[Hiring] Director, Operational Risk Management @KOHO

Role Description

Reporting to the Associate Chief Risk Officer (ACRO) Non-Financial Risks, we’re looking for a Director, Operational Risk Management to lead and enhance KOHO’s operational risk management framework. This leadership role will be responsible for driving the overall operational risk management strategy, building a Second Line Controls Testing program, and serving as a trusted advisor to Senior Management on operational risk-related matters. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in risk management, strong leadership capabilities, a passion for innovation and automation, and the ability to influence at all levels of the organization.

You’ll leverage your deep risk management expertise and strong understanding of relevant OSFI Guidelines — while partnering cross-functionally across product, legal, risk, operations, and engineering to support safe and sustainable business growth.

What You’ll Be Doing

• Operational Risk Leadership
  • Lead and evolve KOHO’s operational risk management framework and practices aligned with applicable OSFI Guidelines (E-21, B-10, E-13) and banking industry standards.
  • Own the end-to-end development and implementation of a Second Line Controls Testing program, including methodology, governance, and reporting standards.
  • Provide regular and comprehensive operational risk profile reporting to Senior Management, committees and/or forums.
  • Identify emerging operational risks and trends and develop implementation strategies.
• Risk Assessment & Monitoring
  • Conduct regular operational risk assessments across the business and operations.
  • Provide strategic oversight of operational risk issues, events, and root cause analysis to ensure timely identification and remediation of control deficiencies.
  • Design and execute a risk-based controls testing strategy to independently assess the design effectiveness, operating effectiveness, and control suite coverage of First Line controls across business units.
  • Drive lessons learned and thematic reviews to prevent issue recurrence and strengthen the control environment.
  • Establish and maintain operational risk appetite metrics, thresholds, and escalation protocols.
  • Collaborate cross-functionally with Risk Management, Compliance, and Internal Audit to ensure integrated risk coverage and oversight.
• Stakeholder Engagement and Team Development
  • Build and lead a high-performing risk team that scales with growth.
  • Build strong relationships with First Line business partners, acting as trusted advisor and constructive challenger.
  • Drive risk culture and awareness initiatives across the organization through training, communication, and engagement programs.
• Innovation, Automation & Continuous Improvement
  • Leverage advanced analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) capabilities to enhance risk identification, monitoring, and predictive insights.
  • Stay current on industry trends, RegTech solutions, and best practices in operational risk innovation, bringing forward recommendations to enhance the function.
  • Foster a culture of innovation within the team, encouraging experimentation and the adoption of new approaches to solve complex risk challenges.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive experience in operational and enterprise risk management, controls testing, internal audit, or compliance within financial services.
• Deep knowledge in operational and compliance risk frameworks and a solid understanding of the connectivities across non-financial risk domains (compliance, third party, business continuity, tech/cyber, etc.).
• Strong understanding of the Three Lines of Defense model and regulatory expectations.
• Experience in regulated fintech, neobank, or direct-to-consumer financial institutions.
• Strategic thinker with the ability to translate complex risk concepts into actionable and practical approaches to execution.
• Passionate about innovation, inclusion, and empowering financial wellness.

Requirements

• The budgeted salary range for this role is $180,000 - 210,000 CAD / year.
• Compensation at KOHO is determined through various factors including but not limited to: comparable salary market data within Canada, technical skill assessment, a holistic view of previous work history, and internal pay equity with other KOHO team members.

Benefits

• Pay transparency to all candidates.