AgentSync Salutes Insurance Compliance Officers on National Compliance Officer Day

Today is National Compliance Officer Day, which might not sound like a big deal to most people. But when you eat, sleep, and breathe compliance like we do at AgentSync, it’s a major cause for celebration. 

Compliance officers are some of the most unsung heroes of our industry. We recognize what a difficult job it is to keep up with ever-changing, state-by-state insurance regulations. And everyone from agencies, carriers, and individual producers is impacted by the all-too-real fear of falling out of compliance. 

So, on this National Compliance Officer Day, we’re taking the “unsung heroes” and literally singing about you! We created this video as a salute to all the compliance officers out there, working hard to keep insurance agencies, carriers, and individual producers in line with all applicable laws and regulations. 

Not a compliance officer? Don’t worry, we plan to salute some other Real Insurance Heroes in the near future. And if this video hit a little too close to home and you’re thinking there has to be a better way to manage compliance, then check out AgentSync. Our suite of modern insurance solutions can streamline producer onboarding, automate the license renewal process, and prevent human errors before they happen. 

Whether you decide to check out AgentSync or not, we want the world to know how much we love compliance officers. The insurance industry would truly be lost without you! For those less familiar with what a compliance officer does, we’ve also included a little bit of information as follows to help you out. 

What is a compliance officer? 

A compliance officer is someone who works within an organization to monitor, and sometimes enforce, compliance with applicable laws and regulations, as well as internal policies. Compliance officers exist across nearly every public and private industry, and are particularly well-represented in all levels of government, private corporate governance, and the pharmaceutical industry. 

To get really granular, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) defines the role as those who “examine, evaluate, and investigate eligibility for or conformity with laws and regulations…” The BLS excludes from its definition of compliance officers those who work in specific capacities like tax examiners and building code inspectors. Rather, a compliance officer is someone internal to an organization whose job it is to keep up on laws and regulations that impact the organization, along with looking out for potential violations. 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were over 330,000 compliance officers working in the U.S. in 2021. With a median annual wage of over $70,000 (and top earners reaching well above $100,000), a career as a compliance officer can be lucrative – if you’re passionate about keeping your organization compliant. 

What do insurance compliance officers do? 

Insurance compliance officers work within different insurance organizations including insurance agencies, insurance carriers, MGAs, and MGUs, to help their organization mitigate compliance risks. These risks might be related to producer licensing status or state and federal laws that govern the business’s overall operation. 

Just as one example, within the healthcare insurance industry, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires health insurance carriers to spend 80 percent of their collected premiums each year on providing health services, and no more than 20 percent on administrative and operating costs. If a health insurance carrier doesn’t meet these ratios, they have to issue premium refunds to their plan members in proportion to the amount not spent on healthcare costs. An insurance compliance officer at a health insurance carrier would likely be involved in monitoring the company’s compliance with this law and, if necessary, enforcing the required premium refunds to plan members.   

Why are compliance officers important? 

Compliance officers play a vital role in both consumer protection and keeping their organization out of hot legal water. The insurance industry is heavily regulated, in large part to protect consumers from predatory practices and to keep insurance carriers from going crazy with profits at the expense of the services they’re contractually obligated to provide. For any insurance business, whether it’s an agency, carrier, or anything else, it pays to focus on compliance internally before a regulatory misstep costs your business time, money, and reputation. 

As important as compliance officers are, it’s a mystery why many insurance organizations leave them grappling with outdated technology and manual processes to do their jobs. If you’re a compliance officer looking to step into the modern age, or you know someone who is, make sure to check out how AgentSync can give you your time and life back.