Compliance Officer

The individual you appoint will be responsible for the implementation of your compliance regime. Your compliance officer should have the authority and the resources necessary to discharge his or her responsibilities effectively. Depending on your type of business, your compliance officer should report, on a regular basis, to the board of directors or senior management, or to the owner or chief operator.

If you are a small business, the appointed officer could be a senior manager or the owner or operator of the business. If you are an individual, you can appoint yourself as compliance officer or you may choose to appoint another individual to help you implement a compliance regime.

In the case of a large business, the compliance officer should be from a senior level and have direct access to senior management and the board of directors. Further, as a good governance practice, the appointed compliance officer in a large business should not be directly involved in the receipt, transfer or payment of funds.

For consistency and ongoing attention to the compliance regime, your appointed compliance officer may choose to delegate certain duties to other employees. For example, the officer may delegate an individual in a local office or branch to ensure that compliance procedures are properly implemented at that location. However, where such a delegation is made, the compliance officer retains responsibility for the implementation of the compliance regime.