Overview
Hays is working exclusively to recruit a Compliance Business Partner for a high-profile organisation operating within the UK financial services sector.
This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced compliance professional to take on a broad and highly visible second-line role, providing senior management with assurance that the organisation is meeting its legal and regulatory obligations and managing compliance risk effectively.
Working within the Risk & Compliance function and reporting to the Compliance Manager, you will play an important role in the organisation's continuous compliance programme. You will conduct detailed compliance deep dives, assess processes and controls against relevant legal and regulatory requirements, and translate complex evidence and data into clear, evidence-based reporting for senior audiences.
This is not simply a monitoring role. You will engage extensively with stakeholders across the organisation to understand how key processes operate in practice, identify opportunities to strengthen controls, agree proportionate remedial actions and track those actions through to completion.
The successful candidate will combine strong technical compliance and assurance capability with excellent stakeholder skills. You will be comfortable challenging constructively, analysing complex information and balancing business objectives with compliance obligations and the organisation's risk appetite.
Key Responsibilities
- Conduct second-line compliance deep dives, providing senior management with assurance over adherence to legal and regulatory obligations.
- Review and analyse policies, procedures, operational processes, controls and supporting evidence to identify compliance issues and opportunities for enhancement.
- Undertake root cause analysis to help identify, prevent and resolve underlying compliance issues.
- Analyse complex information and data, translating findings into clear and concise observations for a range of audiences.
- Produce compelling, evidence-based compliance reporting for senior management and governance audiences.
- Maintain oversight of remedial actions, working with action owners to support timely completion.
- Support ad-hoc second-line assurance reviews as required by senior management.
- Build effective relationships across the organisation to understand key business processes and obtain the information required to assess compliance.
- Work collaboratively with stakeholders to agree appropriate remedial actions and see these through to completion.
- Contribute to strengthening the organisation's Three Lines of Defence and work closely with colleagues across the wider Risk & Compliance function to share insight and good practice.
Skills & Experience Required
Essential
Appropriate professional experience and knowledge of compliance frameworks.
Knowledge of compliance deep-dive or review methodologies.
A sound understanding of the UK financial services sector.
Strong analytical capability, with the ability to interpret operational processes and controls and assess them against legal and regulatory requirements.
Demonstrable stakeholder management skills, including experience engaging across the Three Lines of Defence and with senior leaders.
Experience producing clear, evidence-based reports and analysing data.
Particularly suited to someone who can demonstrate
- The confidence to constructively challenge existing approaches and put forward their own ideas.
- An ability to analyse complex data and information to solve challenging problems.
- Strong relationship-building and communication skills.
- An organised approach, with the ability to prioritise effectively against organisational requirements.
- A proactive, flexible mindset and willingness to respond positively to change.
- The ability to consider the wider organisational picture rather than viewing compliance requirements in isolation.
Person Specification
You will be an analytical and credible compliance professional who is comfortable operating in a second-line environment and engaging with stakeholders at different levels of an organisation.
You will be able to move confidently between detailed assurance activity and the bigger picture, understanding not only whether processes and controls meet relevant obligations but also how compliance can support effective risk management and organisational objectives.
Strong communication will be essential. You will need to absorb complex evidence, form well-supported conclusions and communicate those observations clearly to both operational stakeholders and senior audiences. You will also be comfortable agreeing actions with stakeholders and maintaining appropriate oversight through to completion.
Above all, this opportunity will suit someone who combines technical compliance knowledge with pragmatism, curiosity, sound judgement and a genuinely collaborative approach.
The Team
You will join an established Risk & Compliance function, working closely with colleagues across the team while engaging with stakeholders throughout the wider organisation. The position plays an important part in strengthening the Three Lines of Defence, sharing compliance insight and supporting a collaborative approach to risk and compliance.
The role offers:
- A broad second-line compliance remit with exposure to complex operational, legal and regulatory considerations.
- The opportunity to undertake substantive compliance assurance and deep-dive work.
- Regular engagement with senior stakeholders and governance audiences.
- The opportunity to influence improvements to processes, controls and the wider compliance environment.
- A collaborative position working across the Risk & Compliance function and wider organisation.