Careers in Global Compliance (2024)

FAQs

What are the highest paying compliance jobs? ›

U.S. News ranks being a compliance officer as number thirteen in best jobs, giving the position a 4.7 out of five based on factors such as salary, work-life balance, and future growth. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 4.6% employment growth for compliance officers between 2022 and 2032.

Global Compliance manages the firm's compliance, regulatory and reputational risks by ensuring adherence to laws, rules and regulations. We monitor trends and changes in regulations in all jurisdictions in which the firm does business, and we develop and implement firmwide policies and procedures.

As a compliance professional, you may advance quickly, with many junior compliance officers promoted to senior officers within two to four years. If you opt to work in a significant corporate organization, your career path will likely be linear, progressing from analyst to associate vice president to vice president.

"You're going to get the highest pay in compliance if you're in product advisory," says James Findlay, global head of compliance and risk recruitment at Selby Jennings. "That applies as much in the City of London as on Wall Street."

New regulations and heightened regulatory oversight are driving a surge in hiring of executives and staffers with compliance- and controls-related skills at financial services institutions and other highly regulated industries.

As of Sep 6, 2024, the average annual pay for a Goldman Sachs Compliance in the United States is $172,668 a year.

At Goldman Sachs, the mandate of Global Compliance is to prevent, detect and mitigate compliance, regulatory, and reputational risk across the firm and help to strengthen the firm's culture of compliance. Compliance accomplishes this mandate through the firm's enterprise-wide compliance risk management program.

Global compliance means following the rules and regulations of each country you do business in. The most common global compliance rules include equal opportunity laws, tax compliance, minimum employee entitlements, and financial reporting requirements.

As you prepare to become a compliance analyst, consider the following steps: Earn a bachelor's degree in business management, supply chain and operations management, or accounting. Choose an industry in which you would prefer to apply your compliance skills.

How to pursue a career in compliance? ›

Educational Requirements

A degree in finance, management, accounting, economics, or law is a must to get a compliance job at any of the bulge bracket firms. A master's degree in finance, accounting, or economics can help set an individual apart from the competition.

Compliance Officers often navigate complex regulations and ensure organizational adherence, which can be inherently stressful.

Chief Compliance Officer (CCO)

The highest compliance role within an organization, the CCO is responsible for the entire compliance control framework. They work directly with executive management and are accountable for managing regulatory risks and ensuring that the company meets its legal obligations.

Compliance Officers made a median salary of $71,690 in 2022. The best-paid 25% made $97,050 that year, while the lowest-paid 25% made $52,490.

Career Outlook

The need for qualified compliance professionals in virtually all industries makes this a very desirable career path. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 6.2% employment growth (an estimated 21,600 jobs) for compliance officers between 2020 and 2030.