Head of Operations
International Bank based in the City of London
Salary £120k plus benefits
Hybrid working on offer
Reporting to the COO, the Head of Operations will lead our client’s London's Operations, KYC, Securities, Third Party Vendor Management, Facilities and Health & Safety functions.
The Head of Operations plays a key role in managing operational resilience and other regulatory initiatives relating to the firms’ operations. This role requires a strong people leader with an excellent understanding of FCA and PRA regulatory environment, CASS and of retail and commercial banking. They must balance the hands-on detailed understanding of banking operations systems, cards, payments and digital channels with strategic insight, a great capacity for change, pressure and delivery.
This person needs to be a natural relationship builder with strong stakeholder management skills with colleagues in London and overseas and external stakeholders including vendors.
Key Responsibilities will include:
Leadership:
* Work with the COO to develop and then execute the strategy for our client’s Operations functions including developing our future target operating model as a mass affluent digital retail bank.
* Ensure that all regulatory requirements are met and technology is used to enhance both the client experience but also management of risk and compliance.
Team Coordination and Leadership:
* Lead and coordinate the efforts of direct reports to ensure cohesive strategy execution. Hire great people and get the best out of all employees.
* Foster a collaborative and high-performance culture within the Operations teams to increase productivity and engagement.
Operational Resilience:
* Own and proactively evolve the Operational Resilience Policy and Self-Assessment to ensure the Bank has robust processes and procedures in place to deal with any major operational disruption in line with the regulator’s priorities and market best practice.
* Develop, implement, and periodically test the bank’s business continuity and recovery & resolution plans. Review and update plans and ensure employees are fully informed of these plans and their specific responsibilities.
* Design, implement and own the Payments Strategy of the Bank, ensuring competitive advantage is achieved, and that the Bank remains compliant with all relevant scheme rules.
Operational Excellence
* Devise and implement an effective customer boarding and due diligence program, ensuring adherence to relevant regulation and best practice AML governance.
* Perform the necessary security administrator functions for managing the profiles and permissions related to SWIFT, Bankline, and HMRC.
* Manage the implementation of new Straight Through Processing enabled by the new Core Banking System and the workflow processes within.
Third-Party Vendor Management
* Own vendor relationships for suppliers and ensure all outsourcing arrangements are managed in accordance with regulatory guidelines.
* Liaise with departmental heads to ensure effective ownership for our client’s third-party relationships.
Regulatory Compliance:
* Ensure that all regulatory reporting requirements in your area of responsibility are fully understood and delivered on time.
* Ensure that the Bank complies with the CASS provisions and regulatory reporting requirements under MiFid II.
* Promote and maintain a culture and environment that will facilitate the realisation of the Bank’s strategy, ensuring that high standards of corporate governance, financial and risk management and control are always observed.
* Comply with the Bank’s Conduct rules, as prescribed by the PRA and FCA including the most recent sixth conduct rule; “you must act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers”.
* Maintain ‘Fit & Proper’ status required to fulfil role as a Senior Manager/Certification employee (if relevant)
* Comply with all relevant regulations as prescribed by the PRA and FCA including your role under the Bank’s undertaking to Operational Resilience.
* Comply with the Bank’s policies and procedures as laid out in the Employee Handbook, the intranet, and other sources.
* Manage all personal data and sensitive personal data in line with the General Data Protection Regulation and any associated Bank policies and procedures.
To be considered for this position, ideal candidates must have the following experience & skills;
* Extensive knowledge of Banking Operations, including treasury mid & back office, payments, and loan administration.
* Experience in modern digital banking services and hybrid customer service models managing directly and indirectly inhouse and outsourced teams and call centres
* Experience in Cards Operations, complaints management, compliance obligations and all type of payments operations including Swift.
* Very good understanding of current market evolution of digital banking operating models including trends coming from the Fintech industry.
* Track record in delivering modern operating models using STP (straight through processing) models, automated workflows and well accustomed to continues improvement methodologies.
* Project Management experience related to operational transformation, process restructuring and quantification of deliverables in structured KPIs.
* Strategic thinking and analytical skills, with the ability to navigate organisational change and bring people with you on the journey.
* Strong leadership and people management skills, with a proven ability to inspire and lead diverse teams.
* Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, capable of building strong relationships with stakeholders at all levels.
* High level of resilience and adaptability, with the capacity to thrive under pressure and drive change.
* Strong financial acumen and business judgment, with a keen eye for operational efficiency and cost management.
* Prior experience of UK Payments Market (PSD2, Agency Bank, SWIFT), AML/KYC requirement, vendor and outsourcing management and implementing Operational Resilience.
* Experience in a digital/neo bank is preferred.
Candidates must also have the right to work in the UK. I’m afraid sponsorship isn’t offered for this position.
Due to the high volume of CVs that we receive, only successful candidates will be contacted. Thank you for your time and patience.