Head of Business Assurance

Who are we?

Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mind-set, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 15,000 employees spanning over 100 countries.

Our people are our biggest asset as well as our largest shareholder group and are everything that makes us unique; our inclusive culture, the quality service we offer our clients, and our continued growth, all come from our people-first approach. There’s no such thing as individual success. We all need to play our part, contributing our skills and experience to make a true difference. That’s Howden.

Why work at Howden?

We have always been employee-owned and driven by entrepreneurial spirit. Right from the beginning, we've focused on employing talented individuals and empowering them to make a real difference to the company, whilst building successful and fulfilling careers at the same time. Simply put, we hire talented specialists and give them what they need to make a difference for clients. Always have, always will.

People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down disappointed head-hunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work/life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.

Howden UK&I Retail recognises that attracting and retaining the right talent is of paramount importance to its continued success, and that of the wider Group. We therefore need to attract individuals of the highest calibre through a recruitment process that is free from bias and discrimination yet aligned to our commercial ambitions. Internal mobility plays an important role in retaining expertise, experience, and talent by enabling employees to pursue their individual career goals and achieve their ambitions. We recognise that all people have a fundamental need and desire for on-going development and growth, and we also recognise that the best candidate for a role may already work inside our organisation.

Following a period of high tempo integration at scale, we are working to reinforce consistency of policies, and working practices, to ensure we continue to deliver the best possible client service in an efficiency manner, which meets regulatory expectations. As part of our first line of defence, the Business Assurance (BA) arena is at the heart of this, and we are looking for a Head of Business Assurance who can help refine our approach, and embed a robust regime, consistent procedures, and detailed reporting and trend analysis, which provides comprehensive awareness and drives iterative development. 

The Head of Business Assurance will lead both the File Review and Call Monitoring Teams to ensure objectives and BA delivery plans are met. They will be expected to act as the principal point of contact for the Business; defining assurance mechanisms/controls, question sets, sampling levels, selection rationale, and tracking/reporting, then driving remedial action – promoting best practice, analysing root causes and coaching of staff will be key. 

The job holder will ensure that responsibilities and agreed objectives are completed in accordance with the relevant Retail and/or Group policies, and consistent with assigned responsibilities.

Key Accountabilities

Define and coordinate file review and call monitoring approach (question sets, sampling, selection, post-review analysis/reporting and subsequent training/action) to guarantee the highest standards; providing full reports of areas audited, potential areas of exposure and recommendations for improvement.

Forecasting reviews and managing associated resources, as well as responding to specific emerging areas of need.

Iterative review of BA process, making recommendations for process improvement, then driving implementation.

Review, share and promote best practice.

Identify and report on poor practice and share repeated issues with all staff.

Coaching of staff, as required, in conjunction with line managers.

Acts as a point of liaison across all Retail pillars/entities regarding BA matters.

Manage assigned projects and contribute to other projects as required.

Contribute towards the BA Framework, in order to provide risk based assurance to Governance Committees on adherence to regulatory expectations and internal standards.

Review and respond to queries raised by the Business.

Review and support in relation to Near Misses.

Provide advice and recommendations on how to improve/mitigate risks.

Prepare and circulate reports / committee packs, capturing all key information and highlighting risks, priorities, recommendations and presents findings to senior management teams.

Working with the other teams within the Business to ensure that remedial action is addressed and monitored. Track identified actions, periodically assessing progress.

Provide updates on progress of remedial action plans to drive decision making and action.

Keep informed of all regulatory and legal changes which impacts on the role.

Ensure up to date records are maintained at all times on business systems.

Respond appropriately to urgent issues as they arise.

Knowledge/Experience:

Commercial awareness and focus on the application of regulation within the insurance broking industry.

Broad knowledge of relevant legislation and regulations.

Broad knowledge and understanding of insurance principles, products and services.

Will ideally have experience of operating in a compliance, monitoring or audit environment.

Skills/Behaviours:

Self-starter with a strong desire to learn and develop.

Strong written and oral communication skills.

Analytical, problem solving and project management skills.

Consultative approach, proactively sharing “what works best” with others across Retal.

Influencing skills in securing buy-in to recommendations and business benefits.

Actively listens.

Good planning, organisation, delivery and time management skills.

Able to prioritise effectively.

Conflict-management skills.

Qualifications:

Cert CII qualification (or willing to work towards).

Who we’re looking for

At Howden we value diversity - there is no one Howden ‘personality type’. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:

Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new

We support each other, in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges

We are determined to make a positive difference, at work and beyond

What do we offer in return?

A career that you define.

Our business succeeds by allowing our people to make a mark in the areas they care about most: personal development, volunteering, and fundraising for charity, or creating new insurance products that address society’s greatest challenges.

And we know that separate home and work lives don't really exist. If you're happy and healthy at home, you're more likely to be happy and fulfilled at work – and vice versa. That's why we do our best to support our people in every aspect of their lives.

Diversity and Inclusion

At Howden, we consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness, and respect – regardless of age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or family circumstances.

Our sustainability promise

We’re on a life-long journey to become an ever-more sustainable group. It's a commitment to taking care of our people and the world we live in, to doing good business, and to making a positive impact wherever we can. Our governance processes, company policies, and review systems are all geared towards our goal of making a positive impact in the world. You can read more about our sustainability work here.

Permanent

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