Job Title
Head of Markets Model Validation - Model Risk Office
Location
London
Hours
Full-time
Working Pattern
Hybrid: spend at least two days per week (or 40% of time) at one of our office sites.
About this opportunity
We’re looking for an exceptional senior leader to head our Markets Model Validation team, part of the Group’s Model Risk Office. This is a rare opportunity to influence how a major bank manages some of its most complex quantitative models — from Pricing and Market Risk to Counterparty Credit Risk, Algo Trading, and Surveillance. This role is about leadership, strategy, clarity of priorities, and delivering through others. You’ll guide an experienced team of quantitative specialists and ensure our model risk activity aligns with business goals and regulatory expectations.
What you’ll be doing
* Define and articulate the strategy for Markets model validation, ensuring priorities are clear and aligned with wider Group needs.
* Establish clear plans, validation roadmaps, and delivery expectations, ensuring all collaborators understand scope, timelines, and trade‑offs.
* Anticipate changes in regulation, business priorities, and market conditions, adapting the validation strategy accordingly.
* Lead and inspire a sizeable team of quantitative specialists, prioritising empowerment, accountability and high performance.
* Develop capability at all levels through coaching, delegation, role clarity and professional growth paths.
* Create a culture of openness, psychological safety, continuous improvement and strong alignment to Group Values.
* Drive operational excellence in how the team plans, executes, and communicates its work.
* Build trust‑based relationships with senior leaders across Quant, Markets, Market Risk, Finance, Audit and the larger business.
* Provide collaborators with clarity on plans, capacity, priorities and expectations—enabling them to make informed decisions.
* Support collaborators to understand broader business priorities and how validation outcomes influence risk management and strategy.
* Communicate effectively across technical and non‑technical audiences, tailoring messages for ExCo‑level and regulatory forums.
* Oversee the independent validation of Pricing, CCR, Market Risk, Algo Trading, Surveillance and Valuation models.
* Ensure validations are delivered to a high standard, covering conceptual soundness, data, implementation, governance, performance and limitations.
* Provide leadership guidance and credible challenge while empowering technical experts to lead analyses and deep‑dives.
* Ensure reports are clear, balanced and actionable, with strong messages for senior committees.
* Represent MRO confidently in regulatory dialogues, ensuring transparency, credibility, and clear articulation of validation judgements.
* Ensure the IVT operates in full alignment with Group Model Risk Policy, SS1/23, SR11‑7, Basel and broader governance requirements.
* Champion strong model risk governance across the Markets domain.
Why join us?
We’re transforming at pace, investing billions in our people, data and tech to change the way we meet the needs of our customers.
What we’re looking for
* Proven ability to lead, inspire and develop large specialist teams.
* Strong track record of building high‑performance cultures, creating role clarity and confidence.
* Skilled at influencing senior collaborators, managing complex agendas and navigating competing priorities.
* Familiarity with Markets models across various areas sufficient to lead oversight and challenge.
* Ability to understand technical issues at an appropriate level and ensure robust validation standards are applied.
* Programming familiarity (Python, C++ etc.) advantageous but not central; credibility is more important than hands‑on expertise.
* Strong understanding of model risk management, governance frameworks, and regulatory expectations.
* Broad market and product knowledge across asset classes.
* Able to articulate plans, priorities and decisions clearly across a wide range of audiences.
* Strong relationship‑building skills with senior executives, technical teams and regulatory bodies.
* Demonstrated ability to simplify complexity and build alignment.
* High integrity, sound judgement and resilience.
* Confident and composed in senior and regulatory settings.
* Skilled at bringing teams together around common goals and giving clarity even in ambiguous situations.
We know that great talent comes from many backgrounds. Whilst this job advert may reference specific years of experience, we recognise that skills are developed in many ways, so if you have relevant, transferable experience, we encourage you to apply.
This is a place for you
We offer reasonable workplace adjustments for colleagues with disabilities, including flexibility in office attendance, location and working patterns. As a Disability Confident Leader, we guarantee interviews for a fair and proportionate number of applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the role with a disability, long‑term health or neurodivergent condition through the Disability Confident Scheme.
Benefits
* A generous pension contribution of up to 15%
* An annual performance‑related bonus
* Share schemes including free shares
* Benefits you can adapt to your lifestyle, such as discounted shopping
* 30 days’ holiday, with bank holidays on top
* A range of wellbeing initiatives and generous parental leave policies
Ready to make an impact? Apply today!
#J-18808-Ljbffr