Compliance & Conduct Risk Manager (Financial Services)

Following a successful contract win in late 2023 from one of the UK’s largest and most trusted financial service providers, we provide both contact centre and administrative solutions to help assist its 25 million customers. Specifically, we are supporting the end‑to‑end customer journey, right from the moment they are looking to open an account with the provider, to the time they need to get in touch to make any amendments or close an account.

Supporting the Risk Management & Business Governance management team, you’ll support developing a culture which is both customer and outcome obsessed, by motivating, supporting, coaching, and leading a team to exceed, rather than meet expectations in all they do. You’ll play a key role in supporting the implementation and strengthening of the conduct/consumer duty frameworks and policies and deliver a proportionate and pragmatic risk and compliance monitoring schedule.

Industry and regulatory expertise in Conduct Risk, Consumer Duty and Risk & Compliance monitoring and oversight in order to:

• Maximise data (analytics, performance measures, external benchmarks) in order to;
• Maximise our operational efficiency (Conduct / Consumer Duty monitoring and reporting);
• Improve the customer experience (through feedback, insight on the products and propositions, and development of a customer journey focused oversight / monitoring plan);
• Coordinate the required change (through pilots, projects and programmes).

You’ll already have experience in relation to Conduct Risk and Compliance oversight. Achieving key targets and KRI’s will be second nature to you, however our belief is that you’ll do this through developing and engaging in the right way, which is why you will also thrive on making things better not only for customers, but our colleagues working for us; ultimately striving to deliver top quartile employee engagement scores.

As a business which already recognises the importance of its people, we’re looking to create and build an environment which is customer obsessed, and not one which is simply driven by targets. It’s important for us to be there when our customers need us most, acting on their instructions as quickly as possible and delivering the right solution, first time – every time.

It’s for this very reason why our people and support leaders are so important to the success of the business and its people, and why you’ll already enjoy working in a fast‑paced environment which strives to exceed, rather than meet expectations in all it does. What’s more you’ll thrive on building and nurturing relationships with our clients, ensuring positive outcomes are delivered for all parties, whilst also managing complex and often challenging situations with professionalism, pace and collaboration.

The type of person we’re ideally looking for will have proven experience in either a Compliance & Conduct Risk or Operational Risk / Risk Framework team ideally within the financial services domain. What you will have is the knowledge, passion and desire to help our client achieve its ambitions to be the most trusted provider of savings in the UK.

This is a hybrid variable role with some limited travel to an office in the North West or North East of the UK.

What you will be doing:

• Manage the day‑to‑day focus on Conduct and Compliance Risk Oversight (including Compliance Monitoring) ensuring that a consistent framework is in place to systematically identify, measure, mitigate, report, monitor and manage the most significant conduct and compliance risks, including consumer duty outcomes.
• Support the daily processes and activities that alert management about new issues and risks evolution.
• Be seen as a customer centric role model across the business, promoting the importance of a can‑do attitude.
• Motivate, support, inspire and coach the team to deliver exceptional levels of customer experience and performance, ensuring all KPI’s, Critical SLA’s and targets are achieved without compromise to quality and poor customer outcomes.
• Ensure we do the right thing by our client, customers and colleagues whilst ensuring we actively mitigate risk within the operation, measured through RCSA and periodic Oversight activity.
• Encourage a culture of high performance, ensuring all under‑performance is managed appropriately and in line with internal policies.
• Ensure the spirit of regulation is upheld across the business and always promoting strong and fair customer outcomes are achieved.
• Support the deepening of relationships across NS&I and other Sopra Steria Financial Services clients.
• Manage all areas of conflict in a positive manner, ensuring solutions are found to every problem, with SSL being seen as a go‑to partner and one that drives fair outcomes for all.

What you’ll bring:

• Strong understanding of Conduct Risk and Consumer Duty principles within a Financial Services organisation.
• Strong understanding of UK Financial Services regulation and legislation and of Risk & Compliance monitoring principles within a Financial Services organisation.
• Highly analytical with the ability to process and summarise large volumes of complex data from multiple sources and present it in an insightful and compelling way that enables decision making.
• Strong customer experience focus – able to develop and deliver step change in performance.
• Management of senior stakeholders in both a client and multi‑supplier model.
• Proactive mindset.
• Commercially aware – understands the importance of balancing stakeholder/client/customer and business needs.
• Thrives in a fast paced and changing environment.
• Solution driven – always looks to provide solutions in an efficient and timely manner.

It would be great if you had:

• Working within a banking environment.
• Integrated Assurance experience within Financial Services.
• Co‑ordination / Oversight of assurance models across the 3 Lines.
• Critical thinking, decision making and problem‑solving skills.

Employment Type: Full‑time, Permanent

Location: Hybrid, some limited North West and North East UK office presence needed

Salary: Up to £60k depending on experience

Benefits: £5,400 car allowance, bonus, 25 days annual leave with the option to buy additional days, private medical, life assurance, pension, and generous flexible benefits fund.

Although this role is advertised as full‑time, we believe that flexibility at work can promote work/life balance, increase your motivation, reduce stress and improve performance and productivity. We support different ways of working and can offer a range of flexible working arrangements. So, if you’re interested and need to work flexibly, we encourage you to apply and talk to us about what might be possible.

We embrace difference as a source of creativity, innovation and competitive advantage and are striving to become a more diverse organisation. We welcome applications from people with a diverse variety of backgrounds and identities. We are committed to equality of opportunity for all and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation or marital status.

We participate in the Disability Confident scheme and are committed to offering an interview to any candidate with a disability, who meets the minimum criteria for the role. If you believe this could apply to you, please let us know when completing your application.