Vice President, Risk Management

Heritage Grocers Group•Ontario, CA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Vice President, Risk Management provides executive leadership, strategic direction, and governance for risk management across Heritage Grocers Group, with a focus on Health & Safety, Food Safety, and Regulatory matters. Reporting to the Chief People Officer, this leader develops and leads an integrated strategy to identify, evaluate, mitigate, and monitor operational, financial, and strategic risks while protecting team members, assets, reputation, and business performance. The role partners with cross-functional executives to embed risk considerations into business decisions and align insurance, claims management, loss prevention, health and safety, food safety, and regulatory compliance priorities with organizational objectives. The Vice President establishes policies, oversight processes, and performance measures; advises executive leadership on significant exposures and mitigation priorities; and leads the risk management team and external partners in delivering effective, financially disciplined programs. The position also serves as a strategic advisor to management and an executive liaison to legal counsel, insurers, and department leaders on significant risk matters. The role requires regular reporting to and working from the assigned office location. Physical demands include climbing, balancing, stooping, crouching, reaching, standing, walking, fingering, grasping, talking, hearing, and substantial wrist, hand, and finger movements. Work is indoors, with exposure to temperature changes, physical hazards such as moving mechanical parts, vehicles, electrical current, raised locations, high heat, and chemicals, as well as weather and travel risks associated with operating a vehicle.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in a related field.
8–10 years of progressively responsible experience in risk management or property and casualty (P&C) insurance, including senior leadership accountability for complex, cross-functional programs.
Demonstrated ability to lead and develop teams, establish functional strategies, and hold internal and external partners accountable for results.
Strong strategic judgment, analytical and problem-solving skills, and ability to translate risk assessments into prioritized business actions.
Ability to influence executive stakeholders and collaborate across operations, finance, legal, and people functions to advance risk management priorities.
Strong financial and organizational acumen, including ability to oversee budgets, interpret claims and exposure data, evaluate retained liabilities, and balance risk mitigation with business objectives.
Executive-level communication and presentation skills, including the ability to explain complex risk matters clearly and provide actionable recommendations to senior leadership.
Ability to report to and work from the assigned office location regularly, subject to applicable laws and reasonable accommodation requirements.

Responsibilities

Provide executive oversight of anti-money laundering (AML) programs and establish governance and accountability for compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
Oversee training records, examinations, certifications, and retraining reminders to support compliance and audit readiness.
Oversee independent third-party reviews and risk assessments for store locations across all banners and operating states.
Lead the company's insurance strategy and portfolio oversight, including negotiations and placement aligned with business exposures and financial priorities.
Advise executive leadership through reporting on material exposures, trends, program performance, and recommended actions.
Direct insurance renewals, claims oversight, certificate administration, and budget planning; set priorities for risk minimization and prevention investments.
Set the strategic direction for risk and insurance programs, align loss-control priorities with organizational objectives, and monitor results.
Provide executive oversight of significant accident and injury investigations and partner with legal counsel on materials for hearings, litigation, and insurance investigations.
Lead governance of general liability and workers' compensation programs and hold internal teams and insurance partners accountable for claims management and reducing lost work time.
Partner with operations leadership on consistent accident-reporting policies and communication of workers' compensation benefits.
Establish governance and escalation processes for in-house handling of damages exceeding designated thresholds.
Direct the development and implementation of risk management policies and procedures supporting applicable laws and internal and external audit requirements.
Hold regional and field leadership accountable for required OSHA and other compliance postings and processes to identify and resolve gaps.
Lead, develop, and coach the risk management team, setting goals, accountability, and effective use of resources.
Lead enterprise-wide risk assessments and exposure analysis, prioritizing mitigation strategies and systems to identify, evaluate, monitor, and reduce liability risks.
Set enterprise strategy and governance for workplace health, injury prevention, and safe operating practices across stores and support locations.
Partner with operations and field leadership to establish safety standards, training priorities, inspection and audit processes, and corrective-action accountability.
Oversee incident escalation and root-cause analysis, use trends to prioritize prevention investments, and monitor safety performance measures.
Provide executive oversight of food safety risk governance with operations and designated food safety leaders.
Establish expectations for safe food handling, sanitation, temperature control, supplier-related food safety risks, and consistent execution across banners.
Oversee food safety audit trends, corrective-action follow-through, and escalation protocols for significant incidents, product withdrawals, and recalls; align responses with legal counsel and operational leaders.
Lead cross-functional governance for applicable health, safety, and food safety regulatory obligations and clarify ownership across corporate, banner, and field teams.
Establish processes to monitor regulatory changes, assess business impacts, and translate requirements into policies, training, and operating controls.
Oversee inspection readiness, required documentation, escalation of significant findings, and timely corrective-action closure; coordinate regulatory inquiries and report material compliance risks to executive leadership.
Champion organization-wide risk awareness and shared accountability, aligning leaders on risk management strategies and prevention priorities.
Establish reporting standards and performance measures for incident and risk assessment data and use analysis and trends to guide executive decisions and continuous improvement.
Serve as a strategic advisor to management on risk exposures and prevention and reduction strategies, building risk management capability across the organization.
Oversee retained liabilities, claims handling, and reserve-setting processes, partnering with finance and other stakeholders to assess financial exposure.
Establish standards and oversight for risk data quality, responses to inquiries, contract risk review, compliance activities, and training execution.
Serve as executive liaison to legal counsel, insurers, and department leaders on significant risk matters and align stakeholders on mitigation strategies and resolution.