Executive Briefing
Compliance teams are showing signs of strain that recruitment alone cannot fix.
The Update
The demand for compliance and risk professionals in gambling continues to outpace supply. Operators report extended vacancy periods, rising salaries, and limited candidate pipelines, particularly in markets undergoing regulatory reform. While some firms have responded by expanding recruitment budgets or broadening criteria, few have addressed the cumulative effects of sustained workload and reactive change management on existing teams.
In multiple jurisdictions, enforcement actions and licence reviews have intensified the compliance burden. Staff are navigating evolving obligations around affordability, data use, advertising, and anti-money laundering, often with unclear guidance and shifting timelines. In this context, teams are not simply short-staffed; they are overstretched.
The Under-Examined Angle
The compliance talent squeeze is frequently described as a hiring issue. In reality, it is a resilience issue. Many teams operate in a near-permanent reactive delivery state, without the time or structure to consolidate learning, document processes, or build internal capability. This leads to knowledge loss, inconsistency, and overreliance on individual performers.
The impact reaches beyond the compliance function. When regulatory interpretation or control testing is fragile, the risk transfers to product, marketing, and operations. Executive confidence in risk controls declines, and leadership time is diverted to firefighting. Meanwhile, the perception of compliance as a career path weakens. High turnover among junior and mid-level staff reduces bench strength, and the most experienced professionals are often promoted into roles where they carry full accountability without commensurate resources.
International firms face compounded pressure. Cross-border teams must interpret local regulations while aligning with group policy and central risk frameworks. In markets such as the UK and Australia, ongoing reform has created simultaneous peaks in demand, exacerbating competition for talent. In the US, rapid state-by-state expansion is creating a fragmented oversight landscape with few experienced professionals to navigate it.
Boards should see this not as a functional issue but as a business continuity concern. Compliance resilience now underpins licence retention, strategic delivery, and reputational risk management. Addressing the squeeze requires more than hiring. It requires a shift in how compliance work is designed, supported, and integrated into leadership planning.
Boardroom Questions
- Are our compliance teams resourced not only to deliver but to sustain performance under regulatory pressure?
- Where are we exposed to knowledge or continuity risks from overreliance on key individuals?
- What mechanisms are in place to build resilience, learning, and leadership pathways within the compliance function?
Sources:
- UK Gambling Commission, Regulatory Roundups (2023)
- Australasian AML Compliance Benchmarking Survey
- IAGR Global Trends Report (2023)
- Financial Times, Risk and Compliance Talent Trends