Cetera Financial Group

Investment Due Diligence Manager

Cetera Financial Group$90K — $120K *
Finance & Insurance
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in finance or related field
  • 5+ years of due diligence experience in a broker-dealer
  • Proficient in designing and optimizing complex workflows
  • Experience in a regulated, risk-based environment
  • Strong stakeholder collaboration skills
  • Detail-oriented with a focus on data integrity
  • Exceptional communication skills for diverse audiences

Responsibilities

  • Oversee and manage end-to-end operational workflows for due diligence activities
  • Ensure consistency and compliance with internal and regulatory processes
  • Coordinate new product intake, prioritization, and tracking
  • Maintain documentation readiness for audits and reviews
  • Streamline workflows to improve efficiency and transparency
  • Develop and enhance standard operating procedures and controls
  • Create and manage dashboards for due diligence metrics and reporting

Benefits

  • Collaborative work environment with cross-functional teams
  • Opportunities for continuous process improvement
  • Support for professional development in compliance and risk
  • Access to advanced workflow and reporting technology
  • Involvement in high-stakes decision-making processes
Full Job Description
Job Description

The Due Diligence Operations Manager is responsible for the operational execution, governance, and continuous improvement of processes that support the firm's product due diligence team. This role partners closely with Due Diligence,Risk, Compliance, Legal, Product Management, National Sales, the Trading Desk and Operations to ensure due diligence activities are performed in a consistent, timely, welldocumented, and regulatorready manner. The role focuses on operational discipline, workflow management, issue tracking, data integrity, and reporting-enabling riskbased product decisions while ensuring alignment with regulatory expectations (e.g., FINRA, SEC) and internal policies.

What You Will Do:
  • Operational Oversight & Execution
    • Own and manage end-to-end operational workflows supporting product due-diligence reviews, approvals, renewals, and ongoing monitoring.
    • Ensure due-diligence processes are executed consistently in accordance with internal policies, supervisory procedures, and regulatory requirements.
    • Coordinate intake, prioritization, and tracking of new product requests and material product changes.
    • Maintain operational readiness for audits, exams, and internal reviews by ensuring documentation, evidence, and approvals are complete and accessible.
    • Identify opportunities to streamline workflows, improve cycle times, and enhance transparency across due-diligence activities.
    • Develop, maintain, and enhance standard operating procedures (SOPs), controls, and operational playbooks.
    • Partner with stakeholders to implement scalable solutions as product complexity, volume, or regulatory expectations evolve.
    • Support technology enablement efforts, including workflow tools, data repositories, and reporting platforms.
    • Review and respond to requests regarding product agreements/availability from auditors (both internal and external) and regulators
    • Support the firm's product governance framework by ensuring appropriate escalation, issue tracking, and decision documentation.
    • Monitor adherence to service-level expectations, internal controls, and risk-based review standards.
    • Track and report operational risks, process gaps, and remediation efforts related to product due diligence.
    • Partner with Compliance and Legal to ensure regulatory interpretations are operationalized effectively.
    • Help manage the pipeline of requested product approvals.
    • Manage the publication of Cetera's approved product lists
    • Develop and maintain dashboards, KPIs, and management reporting related to due-diligence volume, turnaround times, exceptions, and trends.
    • Provide clear, concise reporting to Risk & Compliance leadership and governance committees.
    • Use data and insights to inform capacity planning, prioritization, and continuous improvement efforts.
  • Process Design & Continuous Improvement
    • Identify opportunities to streamline workflows, improve cycle times, and enhance transparency across due-diligence activities.
    • Develop, maintain, and enhance standard operating procedures (SOPs), controls, and operational playbooks.
    • Partner with stakeholders to implement scalable solutions as product complexity, volume, or regulatory expectations evolve.
    • Support technology enablement efforts, including workflow tools, data repositories, and reporting platforms.
  • Risk, Governance & Controls
    • Review and respond to requests regarding product agreements/availability from auditors (both internal and external) and regulators
    • Support the firm's product governance framework by ensuring appropriate escalation, issue tracking, and decision documentation.
    • Monitor adherence to service-level expectations, internal controls, and risk-based review standards.
    • Track and report operational risks, process gaps, and remediation efforts related to product due diligence.
    • Partner with Compliance and Legal to ensure regulatory interpretations are operationalized effectively.
    • Help manage the pipeline of requested product approvals.
  • Reporting & Metrics
    • Manage the publication of Cetera's approved product lists
    • Develop and maintain dashboards, KPIs, and management reporting related to due-diligence volume, turnaround times, exceptions, and trends.
    • Provide clear, concise reporting to Risk & Compliance leadership and governance committees.
    • Use data and insights to inform capacity planning, prioritization, and continuous improvement efforts.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration
    • Act as a key operational liaison between Product Due Diligence, Compliance, Risk, Legal, Product, Operations, and Technology teams.
    • Work with Cetera IT to troubleshoot any issue with data feeds that share approved product information to AdviceWorks (our internal website) and to our approved custodians
    • Assist recruiting team in researching whether older products were approved by Cetera or if we have a servicing agreement, and determining if products can be transferred/held at Cetera.
    • Facilitate alignment across stakeholders to support informed product decisions while balancing risk, compliance, and business needs.
    • Support governance forums, committees, and working groups as needed.
  • Manage the AI Insight training and education system for alternative investments.
  • Respond to general department inquiries, as needed.
  • Prepare product activation notices for approved products
  • Maintain documentation related to product compensation and interface with commission/operations teams to provide necessary information.


What You Need To Have:
  • Bachelor's degree in finance or a related field or equivalent.
  • Minimum of 5 years of due diligence experience in a broker-dealer.
  • Operational Excellence: Strong ability to design, execute, optimize complex workflows, manage high volumes under tight deadlines.
  • Risk & Control Mindset: Comfort operating within a highly regulated, risk-based environment.
  • Stakeholder Influence: Ability to partner effectively across functions without direct authority.
  • Analytical & Detail-Oriented: Strong attention to accuracy, documentation, and data integrity.
  • Communication: Clear, concise communicator capable of translating complex issues for diverse audiences.
  • Change Leadership: Able to drive improvement while balancing speed, quality, and compliance.


What's Nice to Have:
  • Salesforce experience preferred
  • FINRA registrations, risk/compliance credentials preferred


Travel Requirements: Up to (10%)

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About Cetera Financial Group

Cetera Financial Group is a network of independent broker-dealer firms that provide financial advice to individuals and small businesses. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in El Segundo, California. Cetera Financial Group offers a range of services, including investment advice, financial planning, and insurance products. The company has over 8,000 financial advisors and manages over $200 billion in assets.
Learn more about Cetera Financial Group
Size
8,000 employees
Industry
Founded
2010

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