes with the job. This is largely due to the tight deadlines, complex regulations and ethical dilemmas that compliance officers are often faced with, along with the constant need to stay up to date on changes in laws. This stress, left unchecked, can lead to burnout.
Their job is also a sedentary one, and requires spending most of their workday in front of a computer, which might cause headaches and eyestrain.
Some compliance officers, meanwhile, may be exposed to chemicals and other hazardous materials during site inspections or audits. However, these risks can be mitigated by wearing proper protective equipment and adhering to strict safety guidelines (which, fortunately, is their expertise).
How much do compliance officers earn?
The compliance officer profession is a financially rewarding one.
In fact, according to data compiled through the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates a mean annual wage of $80,190 for compliance officers — nearly 22.5% higher than the national average for all occupations ($65,470).
Salary prospects depend on a variety of factors, including level of experience, industry, and location:
- Entry-level professionals earn less than $43,790 a year, while more experienced and senior compliance officers earn more than $123,710.
- The top-paying industry for compliance officers in the US is information services, particularly within web search portals, libraries, archives and other information services, where they can command a salary of $126,290.
- Across the US, the District of Columbia offers compliance officers the highest salary in terms of location, averaging $104,610. This is followed by the states of New Jersey ($94,060) and California ($92,840).
In a snapshot:
What is the job outlook?
Despite working in a competitive field, compliance officers are in high demand, with the BLS projecting 17,200 new jobs to be added to the US job market between 2022 and 2032, at a growth rate of 4.6%, faster than the average for all occupations.
The finance and insurance industry, in particular, will see the highest growth, with 3,800 new openings. This is followed by the professional, scientific and technical services, with 3,200 projected openings, and the healthcare and social assistance industries, with 2,500 new jobs.
There is, however, some concern regarding automation, with Will Robots Take My Job? calculating a 56% risk of compliance officer jobs being taken over by AI. The good news, though, is that — given the intricate and constantly evolving nature of compliance regulations — AI will likely only replace repetitive tasks, and not jobs themselves.
What are the pros and cons of working as a compliance officer?
Among the most notable pros of a career as a compliance officer are:
- You can earn a high salary, which only increases as you progress in your career and move into more senior-level positions.
- You get to enjoy a healthy work–life balance with a standard 9-to-5 work schedule — despite the occasional need to travel for work.
- You have job security, considering the high demand due to increasing regulatory requirements across various industries.
Meanwhile, cons include:
- You experience a lot of stress, largely due to the high pressure that comes with ensuring compliance and handling potential violations.
- You need to complete annual training to keep up with the constantly evolving laws and regulatory changes.
- You receive little recognition and appreciation for your work, as you’ll often work behind the scenes.
What are the entry requirements?
Beyond a deep-rooted interest in and knowledge of current affairs, governance and political issues, as well as a natural curiosity about the law, you’ll need to meet the minimum entry requirements to successfully pursue a career in compliance.
Here, we’ll discuss the qualifications and skills required for the job.
Education
A career in compliance typically requires a bachelor’s degree in business administration or management, law or legal studies, finance, accounting, criminal justice, or healthcare administration. That said, an associate degree and industry-specific credentials may suffice.
Skills and qualities
Compliance officers require a unique and broad professional skill set to succeed on the job. Among the most important skills and qualities are:
- Attention to detail
- Analytical skills
- Integrity
- Knowledge of regulations
- Problem-solving skills
Licenses and certifications
Although certification is not required to pursue a career as a compliance officer, it can significantly improve your job prospects. For example, if you’re hoping to work in the healthcare industry or advance to management positions, you will typically need a specific certification.
Would you make a good compliance officer?
If you’re considering a career as a compliance offer (or in a completely different profession, for that matter), it’s crucial to first determine if it’s right for you before committing the time, effort and money that it takes to follow through on such a huge decision.
This begins by assessing, among other things, your skills, strengths, motivations, personality and interests, and figuring out how they align with your chosen career. Taking a career assessment will be a good idea here — like our very own test over at CareerHunter, which will match your preferences, ideals and talents against 200+ potential careers to help you find the one you’ll love.
How to become a compliance officer
So, how do you pursue a career as a compliance officer? Following these steps will help you get started:
Step 1: Complete a university degree
Your journey to becoming a compliance officer starts with going to university and obtaining a bachelor’s degree in a relevant subject. There is no specific compliance officer degree, but a degree in criminal justice, finance or law is generally accepted.
Although not necessary, meanwhile, pursuing an advanced degree (like a master’s degree) can enhance your career prospects, particularly if you’re hoping to gradually move into senior-level positions.
Step 2: Gain work experience
Whether during your time at university, or upon graduation, it’s important to gain real-world work experience through an internship or entry-level position within compliance, auditing, legal or risk management. Often, your university will be able to help you find suitable placements.
Not only will this introduce you to the world of work, and the compliance industry as a whole, but it will also boost your résumé and make you more employable for future job opportunities, as hiring managers will perceive you as a serious and motivated candidate.
Step 3: Develop key skills
While you’ll develop valuable skills and knowledge for a career in compliance, both during your time at university and through work experience placements, it’s important to make the time and effort to do some independent study and research.
Consider reading industry magazines and blogs to stay current with trends, as well as enrolling in classroom-based or online courses to further your knowledge (you’ll find some free ones, too!).
Step 4: Obtain certification
Certification isn’t necessary, as we’ve mentioned earlier, but it can be particularly helpful if you’re looking to work in a more technical field (like healthcare, for example). In general, though, certification will improve your employability, even if it’s not required for your target job.
Certifications to consider pursuing include:
- Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional (CCEP) offered by the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics
- Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager (CRCM) offered by the American Bankers Association
- Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) offered by the Information Systems Audit and Control Association
Step 5: Build your network
Equally important to get started in compliance — and throughout your career! — is to begin building a network of professional contacts. This should be done in person, by attending networking events, as well as online, through platforms like LinkedIn.
Not only will you be able to meet like-minded professionals, but you’ll also be able to learn more about the ins and outs of the industry through discussions and even mentorships. The people that you meet along the way, meanwhile, might even be able to refer you to job opportunities or connect you with other professionals in the field.
Final thoughts
Although compliance officers work in a stressful and high-pressure environment, it can be a highly rewarding job knowing that you’re making a difference and ensuring that organizations operate ethically, adhere to regulations, and contribute to a safer and more transparent business environment. (It also pays well, too!)
If this sounds interesting to you, and you enjoy overcoming challenges and have a strong grasp of the intricate nuances of the law, then a career as a compliance officer might just be the way to go.
Got a question about becoming a compliance officer? Let us know in the comments section below.