Program Director, Fraud Operations, Investigations & Intelligence

Pathward, N.A.; Sioux Falls (SD); Hybrid; USD 72,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) retirement benefits

Life insurance

Disability benefits

Paid time off

Job summary

Pathward, N.A. is seeking a strategic leader to oversee end-to-end fraud operations, investigations, and intelligence, reporting to the SVP. You will own the fraud lifecycle from alerting through resolution, shaping the operating model and risk controls across multiple sites.

The role combines hands-on leadership of managers, collaboration with governance and QA, and executive-facing reporting. A track record of regulating compliance, improving detection, and guiding teams through complex cases

Qualifications

• 10+ years in fraud, investigations, or financial crimes.
• Experience leading teams and managing subordinate managers.
• Proven ownership of fraud operations and investigations in regulated environments.
• Strong knowledge of fraud typologies and card/ACH ecosystems.
• Executive-level communication and regulatory reporting skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end fraud lifecycle across alert ops, investigations, and intelligence.
• Manage alert volumes, queue health, SLA, and risk response.
• Direct Manager of Fraud Alert Operations and Manager of Fraud Investigations.
• Set Level 2 investigation standards and defensible documentation.
• Own fraud intelligence, including typologies and detection thresholds.
• Coordinate SAR/CTR referrals to BSA/AML and regulatory reporting.
• Establish KPIs/KRIs and present to SVP and governance forums.
• Partner on QA/QC and audit evidence, and improvement of controls.
• Recommend policy changes for alerts, investigations, and escalation.
• Mentor and develop talent; budget responsibilities possible.
• Represent operations in governance, audit, OCC examinations.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Skills

Fraud leadership

Team leadership

Regulatory awareness

Audit/reporting

Operational risk

Actimize

SAR/CTR knowledge

Strategic thinking

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

CFE certification

CAMS certification

Tools

Actimize

Job description

Remote

We are a hybrid, remote-office company dedicated to growing our talent anywhere!

We have onsite locations in: Sioux Falls, SD, Scottsdale, AZ, Louisville, KY, Troy, MI, Franklin, TN, Easton, PA.

At Pathward, we take tremendous pride in our purpose to create financial inclusion for all™. We are a financial empowerment company that works with innovators to increase financial availability, choice, and opportunity for all. We strive to remove barriers that traditional institutions put in the way of financial access, and promote economic mobility by providing responsible, secure, high quality financial products.

We are a team of problem solvers and innovators who celebrate our differences and know that our unique perspectives make us stronger and well-positioned for success. We celebrate, and embrace, our team members through our*HUMBLE*HUNGRY*SMART approach, and we believe that we are strongest when we embrace the voices of our employees, customers, partners, and the communities we serve.

About the Role:

Provides end-to-end operational fraud leadership below the SVP, owning the fraud lifecycle from Level 1 alert operations through Level 2 investigations and fraud intelligence. Establishes and runs the management rhythm for alert volumes, queue health, escalation routines, service-level performance, and operational risk response, connecting alert operations, investigations, and intelligence into one coherent fraud lifecycle. Leads a management team of managers — the Manager, Fraud Alert Operations and the Manager, Fraud Investigations. Partners with Governance, Risk & QA on quality themes and with Strategy, Analytics & Product Controls on detection and control improvements, and ensures work is executed to a standard sufficient for regulatory, audit, and quality-assurance review.

What You Will Do:

• Provides end-to-end operational leadership for the fraud lifecycle, integrating Level 1 alert operations, Level 2 investigations, and fraud intelligence into a single, coherent operating model.
• Owns the operational management rhythm — alert volumes, queue health, work allocation, productivity routines, SLA performance, escalation management, and operational risk response — and resolves day-to-day prioritization and queue conflicts.
• Directs the Manager, Fraud Alert Operations and the Manager, Fraud Investigations as peer managers with distinct missions, ensuring clear ownership of alert operations versus complex investigations and effective handoffs between them.
• Sets and enforces Level 2 investigative standards, complex case review expectations, documentation and evidence discipline, escalation packages, and management approvals, ensuring investigations are complete, defensible, and examination-ready.
• Owns fraud intelligence, including typology development, emerging threat monitoring, root-cause analysis, pattern identification, and feedback loops into detection strategy, rules, and thresholds.
• Ensures timely and accurate referral of SAR- and CTR-eligible activity to BSA/AML Operations, and that escalation of immediate-attention, terrorist-financing, human-trafficking, and imminent-loss indicators occurs same business day per procedure.
• Establishes, monitors, and reports operational KPIs and KRIs (e.g., alert-to-case conversion, aging, throughput, SLA adherence, loss trends) and provides decision-ready reporting to the SVP and governance forums.
• Partners with Governance, Risk & QA on QA/QC themes, procedure adequacy, corrective actions, and audit and exam evidence; partners with Strategy, Analytics & Product Controls on detection rules, thresholds, and control improvements.
• Recommends changes to policies and procedures affecting fraud alerting, investigation, and escalation, and drives continuous improvement in alert-to-case workflows, automation, documentation standards, and escalation protocols.
• Manages, mentors, and develops management and analyst talent, including hiring, assigning and directing work, establishing goals, evaluating performance, developing schedules and standards, and resolving employee-related issues; may hold budget responsibilities.
• Represents fraud operations, investigations, and intelligence in governance committees, audit engagements, and OCC examination support as directed by the SVP.
• Other duties as assigned.

What You Will Need:

• Bachelor's degree in a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Professional certification such as Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and/or Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) strongly preferred.
• Typically requires 10 or more years of related fraud, investigations, or financial-crimes experience, including several years leading teams and managing through subordinate managers or supervisors.
• Demonstrated experience owning fraud operations, Level 2 investigations, and/or fraud intelligence in a bank, processor, or comparably regulated environment, including exposure to regulatory examinations (e.g., OCC) and audit engagements.
• Strategic and operational leadership across the full fraud lifecycle, with the ability to translate program objectives into daily execution and measurable outcomes.
• Deep knowledge of fraud typologies, investigative standards, card and ACH ecosystems, alerting and case management platforms (e.g., Actimize), and SAR/CTR referral requirements.
• Strong people leadership, including developing managers, building scalable structures, and setting performance and quality standards.
• Sound judgment under pressure with the ability to prioritize competing queues, manage escalations, and balance risk-based approaches with regulatory expectations.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, including executive-, audit-, and regulator-ready reporting and documentation.

The responsibilities listed above are not all inclusive and may be changed at any time.

Salary range: $72,000 – $120,000

The salary range reflects the minimum and maximum target for a new hire in this role. Individual pay within the range will be determined by multiple factors which can include but are not limited to a candidate’s experience, qualifications, skills, and location. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary for your location during the hiring process. Ranges may be modified in the future. This role is also eligible for an annual performance-based incentive opportunity. Pathward offers a comprehensive benefits package for eligible employees, including health insurance, 401(k) retirement benefits, life insurance, disability benefits, paid time off, and more.

Who we are:

Our commitment to inclusion is woven into our DNA. We believe that we are strongest when we embrace the voices of our employees, customers, partners, and the communities we serve.

We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, pregnancy, national origin, age (age 40 and over), disability, genetic information, marital status, hair texture or hairstyle, ancestry, service in the uniformed services, protected veteran status, status as a victim of domestic violence or any other class protected by federal, state and local laws.

Knowingly submitting false information will result in disqualification for consideration of future positions, termination of employment and forfeiture of other rights.