Manager, Head of Operations Administration – Front Office Solutions
Manager, Head of Operations Administration – Front Office Solutions
CORPORATE PROFILE
Northern Trust provides innovative financial services and guidance to corporations, institutions and affluent families and individuals globally. With 130 years of financial experience and over 20,000 partners, we serve the world’s most sophisticated clients using leading technology and exceptional service.
As a Northern Trust partner, you will be part of a flexible and collaborative work culture, which has a strong history of financial strength and stability. Movement within the organization is encouraged, senior leaders are accessible, and you can take pride in working for a company that is committed to strengthening the communities we serve! We recognize the value of inclusion and diversity in culture, in thought, and in experience, which is why Forbes ranked us the top employer for Diversity in 2018.
We’d love to learn more about how your interests and experience could be a fit with one of the world’s most admired and ethical companies. Build your career with us and apply today.
FRONT OFFICE SOLUTIONS PROFILE
Front Office Solutions (FOS) is a new strategic business for Northern Trust, which provides a holistic digital+ service offering for some of the most sophisticated institutional investors across the globe, including foundations, endowments, pension funds, corporations, insurance companies, central banks and sovereign wealth funds. Front Office Solutions provides a holistic, full-service, multi-asset solution that aims to empower in-house investment teams and support their important mission by providing a more comprehensive set of operational services and analytics including portfolio management, investment decision support, operational risk management, CRM/document management, and workflow tools.
The Parilux toolset is at the center of the products and services delivered by FOS. The Manager will develop a thorough understanding of the Parilux toolset, and any associated toolset interfaces, to support FOS’ use by Client Solutions and Front Office Solutions clients.
DESCRIPTION
The Manager, Head of Operations Administration – Front Office Solutions is responsible for managing a set of key functions to ensure successful administration of the Operations function, including Operations Data Governance & Controls, Risk Compliance & Policy Development, Data Analysis & Reporting, Billing & Accruals, and Client & Vendor Document Management. The Manager will initially oversee a Financial Analyst to support role execution. Fully enlisting support of the larger Operations team and organizing ad hoc groups to facilitate role execution also will be required. Additionally, this role will also participate in selected, special projects to advance the Operations function.
MAJOR DUTIES
Data Governance, Controls, and Oversight
• Responsible for development and oversight of data governance standards with respect to Operations’ functional areas.
• Responsible for monitoring controls of input and output data integrity, including data sourcing, validation, processing, and analysis. Creates and manages to procedures and documentation of data integrity guidelines.
• Responsible for establishing and managing a range of control processes, guidelines, policies, and other documentation related to Operations’ use of the Parilux toolset. Provides expert knowledge and support to ensure all are understood and adhered to. Conducts ongoing monitoring.
• Responsible for ensuring the proper access and use of other toolsets, such as Duco (reconciliation), through policy creation and ongoing monitoring. Creates control procedures and guidelines.
• Responsible for independent reviews of client reporting frameworks to ensure proper data capture and processing.
Organizational Risk Compliance
• On behalf of FOS Operations, responsible for overseeing and managing risk compliance required by the larger Northern Trust organization, including Risk & Control Self-Assessments and BPTRM review(s) for operations in Limerick or elsewhere, etc.
• On behalf of FOS Operations, responsible for overseeing and managing risk compliance for internal or external audits, client and prospect due diligence reviews, and other forms of regulatory oversight and evaluation.
• Responsible for overseeing the development of any procedural governance documentation, checklists, etc. Responsible for initial documentation creation but also the ongoing management of the procedures and documents.
• Responsible for ensuring proper engagement and involvement of members of the Ops team for all facets of risk compliance.
Data Analysis & Reporting
• Responsible for designing, collecting, and analyzing metrics to support the evolving business models for each component of the Ops Servicing Model. These metrics will be used for Sales Strategy & Competitive Market Analysis, Pricing, Planning, and Client Reporting.
• Responsible for creating and reporting on KPIs, business intelligence, operational efficiency metrics and ongoing analytics.
Billing & Accruals
• Responsible for coordination of overall billing process including the creation, coordination, optimization of functions and systems, and management of internal partner collaboration.
• Responsible for calculation of all accruals and all client billing. Responsible for all internal Northern Trust interfaces for internal billing, credits, and transfers.
• Responsible for all associated revenue forecasts and ongoing monitoring and tracking of receivables. Responsible for revenue and expense analysis and associated reporting to FOS Leadership and otherwise.
• Responsible for detailed revenue and expense analysis to inform the FOS pricing model(s) and dynamic improvements given specific client and prospect requirements. Responsible for ongoing unit cost analysis of operational functions.
Client Agreements, Fee Schedules, Client Start-Up Reg Compliance, and Client Amendments
• Responsible for supporting the creation of client agreements, amendments, and fee schedules. Responsible for legal document management, routing, tracking, and storage.
• Responsible for client KYC/AML reviews. Responsible for supporting other Northern Trust regulatory compliance requirements with respect to core documents.
• Responsible for monitoring compliance with client agreements and fulfillment of agreed-upon terms.
• Responsible for tracking any client-related Non-Disclosure Agreements (“NDAs”) and fulfillment of agreed-upon terms. Responsible for monitoring processes necessary to support NDAs.
Ops Vendor Management: Relationships & Contracts
• Responsible for managing vendor relationships related to operational infrastructure tools (such as reconciliation, data aggregation, onboarding, workflow, etc.).
• Responsible for managing all associated Ops vendor contracts, bill payment, contract renewals, etc.
• Responsible for managing and monitoring all such contracts with respect to NT Procurement requirements at the inception of a relationship (during RFP and contracting) and ongoing.
Managerial & Leadership Responsibilities
• Responsible for overseeing a financial analyst in the execution of all responsibilities, at the discretion of Head of Ops Administration.
• Additionally, responsible for leading through other forms of organizational influence and guidance, such as targeted councils and ad hoc project groups.
Work: Leadership, Impact, and Guidance
• Provides leadership to solve complex problems. Uses sophisticated analytical thought to exercise judgement and identify innovative solutions.
• Impacts the achievement of customer, operational, project, or service objectives.
• Work is guided by functional policies.
KNOWLEDGE / SKILLS
• Strong understanding of institutional investment industry, including markets, instruments, funds and fund structures, trading, etc.
- Deep knowledge of alternative assets and related operational processes (hedge funds, private equity). Demonstrated understanding of private equity transactional impacts on unfunded commitments, market value, cost, and other metrics typically associated with private equity (TVPI, DPI, PIC, etc.).
• Strong understanding of investment operational processes, transactional impacts, cash movement, accruals, and valuation methodologies.
• Strong understanding of accounting/reporting methods, including IBOR, ABOR, and TruNAV to support complete and accurate data capture.
• Knowledge of performance measurement concepts (such as attribution analysis) and standards (such as GIPS Standards).
• Strong knowledge of industry best practices in policy, procedures, and control-of-data governance and standards applied to both client and investment data.
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Visio), with particular emphasis on Excel.
• Ability to apply operational business practices and coordinate with other closely related areas to improve efficiency.
• Ability to explain information and handle sensitive issues.
EXPERIENCE
• Minimum of 7 years of institutional investment industry experience, preferably in specifically in Investment Operations (analytics, reporting, fund or investment accounting), Fund accounting, Financial reporting, Accounting and Investment account data reconciliation – accounting and performance, and Performance Measurement & Investment Data Analytics (attribution, liquidity, and exposures).
• Experience working with complex asset owners including Endowments, Foundations, Family Offices, OCIOs, Pension Funds, Sovereign Wealth Funds, and institutional asset managers.
• Prior work experience requiring considerable organizational, planning, and prioritization skills; project management experience.
• Solid experience with the full range of communication skills – written and oral.
• Prior experience with multi-asset class portfolio management software preferred.
• B.A. or B.S. degree.
• Advanced credentials – CFA, CAIA, MBA, or CPA highly preferred.