Senior Credit Risk Analyst, ERM

Great-West Lifeco Inc; Toronto; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Great-West Lifeco Inc is seeking a seasoned risk professional to analyze credit risk on fixed income holdings and other investments, delivering guidance to senior stakeholders across our global Financial Risk Management (FRM) team. The role involves evaluating credit ratings, developing risk insights, and collaborating with risk committees to support oversight of market, credit and liquidity risks.

You will contribute to model enhancements, automate risk review processes and stay current on

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in business, accounting, or equivalent.
• CFA and/or FRM designations are assets or pursuing them.
• Minimum 5 years of work experience including credit rating analysis.
• Experience with credit risk and investments; knowledge of private credit/private equity/real estate is an asset.
• Proficiency with MS Office, Bloomberg, and S&P CapIQ.

Responsibilities

• Independently reviewing internal bond credit ratings and alternative investments for approval by the AVP, Credit Adjudication; communicate results to risk committees.
• Evaluate the risk rating of proposed new commercial mortgages and bonds to assess whether the current assessment is appropriate and accurate.
• Support Risk Function with development of processes for identification, assessment, management, monitoring and reporting of credit risks; streamline credit review and create efficiencies through automation.
• Enhance and test existing internal rating models to ensure they evaluate risks and support business objectives.
• Perform independent research on credit risk rating trends and keep up to date on external credit rating agency developments.
• Collaborate on internal projects and day-to-day activities performed by the Financial Risk team.

Skills

Process automation

Analytical skills

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business/Finance

CFA/FRM designation or progress toward

Tools

Bloomberg

S&P CapIQ

MS Office

Excel

Job description

A unique opportunity in our global Financial Risk Management (FRM) team to analyze credit risk on fixed income holdings and to also analyze risks on other investments to develop guidance and risk advice for senior stakeholders.

Great-West Lifeco is a Canadian headquartered, international financial services holding company with interests in life insurance, health insurance, retirement and investment services, asset management and reinsurance businesses. We operate in Canada, the US, the UK and Europe under the brands Canada Life, Empower Retirement, and Irish Life. Our companies have over 30,000 employees, 100,000+ advisor relationships, and thousands of distribution partners – all serving our more than 40 million customer relationships across these regions.

The team

The Financial Risk Management team provides independent advice to senior management and the Board of Directors, and helps to support the oversight of market, credit and liquidity risks, and investment strategies across our group of companies. We operate as a central function, in a global team across UK, Ireland and Canada. Our team is fast-growing and dynamic, enabling you to draw upon a diverse range of knowledge, experience and skills. We will continually encourage you to develop and excel in all areas of your role.

What you will do:

• Independently reviewing internal bond credit ratings and alternative investments on new and existing transactions for approval by the AVP, Credit Adjudication. Communicate results of the work to risk committees to compliment the risk oversight process.
• Evaluate the risk rating of proposed new commercial mortgages and bonds to assess whether the current assessment is appropriate and accurate, and the investments are suitable for the portfolio.
• Support Risk Function with development of effective processes for the identification, assessment, management, monitoring and reporting of credit risks across the Company. This includes streamlining the credit review process and creating efficiencies through automation.
• Enhancing and testing existing internal rating models to ensure they appropriately evaluate risks and support business objectives
• Performing independent research on credit risk rating trends and keeping up to date on external credit rating agency’s developments
• Collaborating in various internal projects as well as the day-to-day activities performed by the Financial Risk team

What you will bring:

• Undergraduate degree in Business Administration, Accountant, other relevant degrees or a relevant professional body risk qualification.
• Certified Financial Analyst (CFA) and/or Financial Risk Manager (FRM) designations, or progress towards either of these designations is an asset
• Minimum of 5 years of work experience including credit rating analysis
• Proactive and self-directed with demonstrated history of creating process efficiencies/automation (basic understanding of programming/AI concepts or experience leveraging AI is a plus)
• Experience in the understanding of finance and accounting principles
• Knowledge or interest in financial risk management and investments. Experience with alternative investments (private credit, private equity, real estate, etc.) or reinsurance is an asset.
• Superior analytical and problem-solving skills
• Keen eye for detail and strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Technically proficient in Microsoft Office suite, Bloomberg and S&P CapIQ

What's in it for you?

• Rapidly develop your problem solving, relationship-building and communication skills
• Work on challenging and innovative projects in a dynamic, collaborative and fast-growing team