Senior Officer Operational Risk

Job Purpose

Operational Risk Framework & Risk Culture

• Support the implementation of the Bank’s Operational Risk Management (ORM) program across business and support units, including activities related to Business Continuity Management (BCM) and Identity & Access Management (IAM).
• Assist in promoting and embedding a strong operational risk culture by raising awareness, sharing best practices, and supporting training initiatives for ORM, BCM, and IAM.
• Maintain detailed tracking and monitoring of all ORM activities, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and timely escalation of issues.

Policies, Governance & Regulatory Alignment

• Assist in the periodic update of ORM policies, procedures, and guidelines to ensure alignment with regulatory requirements (e.g., CBUAE, NCEMA), industry standards, and internal governance expectations.
• Support preparation of regular and ad-hoc ORM reports, MIS, and dashboards for governance committees and senior management.
• Provide support in coordinating governance forums with Risk Champions and following up on required actions and awareness sessions. Risk & Control Assessments (RCSA)
• Support business and support units in identifying risks and controls for significant processes and facilitate RCSA exercises as required.
• Conduct due-diligence reviews of RCSA submissions, ensuring quality, accuracy, and consistency in risk and control assessments.
• Help ensure IAM and BCM-related risks and controls are appropriately captured in RCSAs and monitored regularly.

Control Testing & Monitoring

• Assist in planning and executing second-line control testing activities, including preparing test samples, scheduling assessments, and documenting results.
• Follow up on issues raised from control testing, audits, and regulatory reviews, tracking remediation plans and ensuring timely closure.

Operational Risk Incidents, Losses & KRIs

• Ensure timely reporting and documentation of operational risk incidents (financial and nonfinancial) in accordance with internal guidelines.
• Monitor loss data submissions from business units and maintain the Operational Risk Register accurately.
• Support consolidation, review, and reporting of Key Risk Indicators (KRIs), ensuring timely escalation of threshold breaches.

Business Continuity Management (Bcm)

• Assist in the maintenance and periodic review of Business Impact Analyses (BIAs), Business Continuity Plans (BCPs), Disaster Recovery Plans (DRPs), and related documentation.
• Coordinate with departmental BCM coordinators to track testing schedules, ensure documentation upkeep, and support crisis management exercises.
• Support reviews of third-party continuity capabilities for critical outsourced service providers, ensuring compliance with BCM standards.

Identity & Access Management (Iam)

• Support periodic reviews of access permissions and roles for critical business applications, identifying potential toxic combinations or unauthorized access.
• Assist in evaluating Segregation of Duties (SoD) controls, capturing related risks, and following up on remediation.
• Review access change requests in line with defined procedures and escalate deviations where needed.

New Products, Processes & Projects

• Work closely with the Project Management team to support early integration of ORM/BCM/IAM requirements in new products, systems, and processes.
• Assist in reviewing policies and procedures submitted by business units from an operational risk perspective and recommend control enhancements.

Stakeholder Coordination & Issue Management

• Support coordination of outsourcing governance activities, ensuring documentation, assessments, and regulatory requirements are up to date.
• Assist in follow-ups with business units for timely closure of audit findings, risk issues, and action plans.
• Collaborate with internal audit, compliance, IT, and other control functions to support integrated risk reviews.

Training, Awareness & System Support

• Contribute to the development and delivery of operational risk and BCM training sessions and workshops as part of the annual awareness plan.
• Support maintenance and updates of ORM tools, systems, and reporting platforms; assist users in understanding system features and functionalities.

General & Ad-Hoc Responsibilities

• Prepare accurate MIS, dashboards, and analytical reports from available risk data.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with business units and support functions to strengthen risk awareness and collaboration.
• Undertake additional operational risk–related tasks assigned by the Manager – Operational Risk or senior management.

Education

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in finance, Risk Management or Business Administration.
• Professional / Technical Qualifications / Diplomas – will be considered as advantage.
• Risk Management related certification
• Business Continuity Management related certifications
• Certifications in ISO 22301, BS 2599, ISO 31000 and other relevant certifications

Experience

• Minimum of 2 years in Banking, of which at least 1 years working in Operational Risk (ORM) / Business Continuity Management (BCM) / Identity & Access Management (IAM) / Controls and Governance fields.
• Other Skills Required for the Job:
• People: Proven ability to lead, mentor, and develop high-performing teams within a risk management environment. Be open to others’ views and effectively manage potential conflicts.
• Analytical: Excellent Analytical skills and attention to details - Communication: Strong verbal and written communication skills. - Teamwork: Balances team and individual responsibilities. Gives and welcomes feedback, contribute to building a positive team spirit and put success of team ahead of own interests.