Summary:Responsible for providing first-line risk oversight and governance for payment products, fintech partnerships, third-party relationships, and operational change initiatives. This role serves as a strategic advisor to Product, Operations, Partner Management, Compliance, and Risk stakeholders by evaluating new initiatives, onboarding activities, and program changes to ensure operational, regulatory, and business risks are identified, assessed, and appropriately managed. The Risk Governance Manager leads product and partner risk reviews, supports governance committees, oversees vendor due diligence activities, and provides risk advisory services throughout the lifecycle of payment products and strategic partnerships. This role plays a key part in ensuring that growth initiatives are implemented with appropriate risk management controls while supporting sustainable business expansion.
Qualifications:Education: Bachelor's degree in Business Administration or related field.
Licenses/Certifications: CRCM or other relevant professional certifications are a plus.
Experience: Seven or more years of experience in operational risk, product risk, third-party risk management, vendor management, compliance, or risk governance within banking, fintech, or payments. Or equivalent combination of experience and education.
Essential Functions:A: Job Specific:- Serves as the primary risk advisor for payment product enhancements, modifications, and strategic initiatives.
- Reviews product changes to identify operational, regulatory, compliance, and customer-impact risks.
- Facilitates risk assessments for product lifecycle activities.
- Ensures risk considerations are incorporated into implementation planning.
- Monitors execution of risk mitigation activities associated with product changes.
- Performs comprehensive risk assessments for new payment products and program initiatives.
- Evaluates operational, regulatory, compliance, technology, fraud, and customer experience risks.
- Coordinates review activities across Risk, Compliance, Operations, and Legal stakeholders.
- Documents risk decisions, mitigation strategies, and approval requirements.
- Develops recommendations regarding onboarding readiness and risk mitigation requirements.
- Supports governance committee review and approval processes.
- Facilitates governance and risk review processes for material program changes.
- Maintains inventories of significant business and operational changes.
- Assesses change impacts across products, partners, customers, and operational processes.
- Ensures required approvals, documentation, and risk assessments are completed before implementation.
- Monitors post-implementation outcomes and emerging risk indicators.
- Prepares risk reporting, performance summaries, and governance materials.
- Monitors key risks, performance trends, complaints, service-level commitments, and remediation activities.
- Tracks action items and commitments resulting from governance meetings.
- Escalates significant issues and emerging concerns to appropriate stakeholders.
- Performs risk-based due diligence reviews of third-party vendors and service providers.
- Evaluates operational capabilities, control environments, compliance programs, financial condition, and risk management practices.
- Supports vendor onboarding, ongoing monitoring, and renewal activities.
- Reviews vendor performance metrics and service-level commitments.
- Identifies and escalates vendor performance concerns and operational risks.
- Provides proactive operational risk guidance to business stakeholders.
- Participates in strategic initiatives, change projects, and business planning activities.
- Advises stakeholders regarding risk mitigation strategies and control enhancement opportunities.
- Supports operational risk assessments, incident reviews, and root cause analysis activities.
- Promotes effective first-line risk management practices across the Payments Division.
Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:- The ability to communicate effectively and clearly, both in verbal and written communications.
- Excellent interpersonal skills.
- Self-directed and motivated.
- The ability to manage multiple tasks.
- Excellent problem-solving skills.
- Ability to read, analyze and comprehend journals, audit reports, regulations and legal documents.
- Ability to respond to common inquiries or complaints from employees, customers, regulatory agencies, or members of the business community.
- Ability to effectively present information to top management and employee groups.
- Strong analytical skills, able to dissect complex problems and synthesize large amounts of information.
- Strong understanding of payment products, fintech partnerships, sponsor banking relationships, operational risk management, and third-party oversight.
- Demonstrated experience conducting risk assessments, due diligence reviews, change governance activities, and operational readiness evaluations.
- Proven ability to influence and collaborate across Product, Partner Management, Vendor Management, Compliance, Operations, Legal, and Executive Leadership.
- Strong ability to evaluate complex business initiatives, identify risks, and recommend practical risk mitigation strategies.
