Associate Audit Director, Compliance Risk Management

Western Alliance Bank•Phoenix, AZ

12d•Onsite

About The Position

As an Associate Audit Director, you will plan, oversee, and report on various audits within your assigned coverage areas, supporting the execution of the department's annual audit plan. You will also assist in the annual risk assessment and related quarterly continuous monitoring that supports the risk assessment. You will lead all assigned audits and ensure timely wrap-up and completion per the audit plan. You will evaluate processes and internal controls for adherence to bank policies and procedures, and compliance with federal and state banking regulations. You will interact with and proactively inform senior leadership of audit results and related risk. You will complete root cause analysis for identified issues to focus on strengthening and improving controls. You will report to an Audit Director or Senior Audit Director, and have the opportunity to work with audit leaders across the department, as many audits are integrated with finance, banking operations, credit administration, risk management, and compliance audit teams. Additionally, you will be responsible for attracting, hiring, and retaining a team of high-performing Auditor and Senior Auditor professionals. With the assistance of Audit Project Managers, you will oversee the day-to-day activities of the audit team and work with other audit teams for effective utilization of all staff for completion of the overall audit plan. You will be responsible for ongoing coaching, training, development, and motivation of your audit team. Your position promotes risk awareness in the enterprise through positive and collaborative relationships with department heads, business leadership, and staff. In addition to audit execution, you will meet regularly with department heads and business leaders to discuss audits, assess risks, evaluate issue remediation progress, provide feedback, and gather insights on business activities. You will support the Audit Director or Senior Audit Director in completing the annual risk assessment and development of the resulting audit plan. You will prepare a comprehensive risk-based, multi-year plan of audit coverage for your assigned area, ensuring audits are within cycle and logically budgeted/resourced. You will lead the execution of the assigned area of the audit plan, appropriately leveraging and delegating to Audit Project Managers. You will ensure key risks and all critical plan inputs are considered as part of audit planning for audits within your assigned area. You will understand risk management frameworks to lead in internal control evaluation of audit assignments. You will oversee the completion of all phases and wrap-up of assigned audit areas utilizing audit software (Wdesk/Workiva) while reviewing and providing feedback to the audit team over critical planning and testing approach audit documentation. As needed, you will discuss scope and approach with other department leadership to ensure appropriate audit coverage. You will review the Audit Project Manager's work, along with higher risk controls and related exceptions, to ensure compliance with stated requirements and objectives, IIA standards, and audit methodology. You will provide guidance, coaching, and clear feedback to the audit team, ensuring resolution of all review notes prior to audit wrap-up. You will incorporate data analytics into various audit testing. You will finalize root cause analysis for all audit issues noted in the audit team's test work. You will clarify and clear audit review notes provided by the Audit Director or Senior Audit Director. You will complete hours analysis for the overall audit and perform final quality assessment of organization and documentation for completeness and compliance with audit methodology. You will draft and present audit reports that clearly communicate risks and issues to the Audit Director or Senior Audit Director and department leadership team for approval. You will proactively work with management to create effective management action plans in a timely manner. You will attend monthly meetings with management to monitor the status of open audit issues, understand progress, and provide constructive feedback toward closure. You will ensure delays or needed extensions are appropriately escalated and addressed per audit methodology. You will actively monitor issue deadlines, implementations, and closures, assigning test of validation work based on workload balance and expertise. You will follow up on the disposition of exceptions noted during audits, including internal, external, and regulatory examination reports. You will review, approve, and close medium and/or low risk issues. You will provide ad-hoc reports and status updates to supervisors. You will work with co-source partners, when necessary, to provide an overall efficient audit process. You will comply with department annual training requirements and proactively draft and discuss performance goals with the Audit Director or Senior Audit Director. You will attend and/or lead team, peer, and one-on-one meetings. You will own and complete department initiatives by finding efficiencies with strategic thinking focused on leading change to audit methodologies and supporting technology-based solutions as applicable. You will support Audit Project Manager department initiatives by acting as a reviewer prior to completion. You will lead inclusive teams and develop a team while empowering others. You are responsible for hiring, coaching, talent performance management, training, and development. You will support and assist in training staff to improve Auditor and Senior Auditor skill assessment results.

Requirements

8+ years of related experience in Internal Audit, Risk Management, Regulatory Compliance, or similar field.
Bachelor's degree in a related field required.
Intermediate to advanced experience and knowledge in assigned internal audit area.
Intermediate to advanced ability to deal with complex problems involving multiple facets and variables in non-standardized situations.
Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.
Intermediate to advanced knowledge of internal control analysis and risk assessment methodologies, COSO framework, Institute of Internal Auditor standards, FRB Supervisory Letter 13-1 standards, GAAP, and/or Sarbanes-Oxley Section 302/404 regulatory requirements.
Intermediate to advanced time management and organizational skills.
Advanced public speaking and written communication skills.
Certified Internal Auditor, Certified Public Accountant, Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager, Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, Credit Risk Certification (RMA), Certification in Control Self-Assessment (IIA) or Certification in Risk Management Assurance (IIA) required.
Occasional travel required.

Nice To Haves

Previous leadership experience preferred.
Intermediate level knowledge of data analytic tools preferred.

Responsibilities

Plan, oversee, and report on various audits in assigned coverage areas.
Support the execution of the department's annual audit plan.
Assist in the annual risk assessment and related quarterly continuous monitoring.
Lead assigned audits and ensure timely wrap-up and completion.
Evaluate processes and internal controls for adherence to bank policies, procedures, and regulatory compliance.
Interact with and inform senior leadership of audit results and related risk.
Complete root cause analysis for identified issues.
Attract, hire, and retain a team of high-performing Auditor and Senior Auditor professionals.
Oversee day-to-day activities of the audit team with assistance from Audit Project Managers.
Work with other audit teams for effective utilization of staff.
Provide ongoing coaching, training, development, and motivation to the audit team.
Promote risk awareness in the enterprise through relationships with department heads and business leadership.
Meet regularly with department heads and business leaders to discuss audits, assess risks, evaluate issue remediation, provide feedback, and gather insights.
Support the Audit Director or Senior Audit Director in completing the annual risk assessment and developing the audit plan.
Prepare a comprehensive risk-based, multi-year plan of audit coverage for assigned areas.
Lead execution of the assigned area of the audit plan, leveraging and delegating to Audit Project Managers.
Ensure key risks and critical plan inputs are considered during audit planning.
Understand risk management frameworks to lead internal control evaluation.
Oversee completion of all phases and wrap-up of assigned audit areas using audit software.
Review and provide feedback on audit documentation.
Discuss scope and approach with other department leadership.
Review Audit Project Manager's work, higher risk controls, and exceptions.
Provide guidance, coaching, and clear feedback to the audit team.
Incorporate data analytics into audit testing.
Finalize root cause analysis for all audit issues.
Clarify and clear audit review notes.
Complete hours analysis and perform final quality assessment of documentation.
Draft and present audit reports to leadership.
Proactively work with management to create effective management action plans.
Attend monthly meetings with management to monitor open audit issues.
Ensure delays or needed extensions are escalated.
Monitor issue deadlines, implementations, and closures.
Assign test of validation work.
Follow up on disposition of exceptions.
Review, approve, and close medium and/or low risk issues.
Provide ad-hoc reports and status updates to supervisors.
Work with co-source partners.
Comply with department annual training requirements.
Draft and discuss performance goals with Audit Director or Senior Audit Director.
Attend and/or lead team, peer, and one-on-one meetings.
Own and complete department initiatives.
Support Audit Project Manager department initiatives.
Lead inclusive teams and develop a team.
Support and assist in training staff.