Risk & Assurance Business Partner

Smart Pension; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A financial technology company based in London is looking for a Risk & Assurance Business Partner to manage risk, compliance, and assurance initiatives. The role involves overseeing budgets, preparing presentations for governance committees, and ensuring regulatory compliance. Ideal candidates will have experience in risk management, corporate insurance, and information security audits, along with strong analytical and communication skills. This hybrid position offers competitive benefits and opportunities for professional growth.

Benefits

25 days' holiday

Annual training budget of £500

Extensive private healthcare

Enhanced sick leave and parental leave

Death in service insurance cover

Fully-paid five-week sabbatical

In-office wellbeing services

Discount at Arena Flowers

Qualifications

• Proven experience in a risk, assurance, or compliance role.
• Experience in managing corporate insurance programmes.
• Hands-on experience with information security audits like ISO 27001.
• Exposure to incident response management.
• Experience preparing reports and presentations for boards.

Responsibilities

• Manage the Risk & Assurance budget and resource allocation.
• Serve as Secretary to the Group Risk and Governance Committee.
• Prepare papers for the Audit & Risk Committee and Board.
• Oversee corporate insurance programmes and annual renewals.
• Manage information security audits for compliance.

Skills

Risk management frameworks

Analytical skills

Effective communication

Project management

Attention to detail

Tools

Vanta

Job description

At Smart, our mission is to transform retirement, savings and financial wellbeing, across all generations, around the world.

THE ROLE

The Risk & Assurance Business Partner plays a pivotal role in overseeing and managing Smart's risk, compliance, and assurance activities across the organisation. This role combines strategic oversight of the Risk & Assurance function, corporate insurance programmes, and information security audits with operational and governance responsibilities. The successful candidate will act as a trusted partner to the business, supporting decision‑making through insightful analysis, ensuring regulatory and audit compliance, managing risk exposures, and maintaining clear and transparent communication with internal stakeholders, the Board, and external clients.

Key Responsibilities

Risk & Assurance

• Manage the Risk & Assurance budget, including planning, forecasting, and monitoring to ensure efficient resource allocation and alignment with priorities
• Serve as Secretary to the Group Risk and Governance Committee (GRCC), ensuring timely preparation and distribution of papers, accurate minutes, and prompt action follow‑up
• Prepare clear, concise, and well‑structured papers and presentations for the Audit & Risk Committee and Board, translating complex technical and compliance information into actionable insights and recommendations
• Support Smart's incident response activities and processes, including simulations and reviews, collaborating across Risk, IT, and Engineering and Cyber Security teams

Insurance

• Oversee the administration and strategic management of corporate insurance programmes, ensuring alignment with Smart's evolving risk profile
• Lead the annual insurance renewal process, including risk assessment, data analysis, and negotiation to secure optimal coverage and pricing
• Serve as the primary liaison with insurance brokers and carriers, fostering partnerships that support the organisation's risk mitigation objectives
• Continuously evaluate operational exposures and recommend insurance solutions for comprehensive and cost‑effective coverage across business units

Information Security Audits

• Oversee and coordinate ISO 27001 and SOC 2 audit activities, ensuring evidence collection, control implementation, and compliance alignment across all business units
• Manage and maintain continuous compliance through Vanta, automating evidence gathering, monitoring control effectiveness, and tracking remediation efforts
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders and external auditors to ensure audit readiness, accurate documentation, and timely completion of all compliance requirements

Client management

• Provide ongoing due diligence and transparent communication to Smart's partners and clients, ensuring a clear understanding of risk, security, and audit activities

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

The skills, experience, and aptitudes we are looking for are listed below but please don't be discouraged from applying if you don't meet every single one of these criteria - having a 'can do' attitude is sometimes more important than being able to tick every box:

Experience

• Proven experience in a risk, assurance or compliance role, ideally within a corporate or regulated environment.
• Experience managing or supporting corporate insurance programmes, including renewals, risk assessment, and broker liaison.
• Hands‑on experience with information security audits, such as ISO 27001 and SOC 2, and working with audit management tools like Vanta or similar.
• Exposure to incident response management, including cross‑functional collaboration with IT, Engineering, and Cyber Security teams.
• Experience preparing papers, reports, and presentations for executive committees, boards, or governance forums.

Skills & Competencies

• Strong understanding of risk management frameworks, compliance obligations, and governance processes.
• Excellent analytical and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to translate complex technical and compliance information into actionable insights.
• Effective communication and stakeholder management skills, able to interact with executives, internal teams, and external partners/clients.
• Organisational and project management skills, including budgeting, forecasting, and monitoring of resources.
• Strong attention to detail, especially in documentation, reporting, and audit compliance.
• Ability to work independently and take ownership of tasks while collaborating effectively across teams.

Personal Attributes

• High level of integrity and professionalism.
• Proactive, strategic thinker with the ability to anticipate risks and recommend solutions.
• Comfortable working in a fast‑paced, evolving environment with multiple priorities.
• Commitment to continuous improvement and maintaining up‑to‑date knowledge of industry standards and best practices.

WHO WE ARE

We work in partnerships with governments and financial institutions in the UK and internationally. Our cloud‑native digital platform is revolutionising how people around the world think about, and save for, their retirement.

At heart, we're a financial technology business. What we do is all about innovation, and using the power of digital change to put the customer first. Our Engineers will tell you that working at Smart gives you the opportunity to play your part in developing world‑class technological solutions, working with - and learning from - like‑minded people.

You'll also find that, across our business, our colleagues love Smart's culture, and how what we do means better financial outcomes for savers. That feels worthwhile, and it means that what we do, collectively, goes way beyond the nine to five of a typical working day.

Don't just take our word for it - you can see what our colleagues say about working at Smart on LinkedIn Life and Glassdoor .

BENEFITS

• 25 days' holiday per year, increasing with length of service.
• £500 annual training budget to spend on your professional development
• Extensive private healthcare, including dental, eyecare and EAP
• Enhanced sick leave (three months' pay per year)
• Enhanced maternity and paternity (maternity - 6 months fully paid/paternity - 3 weeks fully paid)
• Death in service insurance cover
• Fully‑paid five‑week sabbatical after five years of employment
• In office wellbeing, such as manicures, massages and barbers.
• Smart employees also enjoy a 50% discount on orders from our sister company Arena Flowers, Britain's most ethical florist. They offer unique hand‑tied bouquets, luxury flowers, letterbox flowers, plants and gifts to spend on friends and loved ones or even for yourself.

We think Smart is an awesome place to work. If it sounds like somewhere you'd like to work, too, and if you're ready to play your part in our continued success in the future, then naturally we'd love to meet you.

Department Risk Locations London Remote status Hybrid