Compliance Manager

Compliance Manager — ATF / NFA / ITAR

Travelers Rest, SC | Full-Time | Onsite

Base Salary: 100K–110K 13% Variable Compensation

Have you actually owned firearms or regulated-manufacturing compliance — not just worked somewhere that had a compliance department?

Do you know how to take a changing regulation, determine what it means to the business, turn it into an operating procedure, train the organization on it, and make sure people actually follow it?

If so, check this out.

What’s the job?

We’re partnering with a growing U.S. manufacturer in the firearms and defense space that is looking for a Compliance Manager to own its regulatory compliance function.

This is not a paperwork-processing role and it is not a position for someone whose experience has primarily been following someone else’s compliance procedures.

You’ll be responsible for leading firearm regulatory compliance and risk management surrounding ATF, National Firearms Act (NFA), ITAR, export controls, DoD requirements, serialized products, licensing and distribution. The company’s existing job description specifically calls for ownership of firearm regulatory policy, ATF/NFA interaction, internal audits, physical product controls and the ongoing revision of compliance procedures as regulations change.

The company already has a strong Compliance Administrator. They need the person above that function who can set the standard, interpret the rules and own the program.

What will you actually be doing?

You’ll be the internal authority on regulatory compliance across manufacturing and distribution.

That means:

• Owning compliance related to ATF, NFA, ITAR, export licensing and applicable DoD requirements
• Serving as a Responsible Person on the company’s license
• Working directly with the ATF, NFA branches, law enforcement and other regulatory bodies
• Ensuring accurate ATF forms, Bound Book records and transaction records for serialized inventory
• Monitoring legislative, regulatory and judicial developments affecting production, distribution, transfer and export
• Translating regulatory changes into practical policies, procedures and work instructions
• Developing and maintaining internal compliance controls
• Training employees and operational teams
• Conducting internal audits of processes, documentation and physical product controls
• Preparing for and helping lead ATF or other regulatory audits
• Managing the company’s Compliance Administrator
• Partnering closely with manufacturing, shipping/receiving, inventory, supply chain, finance and executive leadership
• Supporting import/export requirements, rules of origin and government/DoD contracting activity

Those ATF forms, Bound Book requirements, serialized inventory controls, regulatory monitoring and supervision responsibilities are all specifically part of the existing position.

Here’s the important part

This company does not want a compliance cop whose answer to every question is “no.”

They want somebody who understands that compliance exists to protect the company and allow the business to operate successfully inside the rules.

You should be comfortable assessing risk, explaining it to leadership and helping the organization find a compliant path forward.

The company describes this as delivering “pragmatic, risk-based direction.”

What do you need?

The strongest candidates will have:

• 5 years of regulatory/compliance experience within firearms, suppressors, ammunition, defense manufacturing or another highly regulated manufacturing environment
• Direct experience with ATF and/or NFA-regulated products
• Experience owning a compliance program or meaningful portions of one
• Working knowledge of ITAR, export licensing and DoD requirements
• Experience writing policies, procedures or work instructions
• Experience training employees on compliance requirements
• Experience conducting or leading regulatory/internal audits
• Familiarity with serialized inventory and physical product controls
• Experience interacting directly with regulators or government agencies
• The ability to communicate with executives and operating teams without becoming a roadblock

The formal requirements also include a Bachelor’s degree and U.S. citizenship due to ITAR regulations.

Firearms manufacturing experience is the bullseye.

Someone who has owned compliance for a firearms, suppressor or ammunition manufacturer should immediately get our attention.

We would also consider someone coming from defense, aerospace or another heavily regulated manufacturer who has substantial ITAR/export, government contracting, audit and controlled-inventory experience and can learn the firearms-specific regulatory environment.

This probably is not the job for you if…

You probably aren't the right fit if your firearms experience has primarily been:

• Retail gun-store compliance
• Completing forms somebody else designed
• Following established SOPs without creating them
• Administrative processing of transfers
• Working around regulated products without actually owning compliance
• Legal/paralegal support without operational manufacturing responsibility

There is an experienced Compliance Administrator already doing the transactional work.

They need the person who builds, interprets, teaches, audits and owns the system.

That distinction matters.

How we’ll talk about your experience

Be prepared to walk us through:

“Tell me about your experience dealing directly with ATF/NFA-regulated products.”

From there, we’re going to want to understand:

• What part of compliance did you personally own?
• What policies or procedures did you create?
• Have you trained employees?
• Have you led or participated in an ATF or regulatory audit?
• Have you managed serialized inventory or Bound Book requirements?
• What did you do when a regulatory interpretation changed?
• How did you turn a regulation into an operating process?
• How did you work with operations without becoming a roadblock?
• Tell us about a regulatory risk you identified before it became a problem.
• What direct interaction have you had with regulators?
• Have you managed employees?

Those answers will tell us considerably more than the title on your résumé.

Where you fit

The compliance function currently consists of the Compliance Manager and Compliance Administrator.

As part of an organizational evolution, this position is expected to ultimately report to the CFO, creating intentional separation between the operating teams executing the procedures and the compliance organization responsible for establishing and auditing them.

You’ll have visibility across the company and regular interaction with senior leadership.

What’s in it for you?

• 100K–110K base salary
• 13% variable compensation, based on company profitability and departmental KPIs
• Variable compensation paid monthly
• Potential total compensation approaching approximately $125K
• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Disability insurance
• PTO
• 401(k)

The company's formal package includes health, vision, dental and disability insurance, PTO and 401(k).

And perhaps most importantly: this is an ownership role.

Y

ou are not being hired to inherit a binder and keep filling out forms.

You are being hired to help determine how a growing regulated manufacturer operates responsibly, efficiently and compliantly as the business evolves.