The COMPLY organization is made up of hundreds of talented people, who are dedicated to helping clients achieve COMPLYance with confidence. In this COMPLY Spotlight, we sat down with Jessica Freckleton to hear more about her new role, why she joined the team, and her approach to compliance consulting.
Welcome, Jessica!
Name: Jessica Freckleton
Title: Director, Compliance Advisory
Location: UK
Years in the industry: 11
Can you walk us through your career path and how you came to be COMPLY’s UK Director, Compliance Advisory?
I qualified as a Solicitor in 2012, after which my career quickly moved in-house. I spent my first 5 years in investment banks. However, I always knew I wanted to be at the heart of a business rather than a traditional lawyer, and I wanted my next move to be to a smaller organisation. A hedge fund felt like the right fit for my knowledge and skill set.
I spent 6 years in legal and compliance, overseeing fund launches, authorisation from overseas regulators, and working in a fast-paced and changing regulatory landscape, requiring me to build out an ever more complex and robust compliance monitoring framework, which solved for a variety of legal and regulatory issues.
Why did you join COMPLY?
I joined COMPLY in November 2023 to lead the UK Compliance Consulting Service team. It truly was an exciting opportunity to facilitate the launch of a new business and be at the heart of a service designed to help clients navigate a complex regulatory environment, mitigate risks, and develop and implement effective compliance strategies. As someone who has been in-house in previous positions, I understand the importance of having a reliable consulting service alongside a technology-enabled compliance monitoring programme. The COMPLY Program Management system offers a centralised, comprehensive platform for managing the full scope of a firm’s compliance programme and I believe we can add real value to clients by providing both Consulting Services and COMPLY Program Management together.
What is your approach to being a compliance consultant?
First and foremost, I see the importance of practical advice that can be realistically implemented by firms to help clients achieve compliance with confidence.
It is crucial to understand a client’s business model and ascertain the regulatory risks they might face before building and evolving a firm’s compliance monitoring programme and policies and procedures. I have much experience with the UK regulator and UK and EU regulations and am adept at providing tailored solutions to drive business success.
Having worked as a former compliance officer and legal counsel in the past, what were some of the biggest challenges that you’re hoping to help clients solve in your role as consultant?
Juggling the competing demands of time, resource, and budget constraints with the excitement and drive of a growing and evolving business can be difficult. And those competing priorities are only compounded by the fact that firms must always be cognisant of client expectations and regulatory requirements. It is rewarding to see a business grow, confident that the regulatory risks have been considered and mitigated, allowing the launch of new funds and trading of new products.
Can you speak a little bit about our consulting offering?
COMPLY’s UK Compliance Consulting Service was developed in order to help clients manage their evolving regulatory requirements by providing:
- A comprehensive review of a firm’s compliance manuals and policies
- The development and implementation of a robust compliance monitoring programme
- Quarterly compliance monitoring reviews with written reports containing our findings
- Assistance with the firm’s annual compliance report
- Ongoing consulting support for ad hoc requests when additional assistance is required
- And more!
Overall, it was designed to be a firm’s compliance support system, helping them succeed and grow!
How can clients get in contact with you?
- Email: jfreckleton@comply.com
- Phone: +44 121 828 7303
Tell us a little bit about yourself! What’s a fun fact others might not know?
I spent 8 weeks volunteering in South Africa in 2006 and, whilst there, did the world’s highest bungy jump at Bloukrans Bridge on the Garden Route. I was the first to jump from the group of volunteers, but I am not sure I would do it again now!
Ready to achieve COMPLYance with confidence? Schedule time to speak with our experts today!