Compliance officer

As a compliance officer, sometimes called a compliance manager or compliance specialist, you'll ensure that the company or organisation you work for complies with government and industry standards, regulations and legislation. You'll assist the business in ensuring that the correct internal policies and procedures are in place to achieve compliance with external regulations. This also includes factors like health and safety, as well as ethical considerations.

Your work is key in maintaining the company's reputation and integrity and can also help protect it from threats such as fraud and other financial crimes. Organisations that breach these requirements may have to pay fines and/or face other penalties.

There is high demand for compliance professionals across various industries due to increasing regulations, particularly in the banking/financial sector and around data protection, cyber security and AI.

Areas of compliance

Compliance officers are employed in a range of industries, including:

• banking and financial services
• charity/not-for-profit
• education
• environment (including utilities and energy)
• gaming
• health and social care
• insurance
• manufacturing
• pharmaceutical
• property
• retail
• technology
• transport.

Specialist areas in compliance include:

• advisory services
• anti money laundering
• cybersecurity
• data protection
• financial crime prevention
• governance, risk and compliance
• human resources
• monitoring
• preventing fraud
• product advisory
• quality assurance
• regulatory affairs
• trade surveillance
• training and education.

Working as a compliance officer

As a compliance professional, you'll typically need to:

• perform risk assessments and compliance audits to understand risk level, significance and scope
• monitor and update internal policies based on regulatory changes
• report back to business functions on current risk and compliance performance, highlighting and escalating areas of concern
• help managers to identify solutions to compliance issues
• implement preventative and/or corrective measures to mitigate risk
• educate employees on both the regulations and the impact on the organisation if they aren't complied with
• investigate irregularities and non-compliance issues
• develop plans to manage compliance violations and crisis
• champion compliance best practice and contribute to robust and effective compliance controls within the organisation
• review marketing materials, presentations, data collection and websites to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements
• work with external auditors and assist in the gathering of internal information in response to regulatory requests
• collaborate with other departments to create a culture of compliance
• keep up to date with, and understand, relevant laws and regulations.

How much do compliance officers get paid?

• Salaries for compliance officers typically range from £27,000 to £46,000. Trainee and apprenticeship roles may be lower.
• Senior compliance officers and compliance managers can earn up to £65,000.
• Senior managers, directors and heads of compliance can earn from £70,000 to more than £124,000.

Contract or temporary roles are also available. Day rates can vary significantly depending on your role, location and experience.

Factors affecting salary include the industry you work in, your location, skills, experience, qualifications and track record. For example, salaries can be significantly higher for roles in London or in sectors such as finance.

Benefits may include bonuses, a pension and private medical insurance.

Income figures are intended as a guide only.

How many hours does a compliance officer work?

Working hours are typically Monday to Friday, 37.5 hours a week. Although compliance is not directly revenue-generating, you'll be working on business-critical projects, often at short notice.

Compliance jobs are generally office based but there may be opportunities for hybrid working.

How do I become a compliance officer?

You'll usually need a degree to work as a compliance officer. The following subjects may be particularly useful:

• accountancy
• business administration
• economics
• finance
• information technology
• law.

Most employers are flexible as to degree subjects, although some will favour a degree relevant to their industry.

Alternatively, you can do a Level 6 Senior Compliance and Risk Specialist apprenticeship, which combines paid work with study for a degree-level compliance qualification.

There are some graduate schemes, particularly in financial services, available. Graduate risk management roles may contain elements of compliance work and many of the rotational graduate schemes in banks will include a placement in compliance.

It's possible to enter the profession by working in a business or compliance administration role and taking further professional qualifications to move into an assistant compliance and then compliance officer role. You can also take a Level 3 Compliance and Risk Officer apprenticeship.

Remember that a range of industries are subject to regulations, and companies may look for graduates with backgrounds that suit the sector they work in.

Qualifications are becoming increasingly important as organisations place greater emphasis on regulatory compliance. Professional compliance qualifications, such as those offered by the International Compliance Association (ICA), can therefore be beneficial.

Key skills for a compliance officer

You'll need to have:

• an interest in compliance, which can involve delving into granular levels of detail
• attention to detail as you'll be examining laws and regulations closely to check compliance
• critical problem-solving skills as you'll often have to make decisions based on the information available, which may be open to interpretation
• decision making skills and a quick response for crisis management initiatives
• project management skills to work on several projects at a time
• strong written, verbal and presentation skills to communicate technical information to non-technical audiences
• the ability to analyse and interpret information and data to determine compliance.

Compliance officer work experience

Many graduates join the compliance profession after working in roles that help them develop the required skills. Examples of relevant roles include:

• administrator/business administrator
• customer services adviser
• financial analyst
• paralegal
• pre-employment screening co-ordinator.

Look for companies that have a compliance officer or compliance department in your area of interest and ask if you can work shadow a compliance officer to get a feel for the skills and qualities needed for the role.

You can also start to develop your skills through work placements, internships, part-time work or voluntary work. Internships are provided by a range of companies in sectors such as financial services. Some courses provide the opportunity to take a year out in industry, where you could work in an area that is heavily regulated such as banking, financial services or law.

Think about which industry you want to work in and develop your experience and knowledge of how the sector works and the role of compliance within it.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Who employs compliance officers?

Compliance is a growing sector in the UK, so job prospects are good.

Opportunities are available with a range of organisations in the private, public and third sector.

Typical employers include:

• banks
• charities
• cybersecurity firms
• education institutions
• energy and renewable energy companies
• financial services
• gaming companies
• health and social care organisations
• housing associations
• insurance companies
• local authorities
• manufacturing companies
• pharmaceutical companies
• property firms
• retail
• technology firms
• transport organisations
• utilities companies.

In large companies, there will be a compliance team, with a number of compliance officers working under a compliance manager. In a small company, you may be the only compliance officer.

There are many opportunities to work in compliance roles overseas with international companies, for example in the energy and technology sectors.

Look for job vacancies at:

• The Actuary Jobs
• Careers In Group - careers in compliance.
• CityJobs
• Cybersecurity Jobsite
• eFinancialCareers

Jobs are also advertised on sector specific websites, for example:

• CharityJob - for jobs in the charity sector.
• Gazette Jobs - for jobs in legal compliance.
• LocalGovJobs - for compliance jobs with local authorities.
• NHS Jobs - for health-related compliance jobs.

Recruitment agencies also advertise vacancies for experienced compliance officers.

Where can a career in compliance lead?

The role of compliance is rapidly developing, opening up new and increasing opportunities across a range of sectors for skilled compliance professionals. The rate of progression can be fast, with many junior compliance officers being promoted within two to four years. Compliance managers typically have more than five years' experience, and senior management often have more than ten.

From the role of compliance officer, you could move into a senior compliance officer and then compliance manager role. For these types of roles, you'll need to have a strong understanding of risk and compliance management, as well as leadership skills and the ability to manage a team. At head or director level, you will take on a strategic and leadership role.

Much of your training is carried out on the job, or by attending short courses and conferences. Your employer will expect you to keep your knowledge up to date by attending relevant training and other networking opportunities.

They may support you in gaining a relevant industry qualification from organisations such as the:

• Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI)
• International Compliance Association (ICA)

You may also receive support to take a Masters course or an MBA as you progress your career. Search for postgraduate courses in compliance and Search for an MBA.

Alternatively, you could move across into related areas of work such as auditing, cybersecurity or risk consulting.