Compliance Compensation Survey

ia-watch-nscp

The results of the 2014 IA Compliance Compensation Survey, sponsored by IA Watch and the National Society of Compliance Professionals, have been released. You can visit the IA Compliance Compensation Results website http://www.salary.iawatch.com/.

Use the results to benchmark and compare your compensation against peers in your area, plus the top 30 most populous metropolitan regions in the U.S., such as New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco and nationally.

According to the publisher, the survey reveals some interesting trends that run counter to expectations:

  • The number of years servicing the compliance industry does not necessarily correlate to higher wages.
  • The average compensation by assets under management (AUM) was higher for firms with $10-20 billion than firms with AUM greater than $100 billion.

Other Findings:

  • The compensation breakdown for individuals was 69% salary, 28% bonus, and 3% retirement/other. Bonuses are predominantly given based on either job or company performance and less than 10% are awarded a bonus for successfully completing a regulatory exam.
  • Only 50% of the firms surveyed increased their non-salary compliance budget, the remaining half had no change or a slight decrease.
  • Firms did not reallocate costs between outside counsel, consultants, subscriptions or training regardless if the budget was increasing, staying flat, or decreasing.
  • Overall, about two-thirds of the budget was spent on outside counsel and consultants, one-sixth on subscriptions, and one-fifth on training.

Sources:

Professional Certifications for Compliance

Do you need a certification to be compliance professional?

“Need” is not the right answer. Compliance is still a diverse and complex field, where the needs can differ remarkably from firm to firm.

I’m a bit skeptical that a generic certificate program is likely to help me much with my job or professional development. Whatever benefit comes from the program needs to balance the cost of the program and the time spent at the program’s courses (and away from the actual job).

I was contemplating the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics programs. They offer a Certified Compliance and Ethics Professional certification. You can combine a multi-day academy offering to meet the classroom requirements and take a test the next day.

With the SEC’s registration requirement for private fund managers, I took a closer look at what the SEC requires for compliance professionals.  Rule 206(4)-7 imposes no particular requirements on a chief compliance officer.  The SEC release for the rule provides a bit a more context on the professional background requirements:

“An adviser’s chief compliance officer should be competent and knowledgeable regarding the Advisers Act…”

So it’s not a lot of context. But you need to show that you understand the Advisers Act.

I switched gears from the CCEP and took a look at the Investment Adviser Certified Compliance Professional co-sponsored by the Investment Adviser Association and National Regulatory Services. I assume this certification and designation would give me the right to say I am “competent and knowledgeable regarding the Advisers Act.” It will even give me a certification that says so.

But it’s a lot of work: 20 courses and a test.

I’m taking care of six of those course over the next two days.

Boston IA Compliance Symposium 2012

Northeastern University Batterymarch Conference Center
Second Floor of the Hilton Boston Financial District

DAY 1 – Tuesday, June 12, 2012

8:30 AM–10:30 AM (ET)

A New Look at the Advisers Act: Registration, Exclusions and Exemptions; Mid-Sized Advisers and Exempt Reporting Advisers; Private Fund Advisers and More

10:45 AM–12:45 PM (ET)

Books and Records Requirements for Investment Advisers

2:00 PM–4:00 PM (ET)

Insider Trading, Contracts and New ADV Delivery Requirements

Day 2 – Wednesday, June 13, 2012

8:30 AM–10:30 AM (ET)

Understanding Fiduciary Duties and the Sweep of the Anti-Fraud Provisions of the Advisers Act

10:45 AM–12:45 PM (ET)

Custody and Pay-to-Play Rules Plus Solicitors and Proxy Voting Requirements for Investment Advisers

2:00 PM–4:00 PM (ET)

Compliance Programs Rules and Strategies for Managing Your Annual Review

 

Employment Opportunity – Senior Compliance Role

I occasionally get calls from people looking to hire compliance personnel. Here is the latest:

  • Private Equity firm looking to expand its compliance team
  • Senior compliance role reporting to the CCO
  • Company is a prominent PE firm based in TX with a large office in San Francisco
  • Knowledge of Investment Advisers Act essential
  • Experience reviewing marketing material and interacting with investor relations and fund raising required
  • Firm has a small compliance team so it is expected that this person will be willing to take on a variety of responsibilities
  • JD not required
  • Relocation available

If you are interested, you can drop me a note on the Compliance Building hotline: [email protected].