Third Party Risk Lead

About the Role

This role sits within [Employer hidden]’s 1st Line of Defence (1LoD) Risk Function, supporting the business to embed effective and efficient risk management into day-to-day decision making. You will lead the Distributor Risk Team, owning the end-to-end onboarding and ongoing oversight risk frameworks for Auto, Payments and Retail Finance distribution partners. You’ll build and run proportionate frameworks that protect [Employer hidden]’s risk appetite and control environment, while materially improving onboarding speed and partner lifecycle monitoring. You’ll be expected to operate as a domain expert who can set direction, shape clear frameworks, and communicate complex risk analysis effectively to senior stakeholders.

What the job involves

• Design, iterate and operate a fast, risk-based onboarding model for Auto, Payments and Retail Finance partners within clear, proportionate end-to-end risk frameworks.
• Define and maintain risk appetite guardrails, decision-making authorities, and minimum control standards for partner onboarding and changes to partner operating models, aligned to [Employer hidden]’s broader risk management model and appetite monitoring approach.
• Ensure distributor/partner risks (including failures in onboarding or ongoing management) are clearly captured and managed as part of the bank’s operational risk taxonomy for distribution methods/intermediaries.
• Translate risk appetite into measurable metrics and high-quality MI for senior governance, using a robust set of KRIs/KCIs/KPIs and clear thresholds/trigger points.
• Build and calibrate monitoring that provides early warning indicators and actively manages risk exposure across the full partner lifecycle.
• Provide clear, structured risk analysis and recommendations to support decisions that balance risk and reward within appetite.
• Partner with Product and Engineering to digitise onboarding and monitoring workflows, converting policy requirements into scalable, system-executable controls (e.g., automated checks, evidence capture, attestations, monitoring triggers).
• Help ensure control performance is measurable and evidenced appropriately, aligned with expectations for control ownership, operation, and keeping risk/control data up to date.
• Continuous control improvement: Proactively identify weaknesses and friction points across onboarding and monitoring; implement enhancements that improve speed, clarity, and resilience.
• Use lessons learned (issues, incidents, near misses) to strengthen frameworks and controls, consistent with the “response and learning” cycle in [Employer hidden]’s risk model.
• Provide structured challenge and clear trade-off analysis to enable growth within appetite.
• Build strong cross-functional partnerships across 1LoD/2LoD and business teams, influencing outcomes through clear communication of complex topics to senior stakeholders.

Who you are

• Deep experience designing and operating risk-based onboarding and oversight frameworks for third parties, intermediaries, merchants, brokers, distributors, payment partners, or similar.
• Strong capability in risk MI: defining KRIs/KCIs/KPIs, thresholds, and early warning indicators; turning risk appetite into practical measurement and governance-ready reporting.
• Proven track record of partnering with Product/Engineering to implement automation and system controls, not just writing policy.
• Confident communicator who can synthesise and explain complex risk analysis clearly to senior stakeholders and governance forums.
• People leadership experience: coaching, prioritisation, performance management, and protecting team throughput during high-demand periods.

Desirable

• Experience in a regulated bank/fintech environment focusing on SMB risk and comfort working across the three lines of defence and governance routines.

Company Information

Company: [Employer hidden]

Employees: 501-1000

Industry: Fintech, B2C, Lending, Financial Services

Benefits: 2-3 days a week in the office, option to work abroad for up to 120 days a year, 25-30 days holiday, private medical insurance, free Headspace access, 16-weeks full pay for new parents.

Application Instructions

Apply via the 'Apply' button.