Senior Risk Manager

Connells Group HQ; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Connells Group HQ in Milton Keynes is seeking a Senior Risk Manager to strengthen the 2LOD risk function. You will partner with senior stakeholders to embed a proactive risk culture, enhance governance, and ensure risk insights inform strategic decisions.

The role focuses on developing the Group Risk Management Framework, applying risk policies consistently, and delivering executive-ready risk reporting and insights for the Risk Committee.

Qualifications

• Significant experience in enterprise risk management within a complex organisation.
• Strong understanding of risk frameworks, governance, and regulatory expectations.
• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and drive risk culture.

Responsibilities

• Lead identification and assessment of risks across business units with robust scoring.
• Produce executive-ready risk reports and dashboards for governance forums.
• Collaborate with Compliance and Internal Audit to align risk and controls.
• Support the Group's risk management framework and improvement actions.

Skills

Enterprise risk management

Stakeholder engagement

Regulatory knowledge

Executive reporting

Job description

We are seeking an experienced and commercially minded Senior Risk Manager within Connells Group's second line of defence (2LOD) Risk function. This is a critical role in strengthening Connells Group's enterprise risk capability, supporting the identification, assessment, management, and reporting of risks across the organisation.

You will act as a trusted partner to senior stakeholders, embedding a proactive risk culture, enhancing governance frameworks, and ensuring that risk insights effectively inform strategic decision-making.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support the ongoing development and enhancement of the Group Risk Management Framework (GRMF), ensuring alignment to regulatory expectations and industry best practice
• Drive consistent application of risk policies, standards, and methodologies across the business
• Monitor the firms risk profile and elevate emerging risks to the Risk Committee and relevant governance forums in a timely manner.
• Champion a strong risk culture across the organisation
• Support training, awareness, and communication initiatives to embed risk management practices
• Promote clarity around roles and responsibilities (1st, 2nd, and 3rd line model)
• Identify opportunities to enhance risk processes, tools, and reporting capabilities
• Support implementation of automation and digital risk tooling where appropriate
• Contribute to maturity uplift of enterprise risk capability

Risk Identification & Assessment

• Lead and facilitate risk identification and assessment activities across business units
• Ensure risks are clearly articulated, appropriately scored (impact/likelihood), and aligned to risk appetite
• Challenge first-line assessments to ensure robustness, consistency, and transparency
• Ensure risk practices align with relevant regulatory requirements and expectations
• Support control environment assessments, including identification of weaknesses and improvement actions
• Collaborate with Compliance and Internal Audit to ensure alignment and minimise duplication

Risk Reporting & Insights

• Produce high-quality, executive-ready risk reports, dashboards, and insights
• Enhance risk MI to provide forward-looking, decision-useful information (trends, emerging risks, stress points)
• Support development of risk heatmaps, scenario analysis, and thematic reviews
• Contribute to the Group's RCSA (Risk and Control Self-Assessment) process and operational resilience programme.
• Oversee the tracking and management of risk events, issues, and remediation actions
• Ensure timely escalation of material risks and breaches
• Monitor delivery of mitigating actions and challenge delays or inefficiencies

Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, supporting effective risk ownership and accountability
• Build strong relationships across functions (Operations, Finance, HR, IT, Compliance, Audit)
• Provide constructive challenge while maintaining a solutions-oriented approach

The ideal candidate:

• Significant experience in enterprise risk management within a complex organisation (financial services, property, or related sectors advantageous)
• Strong understanding of risk frameworks, governance, and regulatory expectations
• Proven ability to influence and challenge senior stakeholders effectively
• Experience producing Executive-level reporting
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capability
• Confident, balanced approach to risk: commercially aware without compromising independence