The compliance officer has to deal with other departments with the organization like risk management, employee services, internal audits, and direct compliance issues to proper channels for resolution and investigation. They also may have to discuss these with the attorney of the company in order to resolve any legal issues related to compliance.
The officer has to identify probable areas of compliance risk and vulnerability, devise corrective plans to resolve the problems, and give guidance so that such situations can be avoided in the future. They have to furnish detailed reports to the Board's Corporate Compliance Committee as well as managers at the senior level in order to keep them informed about the progress and operation of compliance efforts. They also have to intimate about violations to the enforcement authorities. The compliance officer has to initiate and maintain an effective plan for compliance communication for the company. They also keep monitoring the performance and progress of the compliance program as well as related activities on a regular basis by taking the required steps in order to get improved effectiveness.
A compliance officer should also interact with the human resource department of an organization and ensure to bring in the best suited compliance training program for the organization. These training programs may include trainings for existing as well as new employees, managers, and the member of the board. On the other hand they should also check the compliance with the local, state, and federal regulatory necessities. They should also keep good terms with people of all levels like managers, legislators, lobbyists, regulators, and other concerned bodies. They should follow a regular check on the response plans and risk assessments and also conduct auditing and monitoring within the company.
The job profile of a compliance officer in the field of Asset Management is someone having broad based compliance experience in asset management particularly in the field of fixed income and/or investment advisor. Normally the candidate for asset management compliance officer should have compliance experience in mutual funds and fixed income. They have to be in charge of guideline monitoring, review of annual compliance, code of ethics, client relations, regulatory filings, policies/procedures, and due diligence.
The role of a corporate compliance officer is to oversee and create the programs for Corporate Compliance as well as function as a separate and objective entity which will review and estimate issues relating to compliance in the organization. The corporate compliance officer makes sure that everyone namely the board of directors, employees and the management are in compliance in accordance to the rules and guidelines of regulatory authorities and the organization's code of conduct.
These officers are mainly work as a communication channel through which they direct and receive issues related to compliance for investigation as well as resolution and also work as the ultimate resource from within the organization to which the relevant teams may communicate when all other channels have been tried.
The qualification required for a compliance officer is a bachelor's degree or preferably master degree. One must exhibit leadership qualities. Whatever industry you may choose, one must have the basic knowledge in operations, quality assurance, finances, rules and regulations, as well as human resource. In a financial institution, the requirements sought for a compliance officer is 5 to 8 years of relevant experience in legal or compliance in financial services. Knowledge of retail and community banking is a must, preferably with a fair idea of the community reinvestment act.
The salaries of a compliance officer will vary with their experience and the industry. A compliance officer with less than one year experience will earn between $33,000 and $50,000. A person having experience of 10 to 19 years can earn around $53,000 to $87,000 per year. However, the above salaries are not inclusive of the industries like agriculture, health and safety, construction, and transportation.
