Operations and Compliance Manager

BWD Search & Selection; Leeds; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Real ownership

Supportive leadership

Flexible work environment

Rewarding initiative

Job summary

A leading financial advice business in Leeds is seeking a Mid-Senior Compliance Manager to lead compliance operations and enhance processes. The ideal candidate will possess IFA compliance experience and a solution-driven mindset. This role offers genuine autonomy and the opportunity to shape operations in a supportive culture that values initiative and collaboration.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in compliance within the IFA sector.
• Ability to enhance operational processes and deliver training.
• Commitment to driving a strong compliance culture.
• And the desire to build something better, not just maintain what’s there.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day compliance and support regulatory matters.
• Oversee paraplanning and admin teams for quality output.
• Embed pragmatic operational and compliance processes.
• Monitor regulatory changes and update policies.
• Bridge compliance, operations, and commercial strategy.

Skills

Experience in IFA compliance

Solution-led mindset

Understanding of operational efficiency

Change agent

Job description

Overview

We are working in partnership with our trusted client, a values-led financial advice business that combines the stability of long-serving leadership with a bold, future-facing mindset. Since becoming directly authorised, they’ve focused on aligning internal functions to build smarter, more effective ways of working. They know where bottlenecks form and what needs to be changed. They’re looking for someone who can help shape what good looks like. This is a rare opportunity to join a growing firm at a pivotal time—your ideas will be valued, your voice heard, and your impact felt. You’ll be trusted with genuine autonomy to embed quality from the inside out, in a culture that prioritises common sense over red tape.

Pay range: This range is provided by BWD Search & Selection. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day compliance and act as a key support to the SMF16/17, handling regulatory matters, risk reviews, and complaints with confidence.
• Oversee the paraplanning and admin teams, ensuring high-quality output, workflow efficiency, and adherence to SLAs.
• Shape and embed operational and compliance processes that are fit-for-purpose — pragmatic, not paper-heavy.
• Monitor regulatory changes, update internal policies (e.g. T&C, advice framework), and deliver relevant training.
• Be the bridge between compliance, operations, and commercial strategy, driving continuous improvement and a strong compliance culture.

Qualifications

• Experience in IFA compliance – and the confidence to own it
• An understanding of how operations should feel when they run well
• A mindset that’s solution-led, not status-quo
• And the desire to build something better, not just maintain what’s there

Benefits

• Real ownership – a seat at the table and a voice in the room
• Support from low-ego, high-integrity leaders who back their people
• Flexibility, and a team that plays the long game
• A culture that rewards initiative, not politics

This isn’t a CV-box-tick hire. It’s about finding someone who wants to shape, grow, and get stuck in and who sees this as a career chapter worth writing.

Drop me a message on LinkedIn or email [e-mail] with your CV to find out more.

Job details

• Seniority level – Mid-Senior level
• Employment type – Full-time
• Job function – Administrative, Quality Assurance, and Other
• Location – Leeds, England, United Kingdom