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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Compliance Professional

💰 $70,000 - $150,000

ComplianceLegalRisk ManagementGovernance

🎯 Role Definition

A Compliance Professional is responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining an effective compliance program that ensures the organization meets regulatory obligations and internal policy standards. This role proactively monitors regulatory change, conducts risk assessments, leads investigations and remediation, partners with business and legal teams, and communicates compliance posture to senior leadership and regulators. The Compliance Professional acts as a subject matter expert in areas such as anti-money laundering (AML), Know Your Customer (KYC), data privacy (GDPR/HIPAA), SOX/internal controls, sanctions screening, and third‑party/vendor risk management.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Compliance Analyst / Compliance Coordinator
  • Risk Analyst or Internal Audit Associate
  • Legal or Regulatory Affairs Associate

Advancement To:

  • Senior Compliance Manager / Head of Compliance
  • Director of Compliance or Chief Compliance Officer (CCO)
  • Head of Regulatory Affairs or Risk Management

Lateral Moves:

  • Internal Audit Manager
  • Regulatory Affairs Lead
  • Privacy Officer / Data Protection Lead

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive enterprise compliance program, including policies, procedures, standards, and controls that align with applicable laws, regulations, and industry best practices.
  • Monitor, interpret, and assess the impact of domestic and international regulatory changes (including AML, KYC, GDPR, HIPAA, SOX and sanctions regimes) and recommend timely updates to policies, processes, and systems.
  • Conduct periodic risk assessments across business lines and products to identify compliance risks, prioritize mitigations, and quantify residual risk for executive reporting and board committees.
  • Design, execute, and document compliance monitoring and testing plans (including transaction monitoring, exception reporting, and control testing) to validate the effectiveness of internal controls and remediate gaps.
  • Lead and coordinate internal and external regulatory examinations and audits, prepare required documentation and responses, and drive remediation plans to closure with appropriate root‑cause analysis.
  • Investigate potential compliance violations, escalations, and employee-reported incidents (including whistleblower tips), conduct interviews and evidence collection, and manage corrective action and disciplinary processes in coordination with HR and Legal.
  • Manage AML/KYC program operations including customer onboarding due diligence, ongoing monitoring, risk-scoring, suspicious activity reporting (SAR/STR), and sanctions screening to ensure timely detection and reporting of suspicious behavior.
  • Develop and deliver role-based compliance training and awareness programs for employees, senior leaders, and third parties to embed a strong compliance culture and reduce operational risk.
  • Oversee vendor and third-party risk assessments, including due diligence questionnaires, enhanced due diligence for high-risk providers, contract terms for compliance obligations, and ongoing monitoring.
  • Prepare clear, executive-level compliance reports, metrics, dashboards and key risk indicators (KRIs) for senior management, audit committees, and regulatory submissions.
  • Draft, review, and maintain compliance policies, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and guidance documents to ensure consistent application across jurisdictions and business units.
  • Collaborate with Legal, Product, Operations, Finance, and IT to implement compliance requirements into business processes, product development lifecycles, and technology controls.
  • Support SOX/internal controls programs by documenting process flows, performing testing, coordinating remediation activities, and ensuring control owners maintain required evidence and attestations.
  • Manage license, registration, and regulatory filing requirements across jurisdictions, ensuring timely renewals and adherence to reporting timelines.
  • Lead remediation projects for identified compliance gaps, coordinate cross-functional resources, set timelines, and track completion against action plans.
  • Maintain and improve compliance technology and tooling (e.g., transaction monitoring platforms, case management systems, screening engines) by defining requirements, testing configuration changes, and liaising with vendors.
  • Conduct enhanced due diligence and investigations related to politically exposed persons (PEPs), complex corporate structures, trust entities, and high-risk transactions.
  • Serve as the primary point of contact for regulatory agencies and external auditors, coordinating requests and ensuring transparent, accurate, and timely communication.
  • Build and maintain a conflicts of interest register, code of conduct enforcement processes, and gifts & entertainment monitoring to ensure ethical business practices.
  • Implement and maintain data privacy and protection processes (data inventories, DPIAs, retention policies) to achieve regulatory compliance with GDPR, CCPA and sectoral privacy laws.
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives to optimize compliance workflows, reduce false positives in monitoring, and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of compliance operations.
  • Support mergers, acquisitions, and onboarding activities by conducting pre-deal compliance diligence, assessing regulatory risk, and integrating acquired entities into existing compliance frameworks.
  • Provide subject-matter expertise on sanctions, export controls, and cross-border transactions to mitigate regulatory and reputational risk in global operations.
  • Create scenario‑based testing and tuning of transaction monitoring models and rulesets to reduce noise, increase precision, and ensure timely detection of suspicious activity.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
  • Support business continuity and incident response planning related to compliance events, including escalation protocols and regulatory notifications.
  • Assist in preparing training materials and communications for firm-wide policy updates and regulatory change rollouts.
  • Participate in industry working groups or trade associations to stay informed on regulatory trends and share best practices.
  • Provide ad-hoc compliance input for marketing, risk origination, and new product launch reviews.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Regulatory Compliance Management — proven ability to design and operate programs that meet AML, KYC, sanctions, privacy (GDPR/CCPA), SOX and sectoral regulatory requirements.
  • AML/KYC Operations — experience with customer onboarding, enhanced due diligence, transaction monitoring, SAR/STR filing, and sanctions screening processes.
  • Policy & Procedure Development — strong track record drafting and maintaining compliance documentation, SOPs, and regulatory filing templates.
  • Risk Assessment & Control Testing — ability to perform compliance risk assessments, control design reviews, and remediation tracking (including SOX control testing).
  • Audit & Examination Readiness — experience leading responses to regulator audits and internal/external examinations with documented remediation plans.
  • Compliance Technology — hands-on experience with case management, transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, and GRC platforms (e.g., Actimize, NICE, FICO, LexisNexis, MetricStream, NAVEX).
  • Data Analysis & Reporting — proficiency in Excel, SQL, or BI tools (Power BI, Tableau) to analyze compliance data, build dashboards and KPIs.
  • Privacy & Data Protection — knowledge of GDPR, CCPA, DPIAs, data mapping and privacy impact assessments.
  • Investigations & Remediation — investigative skills with ability to document findings, perform root cause analysis, and manage corrective actions.
  • Vendor & Third-Party Risk Assessment — experience conducting due diligence, contract reviews, and ongoing vendor monitoring.
  • Licensing & Regulatory Filings — familiarity with registration, licensing, and periodic reporting requirements in regulated industries.
  • Financial Crime Typologies — knowledge of fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, sanctions evasion methods, and relevant detection typologies.
  • Documentation & Compliance Reporting — strong capability to prepare formal reports for senior management, boards, and regulators.

Soft Skills

  • Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to explain complex regulatory issues to business partners and executives.
  • High attention to detail and accuracy in documentation, monitoring, and reporting.
  • Critical thinking and investigative mindset with proven problem-solving abilities.
  • Stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration across Legal, Finance, Product, IT and Operations.
  • Ethical judgment and integrity; ability to navigate sensitive matters and escalate appropriately.
  • Project management skills to lead remediation efforts, regulatory change initiatives, and program rollouts.
  • Adaptability to changing regulatory environments and fast-moving business priorities.
  • Influencing and negotiation skills to drive compliance requirements into product and commercial decisions.
  • Time management and prioritization under competing deadlines.
  • Confidentiality and discretion when handling sensitive data and investigations.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Law, Finance, Business, Accounting, Economics, Information Security, or a related field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master’s degree in Law, Compliance, Business Administration (MBA), or specialized graduate credential in Risk Management or Data Privacy.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Law
  • Finance / Accounting
  • Business Administration
  • Information Security / Data Privacy
  • Economics
  • Criminal Justice / Forensic Accounting

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3–8+ years of progressive experience in compliance, regulatory affairs, AML operations, internal audit, or risk management within regulated industries (banking, fintech, insurance, healthcare, capital markets).

Preferred:

  • 5+ years in a compliance role with demonstrated ownership of AML/KYC, sanctions screening, privacy, or SOX programs.
  • Industry experience in financial services, payments, or other highly regulated sectors.
  • Professional certifications such as CAMS (Certified Anti‑Money Laundering Specialist), CRCM (Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager), CCEP (Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional), or CISSP/CIPP for privacy-focused roles.
  • Track record leading regulatory examinations, remediation projects, and cross-functional compliance initiatives.
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