Compliance functions areplaying an increasingly key role in organisations while demand for professionals continues unabated with salaries continuing double-digit percentage growth, according to a major survey of the profession.
The survey, from compliance recruitment specialist Taylor Root, in conjunction with Risk Management magazine, also found that with buoyant economic conditions – such as the commodity boom, record company profits, and inflows of capital into superannuation funds – demands on compliance functions will continue to increase.
As a result, the survey found, demand for compliance experts remains high. More than two-thirds of respondents said they’d recruited compliance staff in the past 12 months with a further 70 per cent expecting to recruit additional or replacement staff in the coming 12 months. Moreover, half of those polled said they had increased the net headcount of their teams last year, underscoring the increasing workload and criticality of compliance to the operations of most financial services organisations.
“Certainly, the overwhelming trend in terms of demand is that organisations have continued to recruit pretty heavily,” said David Buckley, partner at Taylor Root. “That’s a combination of both replacement recruitment when people move on and the continued growth in size of compliance teams. So again, I think it’s just confirmation that organisations realise that they need to put additional resources into compliance and risk.”
Sydney salaries rose on average by around 14 per cent across the profession, with the biggest rises in the senior bracket for those with a minimum of 10 years’experience of some 20 per cent. Melbourne salaries, meanwhile, are only slightly behind those of Sydney. However the growth in Melbourne-based roles has seen a major increase, particularly in the wealth management sector.
The increase in senior roles being created, the talent drought and an evolution in the roles of heads of compliance have conspired to push senior salaries higher. Additionally, the payment of sign-on bonuses, guaranteed minimum bonuses and large salary increases in the event of resignations are commonplace.
In terms of bonuses for compliance staff, they remain at record highs with bonuses of 100 per cent of salary on offer in some cases. Investment banking continues to lead the market in bonus payments. Tellingly, organisations perceived as having a poor compliance culture are suffering when it comes to recruitment and retention of staff. With a small talent pool, compliance professionals have plenty of options are choosing firms with positive compliance cultures.
“We operate in a pretty small market and it’s a pretty small compliance community. People can and do vote with their feet in this market,” Buckley said. “If their perception is that the organisation’s culture is non-compliant or it’s anti-compliance, then often there’s not a lot you can do to persuade them otherwise.
“Whether the perception or reality are completely different things, those organisations do suffer. I think most compliance specialists know who the organisations are that don’t have particularly strong compliance cultures. I think it’s pretty well documented and well known around town. For those organisations that have truly staffed-up their compliance functions, at least this is a demonstrable attempt to put compliance where it should be positioned within the organisation. Headcount is important.”
The survey also noted an increasing trend towards specialisation, with fewer ‘generalist’ roles available as the size of compliance functions increases. The Federal Government’s reform of anti-money laundering laws has been a particular catalyst, while the recent scrutiny of the investment banking sectors use of ‘Chinese walls’ has also raised the profile and importance of the compliance function.