Card Operations Director — Hybrid, Growth & Impact

Westerra Credit Union; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 112,000 - 139,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health plans

Dental plans

Life insurance

Disability coverage

Paid time off

Paid holidays

401(k) match

Educational reimbursement

Parental leave

EAP

Learning programs

Job summary

Westerra Credit Union in Denver, CO seeks a Director of Card Operations to lead debit and credit card programs, drive performance, and manage vendor relationships. You will shape strategy, oversee card services, disputes, processing, and portfolio administration, and partner with cross-functional teams to deliver secure, efficient member experiences.

The ideal candidate has 10+ years in financial services, 6+ in card operations, and proven leadership.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of financial institution experience.
• 6+ years in card operations, payments operations, card services, or related financial services functions.
• 3+ years of direct people leadership experience, including responsibility for hiring, coaching, performance management, and team development.
• 2+ years of leading leaders.
• Experience supporting debit and/or credit card programs within a financial institution, credit union, bank, processor, or payment services organization.
• Experience working with card processors, payment networks, and external vendors.
• Experience managing operational workflows, service levels, escalations, and process improvement initiatives.
• Experience leading cross-functional projects and operational implementations.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership for Card Operations and oversee card servicing, disputes, portfolio administration, processing, and operational support.
• Lead and develop the Card Services Manager and Card Specialists, establishing performance expectations, priorities, accountabilities, and development plans across the Card Operations function.
• Establish the operating model, priorities, roles, and accountabilities across Card Operations to ensure effective coordination among card servicing, disputes, processing, portfolio management, vendors, and supporting business functions.
• Oversee card servicing operations, including lost, stolen, damaged, compromised, expired, and reissued cards, transaction declines, fraud-alert support, travel notices, card controls, and digital wallet support.
• Own the operational performance and governance of key card partners, including Velera, Visa, rewards providers, and card fulfillment vendors, establishing expectations, monitoring service performance, and driving resolution of systemic or recurring issues.
• Oversee settlement coordination, processing exceptions, and operational issue resolution to ensure accurate and timely card program performance.
• Administer card rewards programs and coordinate with vendors to ensure effective program performance and member value.
• Resolve escalated operational issues involving card processing, authorizations, settlement, network impacts, vendor performance, and member service disruptions.
• Own the operational performance of Westerra's debit and credit card portfolios, including activation, usage, engagement, interchange income, profitability, portfolio health, and execution of growth initiatives.
• Support the execution of card strategies and initiatives through operational planning, implementation, testing, readiness activities, and ongoing performance management.
• Partner with Lending on card products, pricing, underwriting, credit policy, and portfolio management initiatives.
• Partner with Marketing, Digital Banking, Finance, Risk, Fraud, Contact Center, and Branch Operations to support card program performance and member experience objectives.
• Establish and maintain operational procedures, controls, service levels, reporting, and performance metrics to ensure effective and consistent execution.
• Identify and implement process improvements that increase efficiency, strengthen controls, and reduce member and employee friction.
• Monitor operational risks, trends, losses, service issues, and vendor performance and take appropriate corrective action when needed.
• Provide reporting, analysis, and recommendations to leadership regarding card operations performance, portfolio trends, vendor performance, and improvement opportunities.
• Serve as the primary operational subject matter expert for debit and credit card programs.
• Comply with all policies, procedures, and Federal and State laws and regulations.
• Maintain a high level of confidentiality.
• Direct short- and long-term staffing needs and development
• Responsible for the overall budget for the department
• Negotiates improvements and leads strategic change across functions.
• goals for functional area(s)
• Attends community events relevant to business needs.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills

Leadership

Card operations

Payments operations

Analytics

Vendor management

Tools

Card processing platforms

Job description

Westerra Credit Union in Denver, CO seeks a Director of Card Operations to lead debit and credit card programs, drive performance, and manage vendor relationships. You will shape strategy, oversee card services, disputes, processing, and portfolio administration, and partner with cross-functional teams to deliver secure, efficient member experiences.

The ideal candidate has 10+ years in financial services, 6+ in card operations, and proven leadership.