Director of Risk Management (Commercial & New Payment Flows) in London

Requirements

• Deep knowledge and experience in risk management within the payments industry (preferred), or adjacent regulated financial services, with demonstrated ownership of complex risk topics.
• Consultancy or advisory background desirable, with experience working across multiple clients, business models, or large scale transformation programmes.
• Experience designing executive level risk reporting, governance structures, and risk narratives for senior decision makers.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the confidence and credibility to engage, influence and challenge senior and executive leaders.
• Exposure to risk tooling, process mapping, control assurance methodologies, and risk transformation initiatives.
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to translate complex risk landscapes into clear, pragmatic actions.
• Proven experience building, implementing, and embedding risk management frameworks or operating models, ideally in fast growing or transforming businesses.
• Strong ability to operate as an independent individual contributor, capable of shaping direction, structuring ambiguous problems, and driving delivery with limited oversight.
• Outcome oriented, proactive and hands-on approach. Pragmatic thinker who can distinguish timely, actionable, and effective actions and outcomes vs complex/leading best practice.

What the job involves

• The Commercial & New Payment Flows (CNPF) Risk Management team is a 1st Line function supporting a portfolio of strategically important and fast growing businesses across Mastercard. We operate in complex, evolving risk environments and require a strong, forward looking risk management capability to enable sustainable growth and innovation.
• We are seeking a Risk Management Director, reporting to Risk Management VP to play a critical role in shaping, building, and embedding CNPF's risk management framework and capability.
• This is a senior individual contributor role for a highly proactive and independent risk professional who can operate as a thought partner to senior leaders, drive risk transformation, and oversee the end to end risk management lifecycle across CNPF, working closely with senior stakeholders to execute the broader CNPF risk agenda.
• Drive the design, implementation, and ongoing enhancement of CNPF’s 1st Line risk management framework, in alignment with enterprise risk methodologies and business strategy.
• Lead risk transformation initiatives across CNPF, such as operating model design, governance enhancements, process-level RCSA, risk capability uplift, and practical embedding of risk processes into day to day business activity.
• Own and oversee the end to end risk management cycle for assigned areas of the CNPF portfolio, including risk identification, assessment, control design and assurance, issue and event management, and ongoing monitoring.
• Design, prepare, and deliver executive level risk reporting, including clear articulation of key risks, trends, and trade offs for senior management and executive forums.
• Serve as a trusted risk advisor and thought partner to CNPF senior leaders, proactively identifying emerging risks, challenging thinking where needed, and enabling informed, risk aware decision making.
• Manage effective risk governance forums, ensuring strong engagement, clear accountability, and timely escalation of material risks and issues.
• Lead complex cross functional risk engagements, coordinating with 2nd Line Risk, Compliance, Legal, Technology, and other specialist teams on multi dimensional risk topics.
• Coach and support risk owners and business teams, helping to build sustainable risk ownership and maturity across CNPF and reinforcing a strong risk culture.