Senior Manager, Payments & Risk Operations

FORFIRM; Ticino; On-site; CHF 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Forfirm is seeking a senior, client-facing leader to manage the bank's payments platform, overseeing projects, operations and governance on-site in Switzerland. The role blends banking domain knowledge with application ownership, project management, people leadership, and vendor coordination.

You will be the internal reference for payment process evolution, platform management, compliance, and coordination with external vendors and stakeholders, guiding teams to meet SLAs and regulatory

Qualifications

• This role requires 7+ years in banking with a focus on payment systems.
• Autonomous senior profile capable of acting as trusted reference on client premises.
• Full-time on-site presence is required.
• Italian: fluent. English: fluent. German or French: a plus.

Responsibilities

• Project Management: manage end-to-end projects including requirements, analysis, design, vendor coordination, UAT, releases and stabilization.
• Application Management: oversee configurations, flows, and interfaces between systems; ensure continuity of payment flows (SIC, euroSIC, SEPA, SWIFT).
• Functional and Operational Support: provide second-level support; analyze issues; coordinate with vendors during incidents.
• Compliance: support regulatory requirements for payments and assist audits.
• Team Management: plan capacity, supervise daily activities, ensure SLAs, and manage external consultants.

Skills

Project management

Vendor coordination

People management

Analytical skills

Communication

Client facing

Education

Degree in Economics/Finance/CS/Management Engineering

Tools

Swiss core banking systems

Project management tools

Job description

Descrizione Del Lavoro

Role Purpose

This is a senior, client-facing role responsible for the team managing the bank's payments platform, covering its projects, daily operations, and governance. It combines banking domain knowledge with application ownership, project management, people management, and vendor coordination.

The person in this role is the internal reference point for payment process evolution, platform management, functional support, compliance and operational controls, and coordination with external vendors and internal stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Project Management: Manage projects in scope end-to-end: requirements gathering, functional analysis, solution design, vendor coordination, UAT, release planning, and post-release stabilization. Lead regulatory and project initiatives related to payments, and coordinate with other Organization teams when their projects touch on payments topics.
• Application Management: Oversee configurations, parameters, flows, and interfaces between Olympic, Atlas, and the service bureau. Ensure continuity and quality of payment flows (SIC, euroSIC, SEPA, SWIFT).
• Functional and Operational Support: Provide second-level support to internal users, analyze functional and operational issues, coordinate incident resolution with vendors, and support critical operations and escalations.
• Compliance: Support implementation of regulatory requirements related to payments (ISO 20022, SIC/SIX, SWIFT, AML controls, operational and accounting compliance) and support internal/external audits.
• Team Management: Plan team capacity, priorities, and workload. Supervise daily team activities, ensure SLAs and internal processes are met, support staff development, and manage external consultants. Report to the department head on status, risks, and issues.

Requirements

• Seniority: Senior profile expected to operate with autonomy on client premises, acting as a trusted point of reference for the bank's internal stakeholders. Full-time on-site presence is required.
• Background: Degree in Economics, Finance, Computer Science, Management Engineering, or equivalent experience. 7+ years in banking, with a focus on payment systems, and demonstrated experience managing IT/banking projects in structured environments.
• Technical Skills: Strong knowledge of banking payment processes and Swiss regulatory frameworks. Familiarity with standard project management tools. Experience with Swiss core banking systems is a plus.
• Soft Skills: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills under time pressure. Good communication skills across IT, Operations, Compliance, Risk, auditors, and vendors. Able to lead mixed internal/external teams with a results-oriented approach. Precise, discreet, and reliable on deadlines.
• Languages: Italian: fluent. English: fluent. German or French: a plus.