Best Jobs in America

CNNMoney/PayScale's top 100 careers with big growth, great pay and satisfying work.

20. Compliance Manager
Compliance Manager
20
"The ability to constantly learn about new laws, rules, regulations, policies, and trends allows me to broaden our corporate perspective on best practices," says Jason Adler, VP and general counsel at Cellairis, a wireless accessories retailer in Alpharetta, Ga.
Median pay: $87,200
Top pay: $127,000
10-year job growth: 27%
Total jobs*: 29,300

What they do all day? Like business traffic cops, compliance managers make sure their employers understand and conform to all relevant industry laws and regulations. Commonly found in pharmaceutical, health care, financial services and other regulated fields, managers may spend their workday trying to identify hidden risks, arranging employee training, tracking regulatory developments, and drafting and implementing new corporate policies.

How to get the job? An undergrad degree in accounting, management, economics, finance or law is hugely helpful. Big pluses: an industry certification, or a law or other related master's. It's also important to demonstrate thorough knowledge of an industry's laws and regulations -- and to enjoy a challenge, since this job involves a lot of moving parts.

What's great? What's not? Job security is high, and there's the chance to really influence what a company is doing and where it's going. But it's not always easy to do the job well and make everyone happy -- compliance managers have to feel comfortable saying 'no' to people, even if they're higher-ups. --K.A.

What they do all day? Like business traffic cops, compliance managers make sure their employers understand and conform to all relevant industry laws and regulations. Commonly found in pharmaceutical, health care, financial services and other regulated fields, managers may spend their workday trying to identify hidden risks, arranging employee training, tracking regulatory developments, and drafting and implementing new corporate policies. --K.A.

Quality of life ratings:
  • Personal satisfaction: A
  • Benefit to society: B
  • Flexibility: A
  • Low stress: C
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*Total jobs is estimated number of people working in broader BLS 'job family.'

Sources: PayScale.com, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and CNNMoney research

Do Compliance Managers have great jobs, or what? Are these great jobs, or what?
It's still a tough job market, so when CNNMoney, in partnership with data from PayScale.com, set out to find America's Best Jobs this year, first and foremost we looked for professions that offer great growth opportunities.

Other big factors: pay (how strong it is now, and how fast it's growing), overall job satisfaction, and how many jobs are in the field overall.
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