Infographic

2022 Compliance Benchmark Survey: Summary Findings

Find out how financial service firms around the globe are approaching employee compliance in Star’s annual benchmark survey

Survey Demographics

Icon showing "47+" above five outlined figures representing a group of people.

Total Firms Responded

Bar chart showing regional percentages: North America 46%, EMEA 16%, APAC 19%, UK 19%.

By Region

Pie chart showing business segment distribution: Asset Management 38%, Other 35%, Broker-Dealer.

By Segment

Key Findings

20 firms indicated that they anticipate significant changes to their compliance programs in 2022.

15 of those 20 named the following key factors as shaping their current and future-state compliance priorities: 

And 15 reported the  following levels of concern, when asked about increased  compliance officer liability  for failed compliance programs: 

Pie chart showing satisfaction levels: Moderately 80%, Very 13%, Not at All 7%.


15 cited the following key challenges facing their compliance programs:

Key Learnings & Takeaways

Compliance Officers Must Be More Impactful 

An analog clock showing 3 o'clock with an orange frame.

Compliance officers spend too much time plowing through data and not enough time assessing risk. By automating non-core responsibilities, firms can give compliance teams more bandwidth to reduce operational, regulatory, and reputational risks. 

Icon showing a declining bar chart with an upward arrow and warning triangle.

93% of respondents expressed real concern about compliance officer liability. Reducing such risks through automation can go a long way toward quelling such increasingly common fears and retaining top compliance talent in a tight labor market.

Transparency Is Critical For An Effective Program  

Icon showing a brain surrounded by symbols for creativity, settings, and ideas.

Automated platforms give compliance teams the ability to connect data, identify patterns, synthesize information into actionable insights and then easily share that knowledge. 

A checklist document with a magnifying glass highlighting a checkmark symbol.

They also allow compliance officers to quickly provide a clear audit trail, which gives regulators more confidence in firm compliance programs. It’s an easy way to evidence compliance.  

Compliance Teams Should Be Business Partners

Woman with raised arms surrounded by icons for ideas, checkmarks, and gears.

Compliance often finds itself in a losing tradeoff. The business side wants frictionless experiences for customers and employees, while compliance wants confidence in firm processes and policies. That no longer has to be the case, however. 

Icon showing target, chat bubble, gears, and key symbols representing marketing and business.

The right automated tools—sophisticated, integrated compliance software platforms—can create better and more obvious alignment between compliance and business objectives: clearly highlighting the business value of the office of the CCO.