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Massey Henry is pleased to support the Chief Risk Officer recruitment on behalf of Central 1 Credit Union (“Central 1”). Driven by cooperative principles and values, Central 1’s vision is to be a partner of choice for financial, digital banking, and payment products and services across Canada, supporting the success of credit unions and clients, and by extension, the financial well-being of all Canadians.
Status: Full-time / permanent
Location: Vancouver, BC / Toronto, ON
About Central 1
As a cooperative, the cooperative principles and values are expressed through the way Central 1 works. Central 1 holds a unique place in the cooperative banking ecosystem because it is owned by B.C. and Ontario credit unions, who collectively form a member-oriented, full-service retail financial system that holds billions in financial assets and provide banking choice to Canadians. This credit union system has been and will always be the core of Central 1.
Central 1 has been driven to enable the success of credit unions and other financial institutions for over 80 years through uniquely combining cooperative and business leadership in how the organization governs, develops and delivers services. Collaboration, scale and expertise are the organization’s competitive advantages. Central 1 leverages this expertise to provide critical building blocks for financial services, aggregating volume to provide access to critical services at scale.
Vision & Purpose
Central 1’s vision is to be a partner of choice for financial, digital banking, and payment products and services across Canada, supporting the success of credit unions and clients, and by extension, the financial well-being of all Canadians.
Our purpose, grounded by our role to enable a thriving credit union system, is to cooperatively empower those who deliver banking choice; this purpose serves as our North Star to our 2021-2023 Corporate Strategy and beyond.
- Our core has been and will always be the credit union system and we believe this heritage leads us to adjacent markets in banking in the mid-size Financial Institutions
- We are a cooperative; these principles and values are expressed through the way we work
- As a system utility, we deliver the benefits of scale as an aggregator by serving a broader range of financial institutions, and we continue to look for areas of growth and opportunity
- We are driven by enabling credit union success, which in turn provides banking choice to Canadians across the mid-size and alternative Financial Services market
Central 1 is committed to building environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and effective corporate governance into all aspects of the business. Central 1’s approach is to target where core business functions and in-house expertise overlap with critical ESG issues. Central 1 integrates ESG factors into practices to grow and support responsible investing and strives to embed ESG to do business, continuing to take steps and further Central 1’s commitment to developing a sustainable financial system.
Products and Services
Coast to coast, Central 1 is a preferred partner for providing exceptional financial products, innovative end-to-end payments solutions and intuitive online banking and mobile experiences that millions count on. Central 1’s products and services are delivered through three core segments: Treasury, Payments, and Digital Banking Platforms and Experiences (DBPX):
- Treasury: Central 1 enables a strong and stable credit union system as the primary liquidity provider to credit unions in B.C. and Ontario. This includes delivering a robust array of funding programs and investment products. Our Asset Management Services (AMS) enables credit unions to rely on the specialized investment expertise of Central 1.
- Payments and Digital Banking Services is an integral part of Canada’s banking system. We have 148 financial institutions committed to the Forge Digital Banking Platform, and we process more than 645 million payments annually on behalf of over 200 financial institutions and government organizations in Canada. We are one of the largest payments processors for Canadians, and we’ve been doing it for over 25 years.
The Opportunity
Reporting to the President & Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Risk Officer leads Central 1’s independent risk oversight group, monitoring and reporting on adherence to strategic initiatives within a Board-approved risk appetite framework, risk tolerances, and risk profile. The Chief Risk Officer maintains a sound enterprise-wide and integrated risk management governance framework.
The Chief Risk Officer will:
- Oversee the enterprise-wide risk management strategy and framework that effectively translates the risk appetite framework into informed decision-making practices that support Central 1’s unique business model.
- Oversee the risk management framework, including credit and counterparty, liquidity and market, and operational risk; provide quantitative analytical support to the lines of business in risk measurement, modelling and reporting.
- Responsible for identifying known and emerging risks; measure, monitor, and report on Central 1’s risk profile to the Management Risk Committee, executive leadership team, the Board Risk Review and Investment & Loan Committee, and the broader Board of Directors, including a focus on exceptions, emerging risks, significant events and issues.
- Responsible for the maintenance of risk corporate policies including credit and counterparty risk, market risk, operational risk, valuation, acceptable use, information security, business continuity planning, limit breaches and escalation.
- Oversee Central 1’s stress testing program, ensuring that stress testing is embedded in decision making processes and meets all regulatory requirements.
- Responsible for oversight of credit risk, including an effective adjudication and assessment process for lending lines of business, while ensuring all transactions are compliant with Central 1’s credit adjudication policy and guidelines.
- Support a culture of informed risk-taking, heightening awareness and use of appropriate risk management practices through educational programs, training process and personal mentoring with the executive leadership team (“ELT”), management, and employees.
- Act as the management resource for the Risk Review and Investment & Loan Committee, and as a general resource to the Board of Directors as required.
- Lead the facilitation, implementation, and monitoring of effective risk management practices throughout the organization.
- Provide direct reports with coaching, feedback, direction, and guidance to ensure well-motivated and productive departments and teams.
- Maintain an in-depth understanding of the financial services industry and the broader credit union system.
- Maintain up-to-date knowledge on trends and advances in risk management; ensure relevant information is shared with the ELT and management.
- Act as a key member of the ELT, providing input for the long-range strategic plan for the organization, including engaging key members of the senior management team and direct reports.
- Perform specific and delegated duties as assigned by the President and CEO and the Board’s Risk Review and Investment & Loan Committee.
Broader executive leadership responsibilities of the Chief Risk Officer include:
Corporate Strategy & Strategy Formulation, Planning and Delivery
- Participate in the development and refinement of Central 1’s overall vision and strategy, contributing to corporate management and decision-making to ensure the organization maximizes value for its members and the credit union system.
- Together with the CEO and executive leadership team, formulate and lead the implementation of the strategy in line with Central 1’s purpose, vision, values, and corporate objectives.
- Own the strategy and ensure that it is translated into annual operational business plans.
- Monitor performance regularly, ensuring business plans are aligned with overall strategy.
Strategic Enterprise Leadership
- Lead with an “enterprise first” mindset.
- Ensure the effective achievement of business outcomes by leading relevant functions and contributing as an executive team member to the leadership of the enterprise.
- Define performance objectives, manage performance, recruit, develop and motivate staff; provide feedback and appraisal to maximize functional performance and reinforce Central 1 culture and values.
Organization Structure and Talent Development
- Define and help sustain an optimum organization structure for the Risk function, directing the development of departmental structures in coordination with the corporate services function.
- Ensure the enterprise and the Risk function has a robust bench of capable, enabled and engaged talent to meet the business’ current and future needs.
Financial Strategy and Plans
- As a member of ELT, contribute to the preparation and consolidation of enterprise budget, and directs the development of the Group’s associated functional budgets.
- Monitor financial performance versus the budget so that the business is aware of anticipated costs/revenues, areas of unsatisfactory performance are identified, and potential performance improvement opportunities are capitalized upon.
Change Management
- Act as an enterprise level sponsor and driver of organizational change.
- Lead and direct the management of change through continuous improvement of systems, processes, and practices, taking into account global best practices and industry trends
Quality, Health, Safety, & Environment
- Direct the compliance of all relevant quality, health, safety and environmental management policies, procedures, and controls across the function to guarantee employee safety, legislative compliance, delivery of high-quality products and services, and a responsible environmental attitude.
The Individual
Bringing over 15+ years of relevant executive experience, the Chief Risk Officer is a proven strategic leader with expertise and track-record as a senior risk leader in the financial services sector, ideally with exposure to the credit union system. The successful candidate will have experience building and leading highly effective teams while providing strategic counsel to the CEO, executive leadership team, and Board of Directors.
Key Qualifications
- Minimum 15 years of institutional risk leadership and management experience – ideally within the credit union system or broader financial services sector.
- Significant experience dealing with complex risk management issues requiring extensive analysis, policy development, and resolution recommendations.
- As a member of the executive leadership team, demonstrated ability to influence and assist other senior executives in their decision-making processes.
- Excellent communication/influence skills to clearly communicate complex information both written and verbally, including reports and presentations.
- Strong group facilitation skills, with the ability to develop strong professional relationships and network internally and externally.
- Strong quantitative/analytical skills – comfortable operating in an environment where decision making is grounded in data.
- Self-reliant problem solver that is results-oriented; willingness and ability to take responsibility for initiatives and related results.
- Strong leadership, talent development and interpersonal skills; relates to a variety of styles and can build trust and consensus in a team. Demonstrates energy, passion, and drive while ensuring people are treated with respect and humility.
- Degree in accounting, finance, engineering, or related field; MBA or other relevant graduate or professional qualification preferred
Job Type: Full-time
Benefits:
- Company events
- Dental care
- Extended health care
- RRSP match
- Vision care
- Wellness program
Schedule:
- Monday to Friday
Supplemental pay types:
- Bonus pay
