Operational Risk & Controls Lead

Manulife; Montreal; Hybrid; CAD 85,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

Manulife is seeking an Operational Risk and Controls Lead to partner with Insurance Operations and Distributor Services to strengthen the control environment. You will identify and mitigate operational risks, support regulatory and audit readiness, and drive continuous improvement across core processes.

You will translate risk concepts into practical business solutions that improve customer, operational, and business outcomes.

Qualifications

• Experience leading risk assessment and control programs.
• Strong collaboration and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to translate risk concepts into practical business solutions.

Responsibilities

• Partner with business leaders to identify, assess, and manage operational risks across Insurance Operations and Distributor Services.
• Support risk and control assessments (RCSAs) for all parent business processes with Line 1b.
• Assist with audits, regulatory reviews, and remediation activities, including evidence collection and management responses.
• Monitor effectiveness of key controls and drive improvements to strengthen the control environment.
• Maintain risk, process, and control inventories with accurate supporting documentation.
• Analyze metrics to identify trends and opportunities for improvement.
• Lead timely delivery of Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) and validate closures.
• Promote a culture of accountability and risk awareness across the business.
• Build partnerships with Operations, Compliance, Legal, Technology, Finance, and Risk stakeholders.

Job description

The Insurance Operations & Distributor Services team is seeking an experienced, analytical, and collaborative leader to join our team as Operational Risk and Controls Lead.

In this role, you will partner directly with operational leaders and risk partners to strengthen the control environment across core Insurance and Distributor Service processes. You will help identify and mitigate operational risks, support regulatory and audit readiness, drive continuous improvement, and ensure key controls remain effective as the business evolves.

The successful candidate will bring strong operational knowledge, a deep understanding of insurance and service processes, and a proven ability to translate risk and control concepts into practical business solutions that improve customer, operational, and business outcomes.

Position Responsibilities:

• Partner with business leaders to identify, assess, and manage operational risks across Insurance Operations and Distributor Services.
• In collaboration with Line 1b, support risk and control assessments (RCSAs) for all Insurance Ops and Distributor Services parent business processes.
• Support audit, regulatory, and compliance reviews, including coordination of evidence, management responses, and corrective action plans.
• Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of key controls and recommend improvements to strengthen the control environment.
• Maintain risk, process, and control inventories and ensure supporting documentation remains accurate and current.
• Conduct root cause analysis for operational incidents, errors, and control failures and drive sustainable remediation actions.
• Support audit and regulatory engagements, including evidence collection, management responses, and remediation activities.
• Analyze operational, quality, risk, and performance metrics to identify emerging trends, issues, and opportunities for improvement.
• Support the timely delivery of Corrective Action Plans (CAPs), including tracking, reporting, challenge, and closure validation.
• In collaboration with the Ops leaders, promote a culture of accountability, risk awareness, and continuous improvement across the business.
• Build strong partnerships with Operations, Compliance, Legal, Technology, Finance, and Risk stakeholders to support effective business outcomes.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Risk Management, or a related discipline.
• 5-7 years of experience in Insurance Operations, Distributor Services or a related financial services environment.
• Strong understanding of insurance servicing, policy administration, claims, distributor operations, and customer service processes.
• Experience identifying and improving operational risks, controls, quality processes, and business outcomes.
• Experience supporting audits, regulatory reviews, issue remediation, and corrective action planning.
• Demonstrated leadership experience, including coaching and developing employees.
• Experience supporting business transformation, process improvement, or technology implementation initiatives.
• Knowledge of risk management practices, control frameworks, and governance processes within financial services.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with Archer or other Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) platforms is an asset.
• Strong understanding of end-to-end insurance and distributor service processes.
• Ability to identify risks, control gaps, and operational improvement opportunities.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and root cause analysis skills.
• Ability to simplify complex information and communicate effectively with all levels of management.
• Strong stakeholder management, facilitation, and relationship-building capabilities.
• Ability to challenge constructively and influence decision-making.
• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong critical thinking, professional skepticism, and sound judgment.
• Self-motivated with a continuous improvement mindset and a focus on delivering results.
• Bilingualism (English and French) is an asset. If the successful candidate is in Québec, proficiency in both languages will be required to support clients from various provinces outside of Quebec.

When you join our team:

• We’ll empower you to learn and grow the career you want.
• We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well-being and inclusion are more than just words.
• As part of our global team, we’ll support you in shaping the future you want to see.

#LI-HYBRID

This posting supports an ongoing hiring initiative for existing and/or future vacancies.

About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html .

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer

At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law.

It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact [e-mail] .

Referenced Salary Location

CAN, Ontario, Waterloo, 500 King Street North

Working Arrangement

Híbrido

Salary range is expected to be between

$85,300.00 CAD - $135,300.00 CAD

Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance. The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training. If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact [e-mail] for the salary range for your location.

Manulife offers eligible employees a wide array of customizable benefits, including health, dental, mental health, vision, short- and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans. We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources. Our generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence. If you are applying for this role in the U.S., please contact [e-mail] for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.

We use data and analytics technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and automated processing tools, to analyze and process the information you provide to us or third parties in the application process. For more information, please refer to our personal information collection statement (https://careers.manulife.com/global/en/talentacquisitionprivacystatement) .