COMPENSATION GUIDEF O R A N T I - F R A U D P R O F E S S I O N A L S
2015/2016 GLOBAL SALARY STUDY
AC
CO
UN
TIN
G
2 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Table of Contents
Letter from the President and CEO ............................................................................. 3
Accounting .................................................................................................................. 4
Accounting Median Total Compensation �������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 4
CPA/CA or Equivalent �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 5
Forensic Accountant ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 6
Controller ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 7
Management Accountant �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 8
Other Accounting / Finance ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 9
Compensation Ranges for Accounting Job Functions ��������������������������������������������������������� 10
Respondent Geographic Profile ................................................................................ 12
Survey Methodology ................................................................................................. 14
About the ACFE ......................................................................................................... 15
ACCOUNTING | 3
Letter from the President and CEOWe often say that there is much more to earning the Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) cre-
dential than simply adding three new letters after your name� It’s what those letters mean
to you, your employers and your colleagues that make the accomplishment so profound�
So, what exactly do those letters, CFE, mean? They could mean hard work, expertise, drive,
commitment, knowledge, insight — the list could go on and on� And, as we have found in
our 2015/2016 Compensation Guide for Anti-Fraud Professionals, they also mean a 23 percent
salary premium�
It’s a unique opportunity for us to see the tangible and intangible benefits of earning the CFE
credential� Because satisfaction and career development are intangible items, we often don’t
have a specific way to measure the true impact earning the credential has on someone’s life,
both professionally and personally�
But with our new Compensation Guide, we can capture what it looks and feels like to not
only increase your salary, but your worth�
I hope you find the information in this Compensation Guide as interesting and enlightening as
I do� Most importantly, thank you to all who submitted data for this study — this guide would
not have been possible without you�
James D� Ratley, CFE
President and CEO, Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
4 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Figure 1: Accounting Median Total Compensation
AccountingThe field of Accounting consists of five individually selected job functions: CPA/CA or
equivalent, Forensic Accountant, Controller, Management Accountant and Other Accounting/
Finance. This field includes three of the top 10 job functions (Forensic Accountant, CPA/CA or
equivalent and Other Accounting/Finance).
$0 $20,000 $40,000 $60,000 $80,000 $100,000
Non-CFE
CFE $92,505
$75,246
ACCOUNTING | 5
Median Total Compensation
CFE Non-CFE
Level of Responsibility
Executive $139,400 N/APartner/Principal $150,000 $130,000Director $138,000 $114,000Supervisor/Senior Consultant $77,500 $65,000Manager $90,000 $80,000Staff/Consultant/Analyst $68,400 $60,264
Primary Industry of Focus
Education N/A $46,107Financial Institutions $96,500 $116,643Government $92,000 $83,500Health Care $95,000 N/AInsurance $120,000 N/ALaw/Legal Services $90,000 N/AManagement Consultants $95,538 N/AManufacturing $116,400 $94,500Non-Profit $92,405 N/APublic/Chartered Accounting $109,200 $75,000Real Estate $128,242 N/AServices $108,476 $62,209
Years of Experience
0-2 years N/A $53,0403-4 years $60,000 $45,5005-9 years $72,000 $75,00010-19 years $109,200 $107,50020+ years $123,000 $106,000
Figure 2: Compensation Ranges for CPAs/CAs or Equivalent
6 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Median Total Compensation
CFE Non-CFE
Level of Responsibility
Executive $140,000 N/APartner/Principal $270,000 $200,000Vice President $140,000 N/ADirector $160,000 $166,500Supervisor/Senior Consultant $91,500 $85,000Manager $110,000 $103,950Staff/Consultant/Analyst $85,575 $78,000
Primary Industry of Focus
Financial Institutions $112,000 $75,000Government $92,330 $89,000Health Care $126,375 N/AInsurance $119,500 $90,000Law Enforcement $95,762 $85,000Law/Legal Services $128,000 $182,000Management Consultants $131,086 $95,000Manufacturing $142,500 N/APublic/Chartered Accounting $127,500 $74,721Services $113,987 $96,889
Years of Experience
0-2 years N/A $53,0403-4 years $60,000 $45,5005-9 years $72,000 $75,00010-19 years $109,200 $107,50020+ years $123,000 $106,000
Figure 3: Compensation Ranges for Forensic Accountants
ACCOUNTING | 7
Median Total Compensation
CFE Non-CFE
Level of Responsibility
Executive $126,379 N/AVice President $120,000 N/ADirector $112,486 $93,500Supervisor/Senior Consultant $76,500 $85,000Manager $89,040 $90,594Staff/Consultant/Analyst $73,529 N/A
Primary Industry of Focus
Education $100,000 N/AFinancial Institutions $80,931 $89,000Government $90,000 $82,500Health Care $90,000 N/AManufacturing $97,462 $94,000Non-Profit $89,040 $55,000Services $94,000 $92,500
Years of Experience
5-9 years $84,000 N/A10-19 years $93,200 $82,50020+ years $114,000 $96,102
Figure 4: Compensation Ranges for Controllers
8 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Median Total Compensation
CFE Non-CFE
Level of Responsibility
Supervisor/Senior Consultant $70,710 $52,229Manager $80,000 $60,000Staff/Consultant/Analyst $72,800 $51,979
Primary Industry of Focus
Education $75,000 N/AFinancial Institutions $100,000 N/AGovernment $80,496 $70,262Health Care $80,000 N/AManufacturing $61,755 N/ANon-Profit $75,000 $60,000
Years of Experience
5-9 years $70,710 $50,60010-19 years $78,523 $60,00020+ years $89,301 $77,000
Figure 5: Compensation Ranges for Management Accountants
ACCOUNTING | 9
Median Total Compensation
CFE Non-CFE
Level of Responsibility
Executive $143,000 N/APartner/Principal $178,000 N/AVice President N/A $160,000Director $138,307 $89,000Supervisor/Senior Consultant $72,500 $60,000Manager $91,963 $55,000Staff/Consultant/Analyst $64,840 $50,000
Primary Industry of Focus
Education $77,000 $50,500Financial Institutions $64,000 $53,032Government $85,000 $51,750Health Care $70,000 N/AInsurance $85,000 N/AManagement Consultants $80,800 N/AManufacturing $70,000 $53,000Non-Profit $70,000 $68,299Public/Chartered Accounting $60,500 $43,000Services $60,264 $60,000
Years of Experience
0-2 years N/A $50,0003-4 years $56,000 N/A5-9 years $69,497 $46,07810-19 years $82,400 $50,00020+ years $88,387 $78,625
Figure 6: Compensation Ranges for Other Accounting/Finance
10 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Figure 7: Compensation Ranges for Accounting Job Functions
$0
$25,000
$50,000
$75,000
$100,000
$125,000
$150,000
$175,000
$200,000
Other Accounting/Finance
Management Accountant
ControllerForensic Accountant
CPA/CA or Equivalent
$150,000
$120,000
$142,304
$90,634
$71,600
$80,000
$52,000
$155,000
$105,000
$84,370
$143,000
$96,660
$114,000
$80,000
$56,000
$78,523
$64,427
$113,072
$90,200$81,744
$55,000
$38,724
$60,000
$41,752
$90,594
$65,840
$97,000
$75,000
$102,000
$72,000
CFE Non-CFE
75th75th
75th
75th
75th75th
75th
75th
75th
75th
50th 50th
50th
50th 50th50th
50th 50th
50th
50th
25th
25th
25th
25th
25th
25th
25th
25th
25th
25th
Compensation ranges reflect 25th, 50th (median) and 75th percentile.
ACCOUNTING | 11
I look back on my childhood and realize that I showed the signs that I should be a
CFE and CPA, but just didn’t know it at the time. My mother likes to joke about how I
apparently always walked around with a clipboard� People think I am crazy for saying
this, but I am very lucky to have found my true calling� Public perception is that we are
boring, stuffy accountants — but that is the furthest from the truth� I have never been bored
in my career and cannot ever see myself being bored�”
Danielle Supkis Cheek, CFE, CPA, CVAFounder, D. Supkis Cheek, PLLC
“
12 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Respondent Geographic ProfileTwenty-nine percent of the overall respondents indicated their primary location was outside
the U�S�, the highest in the history of the survey�
The table below illustrates the total cash compensation by geographic region for all respon-
dents, classified by CFEs and non-CFEs.
Figure 8: Overall Geographic Representation: By Region
By Geographic Region
CFE Non-CFECFE Premium
25th percentile
Median75th percentile
25th percentile
Median75th percentile
Based on median
Africa/Middle East
$24,089 $48,775 $90,686 $17,000 $34,135 $67,945 42.9%
Asia $22,500 $61,512 $114,149 $16,437 $34,245 $70,286 79.6%
Australia and New Zealand
$67,373 $91,759 $136,083 $70,763 $87,498 $121,775 4.9%
Canada $67,496 $81,156 $100,440 $57,452 $72,317 $100,440 12.2%
Europe $62,645 $100,912 $148,000 $47,596 $80,113 $124,246 26.0%
Latin America $45,922 $83,145 $125,257 $32,352 $47,060 $92,000 76.7%
Other Countries Not Listed
$45,620 $65,000 $90,600 $22,575 $42,000 $52,000 54.8%
United States $72,000 $96,000 $131,000 $60,000 $82,142 $117,500 16.9%
ACCOUNTING | 13
Figure 9: CFE Premium By Region
4.9%
42.9%
54.8%
79.6%
76.7%
16.9%
12.2%
26.0%
Africa/Middle East
Other Countries Not Listed
Europe
Latin America
United States
Canada Asia
Australia and New Zealand
14 | ACFE.com/CompGuide
Survey MethodologyIn order to ensure the confidentiality of the data, the
ACFE contracted an objective, third-party research
company, Western Management Group, to collect and
compile the results� An email with a link to an online
questionnaire was sent to approximately 62,000 ACFE
members in early February 2015� A total of 10,436 com-
pleted and useable responses were received by the end
of February in time for processing, representing a 17%
response rate� Based on 10,436 presumably random
responses and 62,000 for the total population, this study
has a +/- 0.87% margin of error (MOE) at a 95% level
of confidence. In other words, we can be 95% certain
that for a question with 10,436 responses, the survey’s
figure would be within +/- 0.87% percentage points of
the actual universe’s response� A margin of error of +/-
5% is typically accepted as the “standard” in association
research, so this study’s +/- 0.87% figure indicates a
stronger than typical level of statistical integrity�
All data were checked both manually and by a specially
designed computer editing procedure. Strict confidence
of survey responses was maintained throughout the
course of the project.
Visit ACFE.com/CompGuide to access the salary
calculator and create
your individual report�
ACCOUNTING | 15
About the ACFE The ACFE is the world’s largest anti-fraud organization and the premier provider of anti-fraud
training and education� Together with more than 75,000 members, the ACFE is reducing the
incidence of fraud and white-collar crime worldwide and inspiring public confidence in the
integrity and objectivity within the profession.
Members of the ACFE include CPAs, auditors, lawyers, investigators, law enforcement offi-
cers, security professionals, executives, managers and anyone whose job involves prevent-
ing, detecting or deterring fraud�
Certified Fraud Examiners (CFEs) The ACFE established and administers the Certified Fraud Ex-
aminer (CFE) credential. Globally preferred by employers, the
CFE credential denotes proven expertise in fraud prevention,
detection, deterrence and investigation�
For more information about the ACFE and Certified Fraud Examiners, visit ACFE.com�
CERTIFIED FRAUDEXAMINER
© 2015 Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Inc. “ACFE,” “CFE,” “Cer-tified Fraud Examiner,” “Association of Certified Fraud Examiners,” the ACFE Seal, the ACFE Logo and related trademarks, names and logos are the prop-erty of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Inc., and are registered and/or used in the U�S� and countries around the world�
GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS • THE GREGOR BUILDING716 West Avenue • Austin, TX 78701-2727 • USAPhone: (800) 245-3321 / +1 (512) [email protected] • ACFE.com
Share this guide:
AC
CO
UN
TIN
G
Top Related