With the happy event drawing closer, financial businesses are realising that a combination of soft and technical skills is the secret. Analytic ability (44%), knowledge of regulation and compliance (39%), and project management skills (38%) will be indispensible. Strategic thinking (39%), communication skills (39%) and attention to detail (31%) are also required to ensure that compliance people can act as business leaders and play an effective part in influencing data practices and policies.

GDPR certified practioners are in short supply, but Robert Half believes that project managers and business analysts with experience implementing MiFID ll and the Sarbanes Oxley Act, among other pieces of legislation, have the requisite skills to support firms' efforts, especially temporarily and on projects.

Small-to-medium firms are more likely to hire project managers (32%) to help with compliance while larger organisations are placing a greater emphasis on recruiting data protection officers (33%).