Director, Surveillance

Kestra Financial•Austin, TX

About The Position

The Director of Surveillance leads the firm’s surveillance program and is responsible for identifying, mitigating, and reporting risks associated with client accounts and financial professional activity. This role oversees a team of surveillance analysts and is accountable for the design, execution, and continuous enhancement of surveillance frameworks, tools, and processes. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in broker-dealer and investment advisory regulations, strong leadership capabilities, and the ability to translate regulatory requirements into practical, scalable surveillance controls. This individual will partner across Compliance, Legal, Supervision, and Technology to strengthen the firm’s risk management posture and ensure adherence to regulatory standards.

Requirements

Advanced knowledge of Broker-Dealer and Investment Advisory regulations.
Strong leadership and people management skills with the ability to develop and motivate a team.
Ability to interpret complex regulations and apply them to real-world brokerage and advisory activity.
Strong analytical, investigative, and problem-solving capabilities.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate with financial professionals and senior leadership.
Detail-oriented with strong organizational and time management skills.
Ability to balance a service-oriented approach with regulatory and business requirements.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications and experience with data analytics tools.
7+ years of experience in financial services, preferably within a Broker-Dealer and/or RIA environment.
3+ years of experience in compliance, supervision, or surveillance.
Bachelor’s degree or comparable work experience required.
Series 7, 66 and 24 required.
Series 63 and 65 accepted in lieu of Series 66.

Nice To Haves

preferred degree in finance, economics, business, or related field.

Responsibilities

Lead, develop, and manage a team of surveillance analysts
Establish performance expectations and ensure achievement of team goals related to quality, timeliness, and volume of work.
Provide coaching, training, and professional development to team members.
Foster a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing team environment.
Design, implement, and maintain surveillance frameworks to detect and mitigate risks related to trading activity, advisory activity, and financial professional conduct.
Oversee the review, investigation, escalation, and resolution of surveillance alerts and exceptions.
Ensure consistent, thorough, and defensible documentation suitable for regulatory examination.
Evaluate and refine surveillance thresholds, scenarios, and reporting methodologies.
Ensure compliance with applicable FINRA, SEC, and state regulatory requirements.
Serve as a key point of contact for regulatory inquiries, audits, and examinations, including managing document requests.
Interpret evolving regulatory expectations and implement required changes to surveillance processes.
Identify emerging risks and proactively enhance controls to mitigate exposure.
Oversee the use of data analytics tools (e.g., Excel, SQL, Tableau) to identify trends, patterns, and anomalies.
Partner with technology teams to develop and enhance surveillance systems, automation, and reporting capabilities.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives to increase efficiency, scalability, and effectiveness of surveillance processes.
Partner with Compliance, Legal, Supervision, AML, and other business units to address risk issues and ensure alignment.
Communicate findings, trends, and risks to senior leadership in a clear and actionable manner.
Support broader compliance initiatives and strategic projects as needed.
Participate in policy and procedure development related to surveillance and supervision.
Maintain awareness of industry trends, enforcement actions, and best practices.
Perform other duties and special projects as assigned.
Direct supervision of Surveillance team.
Responsible for hiring, performance management, coaching, and development of staff.