The Role
Lead second-line risk assurance and controls, overseeing outsourced internal audit, coordinating external assurance, strengthening control design and effectiveness, consolidating assurance insight for senior stakeholders, tracking actions, and driving sustained improvement across the business.
Summary Generated by Built In
We’re looking for a Head of Risk Assurance & Controls to shape how assurance works at CFC. This is a high‑impact second line role, bringing together audit, controls and external assurance to create a clear, joined‑up view of risk and control effectiveness across the business.
This role provides an independent view of control effectiveness, risk management and governance, ensuring assurance activity is well coordinated and delivered to the right stakeholders in a clear and impactful way. Working closely across the business, you’ll strengthen the control environment and support sustainable improvement. The focus is not on delivering assurance directly, but on setting direction, connecting insight across the organisation and driving follow‑through to ensure actions land and deliver real change.
This role provides an independent view of control effectiveness, risk management and governance, ensuring assurance activity is well coordinated and delivered to the right stakeholders in a clear and impactful way. Working closely across the business, you’ll strengthen the control environment and support sustainable improvement. The focus is not on delivering assurance directly, but on setting direction, connecting insight across the organisation and driving follow‑through to ensure actions land and deliver real change.
About the role
Internal Audit Oversight
- Own the relationship with the outsourced Internal Audit provider, ensuring delivery of a risk‑aligned audit plan.
- Review and challenge outputs so reporting is clear, consistent and genuinely useful for decision‑making.
- Maintain oversight of actions, including ownership, progress and delivery timelines, and identify any recurring or systemic themes to feed into the broader risk and assurance view.
Controls Environment
- Provide second line oversight of the controls framework and how it operates day to day.
- Challenge and support the business on control design and effectiveness, ensuring controls are embedded in a practical, sustainable way.
- Review risk and control assessments where needed, and drive consistency and quality across the control environment.
External Audit & Assurance (including Syndicate partners)
- Coordinate external assurance activity across the business, acting as the key point of contact for auditors and Syndicate partners.
- Ensure reviews and deep dives are aligned to the right risks and don’t duplicate effort.
- Challenge findings and make sure outputs translate into clear, practical improvements.
Reporting & Insight
- Turn audit and assurance activity into clear, meaningful insight for senior stakeholders.
- Maintain a consolidated view of risks, findings and actions, with strong oversight of tracking and data quality.
- Use trends and themes to support prioritisation and better decision‑making.
Systems & Assurance Coordination
- Oversee governance and reporting of assurance activity to senior management, Risk Committee and Board.
- Ensure actions are tracked accurately and consistently, with good data discipline. Drive effective use of risk and control systems (e.g. Decision Focus), and support the development of a coordinated, risk‑based assurance plan.
About you
The role is best suited to individuals with a strong track record in Risk, Audit or Assurance, ideally within a second line or oversight role, and a good working understanding of how risk and controls operate in practice. Experience engaging with Internal Audit or broader assurance activity would be beneficial.
Experience in insurance or financial services would be valuable, particularly within complex or regulated environments. Exposure to the Lloyd’s or MGA market is helpful, but not essential.
You’ll be comfortable operating at pace, bringing clarity to complex issues and maintaining momentum across multiple priorities. Experience in change or programme-led environments is advantageous, particularly where risk, controls or assurance activity is evolving.
Strong organisational and delivery focus is key. You’ll be someone who can think ahead, keep actions moving and drive progress through others across the business. Just as important is your ability to build trusted relationships, communicate clearly and influence effectively without relying on formal authority.
A pragmatic, commercial mindset is essential, able who can strike the right balance between challenge and partnership, and help position Risk as a function that adds real value.
Core Values
Love what you do:
We show up each day ready to take on the world. Our passion and intensity set us apart and makes the difference to our colleagues, customers, brokers and carriers.
Challenge everything:
We’re never afraid to question the way that things are done and we constantly challenge ourselves and others to makes things better.
Have fun, be good:
Insurance is a serious business, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. We make it fun to work at CFC, we welcome all viewpoints, and we treat everyone how we would expect to be treated.
We show up each day ready to take on the world. Our passion and intensity set us apart and makes the difference to our colleagues, customers, brokers and carriers.
Challenge everything:
We’re never afraid to question the way that things are done and we constantly challenge ourselves and others to makes things better.
Have fun, be good:
Insurance is a serious business, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. We make it fun to work at CFC, we welcome all viewpoints, and we treat everyone how we would expect to be treated.
About
CFC is a specialist insurance provider, pioneering emerging risk and market leader in cyber. Our global insurance platform uses cutting-edge technology and data science to deliver smarter, faster underwriting and protect customers from today's most critical business risk.Headquartered in London with offices in New York, Melbourne, Sydney, Austin, Madrid, Brussels and Brisbane, CFC has over 1100 staff and is trusted by more than 100,000 businesses across 90 countries.At CFC, insurance isn't just about underwriting. From data science to software development, and digital marketing design, we've got something for everyone. We're passionate about pushing boundaries, thinking differently and building the insurance company of the future.CFC is committed to the principles of equal opportunities and creating an environment in which all individuals are always treated with dignity and respect. We encourage a diverse corporate culture of openness and appreciation to create an environment in which your talent can be developed in the best possible way. Should you require any reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process please let us know.
Skills Required
- Strong track record in Risk, Audit or Assurance
- Working understanding of how risk and controls operate in practice
- Ability to operate at pace, maintain momentum and manage multiple priorities
- Strong organisational and delivery focus, with ability to track actions to completion
- Ability to build trusted relationships, communicate clearly and influence without formal authority
- Experience in a second line or oversight role
- Experience engaging with Internal Audit or broader assurance activity
- Experience in insurance or financial services, ideally regulated or complex environments
- Exposure to the Lloyd's or MGA market
- Experience in change or programme-led environments where risk and controls are evolving
- Familiarity with risk and control systems (e.g., Decision Focus)
- Pragmatic, commercial mindset balancing challenge and partnership
CFC Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about CFC and has not been reviewed or approved by CFC.
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Strong & Reliable Incentives — Variable pay is positioned as a core part of total compensation, with a group‑wide annual bonus highlighted as a consistent feature. Expanding employee share ownership is described as enhancing overall rewards alongside bonuses.
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Healthcare Strength — Private medical insurance is provided, complemented by dental and optical cashback and a 24/7 employee assistance programme. These elements indicate comprehensive health coverage beyond standard medical plans.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time away provisions include 25 days of holiday and paid volunteer time, signaling a broad approach to time off. Additional practices such as company social events support overall work–life rhythm, though they are not leave per se.
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The Company
What We Do
CFC is a specialist insurance provider, pioneer in emerging risk and market leader in cyber. Their global insurance platform uses cutting-edge technology and data science to deliver smarter, faster underwriting and protect customers from today’s most critical business risks.
