Director - Quantitative Risk Solutions

Ideas | People | Trust

We’re BDO. An accountancy and business advisory firm, providing the advice and solutions entrepreneurial organisations need to navigate today’s changing world.

We work with the companies that are Britain’s economic engine – ambitious, entrepreneurially-spirited and high‑growth businesses that fuel the economy - and directly advise the owners and management teams that lead them.

We’ll broaden your horizons

Our Advisory team provide a wide variety of services that deliver value-led advice and outcomes. They have an in-depth knowledge of business, industry sectors and markets and understand the constantly changing risks and opportunities at the heart of affairs. The team work across strategy, operations and improvement as well as at a transactional and defined project level. From technology to risk advisory, they’re experts in following through on top-level instructions and resolving the finer details – all in one straight-forward package. When you join them, you’ll work on some of the world's most exciting financial operations and business deals, building your experience and expertise alongside the brightest minds in the industry

We’ll help you succeed

Leading organisations trust us because of the quality of our advice. That quality grows from a thorough understanding of their business, and that understanding comes from working closely with them and building long-lasting relationships.

You’ll be someone who is both comfortable working proactively and managing your own tasks, as well as confident collaborating with others and communicating regularly with senior managers, directors, and BDO’s partners to help businesses effectively. You’ll be encouraged to identify and draw attention to opportunities for enhancing our delivery and providing additional services to organisations we work with.

You will be involved in a range of valuation and advisory engagements relating to financial products (derivatives and cash based) across all asset classes that will include both contentious and non-contentious matters. Such engagements will also include risk related matters such as the modelling of default risk and calculating expected credit losses (ECL). You will also be involved in other forms of quantitative/statistical advisory projects.

You will also assist with the development of valuation models and modelling techniques for financial assets ranging from complex derivatives and structured products to other hard to value instruments that are complex due to illiquidity or a lack of observable market data inputs

As a Director you will be responsible for managing a portfolio of projects and for the timely delivery of services. You will work closely and support other Directors and Partners with engagements. You will be expected to contribute toward marketing and business development initiatives.

A key part of the role will be to improve the governance, structure and reporting for the financial products and corporate finance valuations businesses at BDO in light of the ISQM1 requirements. This will require liaison with key stakeholders internally to ensure the reporting, structure and governance processes are in line with best market practice and in line with the regulatory requirements.

You will be involved in a range of valuation and advisory engagements relating to financial products (derivatives and cash based) across all asset classes that will include both contentious and non-contentious matters. Such engagements will also include risk related matters such as the modelling of default risk and calculating expected credit losses (ECL). You will also be involved in other forms of quantitative/statistical advisory projects.

You will also assist with the development of valuation models and modelling techniques for financial assets ranging from complex derivatives and structured products to other hard to value instruments that are complex due to illiquidity or a lack of observable market data inputs.

You'll

• Provide effective project management of valuation engagements from inception to completion.

• Deliver clear, succinct, and robust valuation reports that are fit for purpose and accessible to non-technical readers.

• Manage expectations and relationships skilfully through timely and appropriate communication.

• Manage junior team members on engagements ensuring they are appropriately briefed and coached.

• Assist in the appraisal and development of junior members of staff including identifying areas for development and collaboratively putting in place plans for addressing skill and knowledge deficits.

• Provide effective intellectual input and challenge to senior members of staff in the completion of projects with conceptual complications.

• Carry out relevant technical research relevant to a specific area of valuations or credit risk – disseminate key findings to the quantitative risk & valuation team.

• Liaise with stakeholders, solicitors, and barristers as necessary as a normal part of an engagement.

• Prepare reports for advice to clients or solicitors or for use in legal or regulatory proceedings.

• Be responsible for and ensure excellent service and delivery on assignments and at stream level.

• Identify and recognise business and sales opportunities and inform the partner and client as appropriate.

• Ensure that the firms risk management and client take-on procedures have appropriately been complied with.

• Maintain a network of professional and business contacts.

• Act as an ambassador of the firm, participate in marketing events, keep abreast of the wide range of services the firm offers and suggest innovative products and services.

• Support Partner, Directors on ad hoc assignments as needed.

You’ll be someone with

• An interest in applying tools from finance, mathematics, and data science to provide pragmatic and robust solutions to real-world problems.

• Strong knowledge of mathematics and statistics as applied to finance and credit risk. Hands on experience in credit risk modelling or the valuation of financial products.

• A master’s degree in Finance, Economics, Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering or Computer Science from a reputable university.

• Desirable previous credit risk modelling experience or the building and / or validating credit risk models obtained from within a bank or a credit ratings agency.

• Some programming skills in a high-level language (e.g., Python, R, MATLAB, Excel VBA) and/or experience with econometric software packages (e.g., STATA, SAS).

We’re in it together

Mutual support and respect is one of BDO’s core values and we’re proud of our distinctive, people-centred culture. From informal success conversations to formal mentoring and coaching, we’ll support you at every stage in your career, whatever your personal and professional needs.

We can provide the best support for our clients and people when we’re working side by side. Our agile working framework helps us stay connected, bringing teams together where and when it counts so they can share ideas and help one another. At BDO, you’ll always have access to the people and resources you need to do your best work.

We know that collaboration is the key to creating value for our clients and satisfying experiences at work, so we’ve invested in state-of-the-art collaboration spaces in our offices. BDO’s people represent a wealth of knowledge and expertise, and we’ll encourage you to build your network, work alongside others, and share your skills and experiences. With a range of multidisciplinary events and dedicated resources, you’ll never stop learning at BDO.

We’re looking forward to the future

At BDO, we help entrepreneurial businesses to succeed, fuelling the UK economy. Our success is powered by our people, which is why we’re always finding new ways to invest in them. Across 17 UK locations, we are 6,500 unique minds coming together to help our clients reach their ambitions.

We’ve got a clear purpose, and we’re confident in our future, because we’re adapting and evolving to build on our strengths, ensuring we continue to find the right combination of global reach, integrity and expertise. We shape the future together with openness and clarity, because we believe in empowering people to think creatively about how we can do things better.