Financial Crime Operations Specialist – Quality Control in Manchester

Join Vanguard's Financial Crime team and play a critical role in strengthening the quality, consistency and effectiveness of our financial crime framework. As a Financial Crime Operations Specialist - Quality Control, you'll serve as a subject matter expert across a broad range of financial crime activities, including Customer Due Diligence (CDD), Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD), Source of Wealth (SoW), Transaction Monitoring, screening and investigations. Through independent review, insightful analysis and constructive challenge, you'll help ensure high-quality decision-making, robust risk management and compliance with regulatory obligations.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced financial crime professional who is passionate about quality, continuous improvement and developing best practice. You'll work closely with operational teams, leaders and key stakeholders to enhance controls, identify emerging risks and drive improvements that have a meaningful impact across the organisation.

Why Join This Team?

• Shape and influence financial crime quality standards across the organisation
• Apply your expertise across the full financial crime lifecycle, including CDD, EDD, Screening and Transaction Monitoring
• Drive meaningful improvements to controls, processes and customer outcomes
• Partner with senior stakeholders across Financial Crime, Compliance, Risk and Operations
• Coach and develop colleagues, helping to raise capability and consistency across teams
• Build your career within one of the world's leading investment management organisations

In this role you will:

• Conduct independent quality control reviews across financial crime activities, including CDD, EDD, SoW assessments, periodic reviews, sanctions screening, transaction monitoring and investigations
• Assess the quality, consistency and effectiveness of financial crime decisions, identifying errors, emerging risks, control weaknesses and opportunities for improvement
• Produce detailed quality control findings, root cause analysis, trend reporting and management information that drive meaningful improvements across the control environment
• Partner with operational teams and leaders to provide constructive feedback, coaching and guidance that enhances technical capability and supports consistent decision-making
• Act as a subject matter expert on financial crime quality standards, regulatory expectations and control requirements, providing oversight and challenge where appropriate
• Support the design, enhancement and testing of financial crime controls, quality frameworks and monitoring activities
• Analyse performance metrics and emerging themes, escalating significant risks or systemic concerns when appropriate
• Support audits, regulatory reviews and remediation activities, helping to validate corrective actions and ensure sustainable outcomes
• Contribute to the development of procedures, guidance, quality standards and training materials aligned to regulatory requirements and industry best practice
• Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, consistency and effectiveness through process enhancements, automation and data-driven insights
• Participate in projects and initiatives that strengthen Vanguard's overall financial crime framework

What it takes:

• Significant experience in Financial Crime Operations, including AML/KYC, CDD, EDD, SoW, periodic reviews, screening, investigations or related financial crime disciplines within Financial Services
• Experience performing quality assurance, quality control, oversight, monitoring, testing or audit activities within a regulated environment
• Strong understanding of Financial Crime regulations and lifecycle, including AML, Sanctions, Bribery and Corruption and Tax Evasion
• Strong knowledge of quality control and independent quality assurance methodologies, root cause analysis and control effectiveness assessments
• Experience assessing higher-risk clients and complex financial crime scenarios
• Strong analytical, investigative and critical-thinking skills with the ability to identify underlying causes of quality issues and control weaknesses
• Ability to provide objective challenge and constructive feedback while maintaining positive stakeholder relationships
• Excellent written communication skills, including the ability to produce high-quality findings, reports and recommendations
• Strong stakeholder management, influencing and communication skills
• Proven ability to identify trends, control weaknesses and opportunities to improve processes and outcomes
• Undergraduate degree or equivalent combination of training and experience

Desirable Skills:

• Professional qualification in Financial Crime, AML or Compliance (e.g. ICA, ACAMS or CFCS)
• Experience developing or managing quality assurance or quality control frameworks
• Experience within investment management, wealth management, banking or fintech
• Strong knowledge of UK Money Laundering Regulations, JMLSG Guidance, FCA expectations and broader regulatory frameworks
• Experience supporting audits, regulatory engagements or remediation programmes
• Experience using screening, case management, customer risk assessment and quality monitoring tools
• Experience coaching, mentoring or training colleagues
• Experience analysing quality performance data and developing management information and reporting

Special Factors:

• Vanguard is not offering visa sponsorship for this position
• This is a hybrid position and would require you to work in the office 3 days per week (Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday)
• Please note that we review applications on a rolling basis and may close this role early if there is a high level of interest. To avoid missing out, we recommend applying as soon as possible

Why Vanguard?

Vanguard is a different kind of investment company. It was founded in the United States in 1975 on a simple but revolutionary idea: that an investment company should manage its funds solely in the interests of its clients. This is a philosophy that has helped millions of people around the world to achieve their goals with low-cost, uncomplicated investments. It's what we stand for: value to investors.

Inclusion Statement:

Vanguard’s continued commitment to diversity and inclusion is firmly rooted in our culture. Every decision we make to best serve our clients, crew (internally employees are referred to as crew), and communities is guided by one simple statement: “Do the right thing.” We believe that a critical aspect of doing the right thing requires building diverse, inclusive, and highly effective teams of individuals who are as unique as the clients they serve. We empower our crew to contribute their distinct strengths to achieving Vanguard’s core purpose through our values. When all crew members feel valued and included, our ability to collaborate and innovate is amplified, and we are united in delivering on Vanguard's core purpose: to take a stand for all investors, to treat them fairly, and to give them the best chance for investment success.

How We Work:

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.