![\"\"](\"https:\/\/solutionsreview.com\/data-management\/files\/2022\/06\/CCO.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
This is part of Solutions Review\u2019s Premium Content Series, a collection of contributed columns written by industry experts in maturing software categories. In this submission, MirrorWeb<\/a>‘s Operations Director Harriet Christie offers a Chief Compliance Officer job description, as well as the many challenges faced in the role.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n To understand better what may have prompted this, this article takes a deeper dive into the nature of a compliance officer\u2019s role, its evolution, the multitude of challenges which CCOs contend with on a daily basis, and how a role so notoriously demanding can be made more manageable.<\/p>\n When your company\u2019s regulatory adherence falls under your remit, there is naturally a great deal of responsibility.<\/p>\n Fines like\u00a0JP Morgan\u2019s $200 million penalty<\/a>\u00a0in December 2021 have an impact on a business\u2019 share valuation, as well as its reputation. With companies of this size, the media are bound to take an interest in perceived failures, with this particular story gaining major international press traction. The \u201cwidespread book-keeping failures\u201d that JP Morgan admitted to will not have filled their current and potential client base with confidence, and so the impact of such oversights is immeasurable, financially and reputationally.<\/p>\n Of course, most financial services institutions don\u2019t operate at the scale of JP Morgan, but the point remains the same. It\u2019s highly likely that heads will have rolled in the aftermath of such a public scandal, but the frightening reality for the CCOs out there is that professional humiliation is not necessarily all they will have to deal with; mistakes can plausibly lead to criminal charges and incarceration.<\/p>\n While at smaller firms somebody in an existing role in the company may just \u2018wear the compliance hat\u2019 to fulfill legal requirements, the position of a more dedicated CCO is slightly paradoxical. Their focus is completely different to the wider team\u2019s in terms of KPIs and what success in their role looks like, and yet to succeed, they need to collaborate with everybody across the organization and ensure that they\u2019re engaged in the process.<\/p>\n As Clint Ward, Chief Compliance officer at\u00a0Keel Point\u00a0<\/a>explains, \u201cI need to spend a lot of time dealing with questions from our staff. Building that culture of compliance and letting people know \u2018I\u2019m on your side, I want you to succeed in serving our clients, we just need to do it in the right way\u2019, is so important.\u201d<\/p>\n Commanding the required level of respect and camaraderie amongst co-workers while serving an independent purpose is no mean feat. As\u00a0Corporate Compliance Insights<\/a>\u00a0(CCI) explains in its recent survey report, \u201cMany cliches paint compliance as the department of \u2018no\u2019, an anti-sales function, or a team that is simply unnecessary. Some respondents say those cliches are still alive and well.\u201d<\/p>\n In many situations, CCOs have less authority than other high-level executives, in that the CCO is not directly involved in operations. For some narrow-minded employees, this validates the notion that CCOs are a hurdle rather than somebody that will provide relief or assistance to the team. These opinions can be difficult to change, as good work in compliance is largely invisible and so doesn\u2019t invite attention or acclaim.<\/p>\n Aside from establishing both buy-in and compliance competency across the company, there are other issues which CCOs navigate frequently, and that are becoming more prevalent as time passes.<\/p>\n At the top of that list is keeping on top of a regulatory landscape that is evolving by the day. In CCI\u2019s aforementioned\u00a0survey<\/a>, 59 percent of compliance officers (COs) revealed that they felt \u2018burnt out\u2019, with 69 percent admitting that they were stressed about the pace of changing regulations. This is inextricably linked to the evolution of communications tools and employee habits, particularly since businesses worldwide were forced to shift to a remote workforce overnight<\/a>. The subsequent increase in communications tools and the data that they create has widened the scope for infraction substantially.<\/p>\n 48 percent of COs are also perturbed by their personal liability, a statistic which is backed up by the recent NSCP framework<\/a>. The basis of that framework came from another survey conducted amongst NSCP members, in which\u00a063 percent of the respondents<\/a> said they were concerned that compliance officers would be individually charged in cases where the violations could be attributed to the company or other executives. The capacity for human error is another concern, with 72 percent of participants convinced that regulators have expanded the role of compliance officers and the scope of their responsibilities.<\/p>\n Clint adds, \u201cI rarely get to decide my own schedule, I’m at everybody else\u2019s beck and call a lot of the time. With everything that needs to be flagged, plus any questions from our staff, I spend a lot of time dealing with that. And we also have a lot of regulatory reporting to do.” Bandwidth is already low for many COs; throw in some extra responsibilities and an additional pinch of scrutiny from the regulators, and the recipe is a challenging one.<\/p>\n While there is some\u00a0leeway for infractions<\/a>\u00a0as long as the compliance program \u201cdevotes appropriate attention and resources to high-risk transactions\u201d, justifying the failures is certainly not as rewarding as celebrating the wins – like a sales team hitting an outlandish target, for example. The biggest win for a compliance officer comes when there\u2019s nothing to report.<\/p>\n There is a silver lining. The CCI survey shows that despite the admission that 56 percent of CCOs felt their mental health had been negatively impacted by the profession, 60 percent said they are satisfied or very satisfied with their job. This perhaps signifies an acceptance that stress is just part of the job description, although this perspective isn\u2019t the most sustainable in the long-term, and could explain why CCOs most commonly stay in their job for just 1-2 years<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"SR](\"https:\/\/solutionsreview.com\/data-management\/files\/2021\/12\/SR-Premium-Content.gif\")
A\u00a0new framework was recently put forward<\/a>\u00a0by the National Society of Compliance Professionals (NSCP), as it seeks to better define its members’ personal liability in a firm\u2019s regulatory mishaps. It appears that compliance officers are feeling vulnerable as regulations intensify around them. And who can blame them, considering the additional pressure and responsibility landing at their feet?<\/p>\n\t\t\t![\"Download](\"https:\/\/solutionsreview.com\/data-management\/files\/2019\/01\/data-management-speedbump-cta.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>\nHigh Stakes<\/b><\/h3>\n
Leaders From Afar<\/b><\/h3>\n
Common Challenges<\/b><\/h3>\n
The Rise of the CCO<\/b><\/h3>\n
![\"Download](\"https:\/\/solutionsreview.com\/data-management\/files\/2019\/01\/data-management-vendor-map-sb-cta.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"