Senior Operational Risk Manager

Mercury; California; On-site; USD 200,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

Mercury is building a world-class Operational Risk program and seeks a leader to own day-to-day operations. You will report to the Head of Operational Risk and work with Compliance, Information Security, and Internal Audit to stand up processes and controls.

This role is a builder position with autonomy to shape the program as Mercury scales its risk posture. You will drive centralized issues and events management, risk assessments, and Board-ready reporting to provide leadership with clear risk

Qualifications

• 8+ years in operational risk, compliance, or internal audit at a bank or fintech partnered with a bank.
• Hands-on ownership of an issues management or operational event program, including severity rating, escalation, and remediation validation.
• Experience administering a GRC platform (LogicGate, Archer, or similar), including workflow configuration and reporting.
• Strong data skills: turning raw issue and event data into actionable trends.
• Familiarity with interagency and OCC expectations for operational risk management.
• Constructively challenging with evidence while maintaining strong stakeholder relationships.
• Ability to balance program build with daily operations.

Responsibilities

• Set the risk and control assessment standard and independently test design and operating effectiveness on critical processes.
• Oversee the operational event program: challenge root cause, ratings and fixes; trend events enterprise-wide.
• Own the centralized issues management program from intake through remediation tracking and closure.
• Define enterprise KRIs and thresholds tied to risk appetite and Board reporting.
• Partner with 1LOD teams, InfoSec, Compliance and model risk owners to collect inputs and raise risks early.
• Provide second-line review on high-risk new activities.
• Write and maintain ORM standards, procedures and templates.
• Support regulatory examinations and charter readiness reviews.

Skills

Data analysis

Risk management

Stakeholder collaboration

Tools

LogicGate

Archer

Job description

Mercury is revolutionizing finance for startups by building a complete, user-friendly banking* stack. We prioritize creating a secure and seamless experience for entrepreneurs while upholding the highest standards of compliance and safety.

In this role, you will own the day-to-day operation of Mercury's Operational Risk program. You will report to the Head of Operational Risk, within the Risk organization under the Chief Risk Officer, and partner closely with first-line risk teams, Compliance, Third-Party Risk, Information Security, and Internal Audit.

You will run the centralized issues and events program, coordinate risk and control assessments with first line teams, and drive reporting that give leadership and the Board a clear view of operational risk. This is a builder role. Much of the program is being stood up now, and you will have the autonomy to shape how it operates as Mercury prepares to operate as a bank.

*Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group and Column N.A., Members FDIC.

As part of the journey, we would expect you to:

• Set the risk and control assessment standard. Review and challenge first-line RCMs; independently test design and operating effectiveness on critical processes and issue findings.
• Oversee the operational event program: challenge first-line root cause, ratings and fixes; trend events across the enterprise.
• Own the centralized issues management program across operational events, incidents, testing and regulatory findings, from intake and triage through remediation tracking, validation, and closure
• Define enterprise KRIs and thresholds for each L2, tied to risk appetite, and aggregate first-line metrics into Board reporting.
• Partner with 1LOD teams, InfoSec, Compliance and model risk owners to collect inputs, challenge assessments and make sure risks are raised early.
• Provide second-line review and concurrence on high-risk new activities.
• Write and maintain the ORM standards, procedures and templates that first-line teams execute against.
• Support regulatory examinations, audits, and charter readiness reviews

There are lots of paths that could lead you to be successful in a role like this; we think the strongest candidates will have some of this experience:

• 8+ years in operational risk, compliance, or internal audit at a bank or a fintech partnered with a bank
• Hands-on ownership of an issues management or operational event program, including severity rating, escalation, and validation of remediation
• Experience administering a GRC platform (LogicGate, Archer, or similar), including workflow configuration and reporting
• Strong data skills: you turn raw issue and event data into trends leadership can act on
• Familiarity with interagency and OCC expectations for operational risk management
• You challenge constructively, with evidence, and keep strong relationships with the teams you oversee
• You find, prioritize, and execute key projects independently, balancing program build with daily operations

Mercury values diversity & belonging and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All individuals seeking employment at Mercury are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process for applicants with disabilities or special needs. If you need assistance, or an accommodation, please let your recruiter know once you are contacted about a role.

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Total Rewards
The total rewards package at Mercury includes base salary, equity (stock options/RSUs), and benefits.

Our salary and equity ranges are highly competitive within the SaaS and fintech industry and are updated regularly using the most reliable compensation survey data for our industry. New hire offers are made based on a candidate’s experience, expertise, geographic location, and internal pay equity relative to peers.

Our target new hire base salary ranges for this role are the following:

US employees in New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle, or the San Francisco Bay Area:

$199,900—$249,900 USD

US employees outside of New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle, or the San Francisco Bay Area:

$179,900—$224,900 USD

Canadian employees (any location):

$189,000—$236,200 CAD