What are the responsibilities and job description for the Director, First Line of Defense Controls Lead position at The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation?
Director, First Line of Defense Controls Lead
At BNY, our culture allows us to run our company better and enables employees’ growth and success. As a leading global financial services company at the heart of the global financial system, we influence nearly 20% of the world’s investible assets. Every day, our teams harness cutting-edge AI and breakthrough technologies to collaborate with clients, driving transformative solutions that redefine industries and uplift communities worldwide.
Recognized as a top destination for innovators, BNY is where bold ideas meet advanced technology and exceptional talent. Together, we power the future of finance – and this is what #LifeAtBNY is all about. Join us and be part of something extraordinary.
We’re seeking a future team member for the role of Director, First Line of Defense Controls Lead to join our Corporate Trust team. This role is located in Houston, TX.
In this role, you’ll make an impact in the following ways:
- Establish, manage and oversee a robust internal control framework; facilitating the implemention and governance of controls to manage platform processes, aligned with compliance regulations, rules, standards, and policies.
- Design, implement and assess controls that detect material and emerging risks before they materialize.
- Contribute to 1LOD risk and control taxonomies aligned to Enterprise Risk Framework
- Enforce risk appetite across all activities including monitoring adequate resourcing, risk mitigation, identification and remediation of issues, and driving remediation programs to ensure timely closure of actions plans, audit findings, and regulatory requests or findings.
- Establish a strong partnership with Risk and Compliance 2LOD monitoring risk levels and escalating when outside of the agreed risk appetite and defined risk thresholds
- Partner with Compliance to analyze impact of new regulations affecting the Platform and ensure necessary changes are delivered to the Platform’s control environment, product design, reporting processes, Laws, Rules and Regulations mapping and/or contractual structures.
- Embed core risk management processes across the Platform to comply with Risk & Compliance Frameworks and Policies, including Risk Identification, Assessment and Monitoring, RCSA, HLA, ORE, Operational Risk Limits (former KRIs), Controls Testing, Resilience Planning, and Scenario analysis across all risk types
- Act as the Platform’s primary point of coordination for control related engagements with lead regulators, external auditors, clients, and internal teams including 2LoD and 3LoD, and Legal Entity Management.
- Drive continuous improvements in control environment through utilizing best in class tools, workflow, and risk analytics in partnership with Practice lead and Controls Hub.
- Ensure integrity, completeness and proper interpretation of reporting and metrics to provide a holistic risk portfolio view for the Platform and drive actions to address variances
To be successful in this role, we’re seeking the following:
- Bachelor’s degree in finance or the equivalent combination of education and experience is required, advanced degree is preferred
- 10 years of experience in Risk, Compliance and Control a corporate and/or investment banking capacity
- Strong Understanding of a Risk and Control framework, Control design and Control effectiveness
- Strong understanding of regulatory and supervisory expectations for large complex financial institutions
- Requires business, regulatory, operational and technology risk and control management expertise
- Ability to interpret and apply Risk & Compliance policies and procedures
- Ability to plan, syndicate and implement balanced risk and control strategies
- Detail-oriented, with the ability to follow up on items or determine appropriate steps for timely escalation and/or resolution
- Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple deadlines and priorities
- Ability to lead, manage, build, and align a team of individuals having various backgrounds and skillsets to an agile way of working and to achieve new Platform goals utilizing their unique talents, strengths and experiences
- Deep industry/business/product knowledge and expertise in risk and control functions (incl. best practices)
- Leadership and influencing skills with the ability to advocate for decisions
- Ability to develop advanced capabilities (e.g., advanced analytics) to optimize risk return trade-offs for the business
- Subject matter expertise in the following areas of focus - Market Practice Risk, Fiduciary Risk, or Client / Sales Practice Risk
At BNY, our culture speaks for itself, check out the latest BNY news at:
BNY Newsroom
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Here’s a few of our recent awards:
- America’s Most Innovative Companies, Fortune, 2025
- World’s Most Admired Companies, Fortune 2025
- “Most Just Companies”, Just Capital and CNBC, 2025
Our Benefits and Rewards:
BNY offers highly competitive compensation, benefits, and wellbeing programs rooted in a strong culture of excellence and our pay-for-performance philosophy. We provide access to flexible global resources and tools for your life’s journey. Focus on your health, foster your personal resilience, and reach your financial goals as a valued member of our team, along with generous paid leaves, including paid volunteer time, that can support you and your family through moments that matter.
BNY is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer - Underrepresented racial and ethnic groups/Females/Individuals with Disabilities/Protected Veterans.
