Senior Manager - Risk Control Assurance (RCA) - UK

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BBVA is a global company with more than 160 years of history that operates in more than 25 countries where we serve more than 80 million customers. We are more than 121,000 professionals working in multidisciplinary teams with profiles as diverse as financiers, legal experts, data scientists, developers, engineers and designers.

The Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB) Risk Control Assurance (RCA) team is responsible for ensuring the effective management of Non-Financial Risks across CIB businesses by applying BBVA’s internal risk management methodology and maintaining a robust and effective control framework.

About the job:

The Senior Manager – Risk Control Assurance (RCA), UK will be responsible for leading the RCA function in the UK, overseeing the identification, assessment, mitigation and monitoring of Non-Financial Risks across CIB activities within the UK perimeter and contributing to the broader European Branches risk control framework.

The role will lead and manage the UK RCA team, ensuring appropriate prioritisation, consistent execution of the RCA framework and high-quality risk and control oversight. The position will act as a key point of contact for senior stakeholders across CIB Business, Operations, RCS, Risk, Compliance, Internal Audit and other relevant functions.

The Senior Manager will be responsible for ensuring the effective execution of key RCA activities, including control testing, risk monitoring, remediation follow-up and participation in the admission process for new initiatives, while promoting a strong risk and control culture across CIB UK.

This is a senior role requiring strong leadership, sound judgement and the ability to operate effectively in a complex, international and highly regulated environment.

Essential Job Duties:

• Lead the RCA function for the UK perimeter, ensuring effective oversight of Non-Financial Risks and consistent application of BBVA’s risk management methodology and control framework.
• Lead, manage and develop the UK RCA team, setting priorities, allocating responsibilities, managing performance, reviewing deliverables and supporting the professional development of team members.
• Oversee the planning and execution of risk and control testing activities, ensuring appropriate coverage, quality and consistency in line with the applicable methodology and standards.
• Oversee the design, implementation and monitoring of Key Risk Indicators (KRIs) and other periodic risk and control monitoring activities.
• Actively participate in the admission process for new CIB initiatives, supporting the Sponsor throughout the process and performing the funneling of each initiative in order to determine the applicable admission workflow and ensure its appropriate routing and follow-up through to completion.
• Identify control weaknesses and coordinate with relevant stakeholders to define and implement preventive and detective measures that strengthen the control environment.
• Oversee remediation plans arising from Internal Audit reviews, regulatory findings, RCSAs, and other internal assessments, ensuring appropriate ownership, monitoring and timely closure.
• Ensure appropriate governance, maintenance and monitoring of risks and controls within the relevant CIB businesses and processes.
• Oversee operational risk events and material incidents affecting CIB activities, ensuring appropriate assessment, escalation, root-cause analysis and follow-up actions.
• Prepare and present risk and control information, key indicators, incidents and relevant conclusions to senior management and the appropriate governance forums.
• Ensure the quality, completeness and timely maintenance of information within corporate risk management tools and repositories, including MIGRO, SIRO or equivalent governance tools.
• Maintain effective coordination with key stakeholders across CIB Business, Operations, RCS, Risk, Compliance, Internal Audit and other relevant functions, both locally and across the broader organisation.
• Coordinate with other CIB RCA teams and contribute to European and global initiatives, ensuring alignment between the UK perimeter and the broader CIB Non-Financial Risk framework.
• Promote a strong risk and control culture across CIB UK and drive continuous improvement in RCA processes, methodologies and ways of working.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, Economics, Finance, Accounting or a related discipline. Relevant postgraduate qualifications or professional certifications will be considered an advantage.
• Minimum 8 years of professional experience in Operational Risk, Non-Financial Risk, Internal Control, Internal Audit, Compliance, Risk Management or related control functions within financial institutions, with relevant exposure to Corporate & Investment Banking.
• Strong knowledge and practical experience of risk and control frameworks, RCSA methodologies and control testing, including the identification, assessment and monitoring of risks and controls and the follow-up of identified weaknesses.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of Corporate & Investment Banking products, businesses and processes, with relevant knowledge across the main CIB business areas: Global Markets (GM), Global Transaction Banking (GTB), and Investment Banking & Finance (IB&F).
• Solid people-management and team-leadership experience, with the ability to set direction, establish priorities, allocate workloads, develop talent, manage performance and maintain high standards of quality and execution.
• Demonstrated experience engaging effectively with senior stakeholders across business, risk and control functions.
• Strong analytical skills and sound judgement, with the ability to identify material issues, understand their potential impact and establish appropriate priorities.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver effectively in a complex, international and multidisciplinary environment.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate complex risk and control matters clearly and concisely to senior management and governance forums.
• Proactive and pragmatic approach, with a strong sense of ownership, accountability and results orientation.
• Strong continuous improvement mindset and ability to drive improvements across processes, methodologies and ways of working.
• Advanced Microsoft Office skills.
• Fluent English and Spanish (minimum C1).
• Other European languages will be positively valued.

Key Competencies:

• Leadership and people management.
• CIB business and product knowledge.
• Risk and control management.
• RCSA and control testing expertise.
• Strategic and analytical thinking.
• Senior stakeholder management.
• Sound judgement and decision-making.
• Ownership and accountability.
• Planning, prioritisation and execution.
• Team development and collaboration.
• Communication and executive presence.
• Adaptability and resilience.
• Continuous improvement mindset.

Skills: