Salary survey: Compliance professionals prove their worth

The earnings of compliance professionals in the UK have risen strongly in the past two years but look set to stabilise in 2002, the search firm PSD Group said.

Recent pay increases were secured because compliance departments in financial services firms are now seen as a source of added value, instead of merely a cost centre, said PSD.

The new regulatory powers of the Financial Services Authority and the business value of a clean reputation have added to positive pressure on earnings. New hires have sometimes come at a premium, with the result that the salaries of whole teams have had to be adjusted upwards to meet the new benchmark, PSD said in a pay survey.

A head of compliance at a leading firm with 12 years experience can earn a basic salary of up to 300,000 (€480,000), with an average of 150,000, the survey found.

Top special projects compliance consultants with a decade of experience can earn a basic salary of up to 100,000. At the other end of the scale, compliance assistants with between one and two years' experience earn a basic average of 25,000.

PSD said salary differentials had widened, making benchmarking more difficult.

Forty per cent of respondents received a bonus and 35% were paid partly in share options. Marnie Patience, the survey's author, said bonuses this year were flat compared to last year.

Though share options have become more widespread, their popularity has declined. &quotEighteen months ago there was a lot of interest in options, but now a lot of compliance professionals are cynical about their presence in a package," said Patience.

The greater standardisation of compliance requirements under the Financial Services Authority had made it easier for employees to move to another firm. Compliance assistants have often been leaving after only 12-18 months, forcing employers to increase salaries in the search for a replacement, PSD said.

But the sector is not immune to the malaise affecting financial services as a whole. &quotOverall there is a less bullish feeling to the market," said Patience.

&quotThere will not be a rush of people leaving after the received their bonus this year. People are more interested in job security, a good management team and the opportunities for learning that a position provides."

She predicted that future recruitment would centre on such specialist positions as money laundering and international compliance, in addition to product specialisms such as fixed income and equities.

The survey was conducted between December 2001 and January 2002 and was based on the responses 800 candidates and clients.