The basic responsibilities of a compliance inspector are very similar to those of a compliance officer, to whom a compliance inspector typically reports. Their tasks include ensuring the adherence of their employer to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations, which govern their industry, as well as making sure that the company is operating in accordance with industry standard practices.
A compliance inspector must possess a thorough knowledge of their industry and a of the laws and other regulatory mandates which affect the operations of the company which employs them. Knowledge of both current laws and regulations is necessary, as is keeping well informed about all developments in their industry, which may have a bearing on their operations when it comes to regulatory issues.
A compliance inspector will deal with the production department (if they are employed by a company which is in the business of manufacturing a product), as well as the legal staff retained by the company and the marketing department to ensure that all marketing materials used by the company are fully compliant with the regulations governing their industry.
All of this knowledge is used to help other senior level personnel within the company, which employs the compliance inspector to design and implement procedures, which will ensure both industry best practices as well as being fully in line with the applicable regulatory frameworks.
As stated above, healthcare compliance jobs are a growing sector of the job market as the healthcare industry itself continues to grow. These positions call for a lot of detailed knowledge about the healthcare industry, the medical services market, and the complex network of federal, state, and local regulations, which have a bearing on the operations of a healthcare provider. Healthcare compliance jobs involve working particularly close with legal staff and needs the compliance officer to have a very deep understanding of the legal issues, which are in play in a healthcare industry setting.
Like more senior level compliance positions such as compliance officer and chief compliance officer, compliance jobs are not generally well suited for newcomers to the industry in which they would work as a compliance inspector, given the high level of specialized knowledge required. A compliance inspector usually has several years of experience in their industry before going into a position as compliance inspector, which gives them a chance to develop the body of knowledge, which is necessary for them to perform their jobs in this very demanding, often complex field.
There are also compliance inspector jobs, which are civil service positions. Some of these jobs exist in the U.S. Customs Service. These include import compliance jobs and export compliance jobs; although both duties are often combined into one position in the case of the customs service. These compliance inspectors need to be extremely well versed in the import and export laws of the US (or any country, which employs them in this capacity). Their jobs are to ensure that any materials being imported or exported are being so transported in full compliance with all laws covering import and export of goods.
There is a complex web of laws governing imports and exports. There are certain goods which may not be imported (certain agricultural goods may not be imported due to the risk of stowaway agricultural pests, for instance) or exported (software which is protected by certain intellectual property laws or government regulations). All of these issues are ones, which import compliance jobs, and export compliance jobs cover.
A compliance inspector must constantly keep up with all of the latest legislative developments, which could impact their industry and make sure that procedures are reworked to meet these new requirements as they come into play. This is especially true in healthcare compliance jobs, where there is a lot of money at stake, not to mention life and limb of patients.
For those with a thorough knowledge of their industry and the necessary communication and research skills (being a compliance inspector is nothing if not one long educational process), compliance inspector jobs offer the opportunity to take on a challenging position which bears a lot of responsibility. In many ways, the work of a compliance inspector is that of protecting their employer from the unpleasant legal consequences, which are the result of falling out of compliance with the applicable standards and regulations.
There is always a lot to learn and a large problem solving component involved in being a compliance inspector – for those who enjoy a challenge and the occasional puzzle to solve while staying in the industry where they have accrued a lot of experience and an extensive body of knowledge about applicable regulatory issues, a job as compliance inspector can be a perfect fit.
