Quality Assurance Senior Associate

Financial Conduct Authority; City of Edinburgh; Hybrid; GBP 52,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

A UK financial regulatory body is seeking a Quality Assurance Senior Associate to lead the development of the QA framework. You'll engage with stakeholders and manage operational risk, aiming for continuous improvement within the team. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in outcomes-focused QA, strategic communication with senior stakeholders, and a curious mindset for innovative approaches. This role offers a competitive salary and the opportunity for hybrid working.

Benefits

25 days holiday plus bank holidays

Hybrid working (up to 60% from home)

Private healthcare with Bupa

Non-contributory Pension of at least 8%

Life assurance of eight times your salary

Income protection

Qualifications

• Experience working in a FCA front-line supervision role.
• Skilled in analysing data for judgements and recommendations.
• Experience communicating a strategic approach to stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Review and redesign the QA framework within SPC to implement changes.
• Coordinate activity across all the Directorates in SPC and report trends.
• Lead the QA Embedding Forum to maintain standards and drive improvement.
• Engage with management to discuss QA results and recommendations.
• Manage a portfolio of QA work and collaborate with other Divisions.

Skills

Experience of outcomes-focussed Quality Assurance

Data analysis

Stakeholder communication

Engagement with senior stakeholders

Strategic presentation skills

Tactical and strategic improvements

Strong influencing

Curiosity and innovation

Basic proficiency in Microsoft Excel

Job description

Quality Assurance Senior Associate

Division – Supervision, Policy and Competition (SPC)

Team – Risk & Assurance

Salary - National (Edinburgh and Leeds) ranging from £52,400 to £71,200 and London £57,700 to £78,300 per annum (Salary offered will be based on skills and experience)

About the FCA

The FCA regulates the conduct of 45,000 firms in the UK to ensure our financial markets are honest, fair and competitive. Follow this link to find out more About the FCA .

We are recruiting for a Senior Associate in the Risk & Assurance Team in the Controls, Capabilities & Frameworks (CCF) Directorate within Supervision, Policy & Competition (SPC). CCF drives change and operational excellence within SPC, the FCA’s largest front-line division. The directorate provides an excellent opportunity to work closely with SPC’s senior leadership and gain a deeper understanding of how one of the FCA’s largest divisions operates. The Risk & Assurance team lead the development and delivery of SPC’s operational MI, QA framework for supervision and approach to operational risk management. The team helps us to better understand how the division is performing across a wide range of operational metrics and SLAs, and how effectively we are managing our risks.

The successful candidate will focus on the development and oversight of the Quality Assurance framework across SPC, engaging with stakeholders from across the division. This is also a change role, as we seek to continuously improve the SPC operating frameworks and the assurance of them. This is an exciting time to join CCF as SPC seeks to change the way it operates and the importance of operational excellence, outcomes measurement and continuous improvement grows.

What will you be doing?

• You will be responsible for undertaking an end-to-end review and re-design of the QA framework within SPC to identify both tactical and strategic changes and implementing these, ensuring alignment to future planned changes to the Supervision Approach and SPC Operating Model

• You will be identifying samples, co-ordinating activity across all the Directorates in SPC, dealing with queries, analysing results and reporting on themes and trends

• Lead and manage the operations of the QA Embedding Forum which is a network of QA champions drawn from across SPC whose purpose is to maintain standards, share best practice and drive continuous improvement in our QA processes

• Identify and analyse themes from QA results for discussion with the CCF Management team and SPC Senior Committees, including posing recommendations for action where risks are increasing or a change to our operating model is required and ensure findings are fed into the Annual RCSA

• Scope, manage, and work independently on your own portfolio of work relating to QA and liaise with other Divisions in the FCA where QA is undertaken to share best practice, building and maintaining strong, collaborative relationships across SPC and providing advice to a range of stakeholders

• Ensure knowledge sharing, staff guidance and key controls are regularly reviewed and maintained. Be innovative about creating new ways of sharing knowledge and information with colleagues across SPC

What will you get from the role?

• This is an exciting time to join CCF as SPC seeks to change the way it operates and the importance of operational excellence, outcomes measurement and continuous improvement grows

• The role is high profile and will give you exposure to senior stakeholders across SPC and the wider FCA

• You will gain an in-depth insight into the FCA’s Supervision framework

• You will get the opportunity to help shape, design and implement the future QA approach across the Division

Which skills are required?

We are a Disability Confident Employer; therefore, disabled people or individuals with long-term conditions who best meet the minimum criteria for a role will go through to the next stage of the recruitment process. (To learn more about the Disability Confident Scheme Click Here)

Minimum

• Experience of outcomes-focussed Quality Assurance or recent experience of working in a FCA front-line supervision role

• Skilled in analysing data and using these to make proportionate judgements and recommendations

• Experience of communicating a strategic approach and priorities to a range of different stakeholders

Essential

• Proven ability to engage senior stakeholders and deliver clear, strategic presentations

• Skilled in identifying and implementing tactical and strategic improvements

• Strong influencing and communication capabilities

• Curious and innovative mindset with a drive to challenge norms and explore new approaches

• Basic proficiency in Microsoft Excel

Our Values & Diversity

We are proud to be an inclusive employer and our ambition is to cultivate a culture for all employees that respects their individual strengths, views, and experiences. We believe that our differences and similarities enable us to be a better organisation – one that makes better decisions, drives innovation, and delivers better regulation.

Within the workplace you will have access to various employee resource groups which aim to promote and achieve a healthy work / life balance and support our diversity ambitions.

Did you know? 50% of our Executive Committee were the first in their family to attend university.

Benefits of working at the FCA

• 25 days holiday per year plus bank holidays

• Hybrid working (work from home up to 60% of your time)

• Private healthcare with Bupa

• A non-contributory Pension of at least 8% of basic salary each month (there are several contribution levels that increase depending on your age – up to 12% a month once you reach age 35)

• Life assurance of eight times your basic salary

• Income protection

We also have a competitive flexible benefits scheme which gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifestyle.

We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements. Many of our staff work flexibly including working part-time, staggered hours, and job shares. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we can explore what might work best for both sides.

Follow this link to see what life is like at the FCA - Life at the FCA

Application Support

We are dedicated to removing barriers and ensuring our application process is accessible to everyone. We offer a range of adjustments to make your application experience as comfortable and straightforward as possible.

If you have an accessibility need, disability, or condition requiring changes to the recruitment process, please contact your recruiter using the details below and they will be happy to discuss this further with you.

Useful Information and Timeline

• This role is graded as Senior Associate, Regulatory

• Advert Closing Date: 15th August 2025

• CV Review/Shortlist: 18th August 2025

• Competency Based Interview: W/C 25th August 2025

• Second Stage Interview: W/C 1st September 2025

Your Recruiter will discuss the process in detail with you during screening for the role, therefore, please make them aware if you are going to be unavailable for any date during this time.

Got a question?

If you are interested in learning more about the role, please contact: [e-mail]

Applications must be submitted through our online portal. Applications sent via email will not be accepted.