Become an everyday champion — and build a career where your impact fuels financial progress.
What We Do
CardWorks Financial Group is a diversified financial services platform building ethical solutions across credit, lending, and the full customer lifecycle. Through our family of companies, CardWorks Financial Group tackles the complex challenges that larger financial institutions leave behind. We’re embedded throughout the credit card ecosystem as a lender, servicer, and merchant acquirer.
Who We Are
- Merrick Bank: The bank that builds
- CardWorks Servicing: One partner, total performance
- Carson Smithfield: Resolution with respect
With nearly 40 years of operating history, our track record is solid: disciplined in downturns and built to accelerate in recovery. The CardWorks Financial Group companies take precise approach in complex markets, as a top three non-prime focused general purpose card issuer and a top fifteen U.S. merchant acquirer.
Our team tackles the industry’s most complex credit and payment challenges. And we believe that excellent work starts with a team that feels supported, respected, and empowered to grow.
CardWorks Servicing, LLC provides end-to end operational servicing functions for credit cards, secured cards, and installment loans. We service consumer and small business loans across the credit spectrum and offers backup servicing and due diligence services to capital providers and trustees.
Founded in 1997, Merrick Bank is an FDIC®-insured financial institution headquartered in South Jordan, Utah, with over $10 billion in assets. A wholly owned subsidiary of CardWorks Financial Group, Merrick Bank serves roughly five million cardmembers and more than 100,000 merchant customers, offering credit cards, recreational loans, deposit accounts, merchant services and bank sponsorships to consumers and businesses.
Carson Smithfield, LLC provides a variety of post-charge-off debt recovery services, including digital self-service, IVR, live agent, and external agency management.
Position Summary:
First Line Risk Manager serves as a liaison, responsible for coordinating across Business Units and Departments to effectively manage issues and at times may participate in internal/external audits. Reporting to the Vice President First Line Risk, the Manager partners with stakeholders throughout the company along with service partners to manage issues and oversees milestone completion and issue closure. The role requires extensive collaboration, excellent communication and interpersonal skills, attention to detail, and a strong background in quality assurance and controls.
Essential Functions:
- Own and manage the enterprise-wide issue management lifecycle from identification through resolution and closure
- Partner with key stakeholders to design and implement sustainable control processes that mitigate identified risks
- Influence business leaders on key risk exposures and required mitigation actions
- Coordinate the collection and development of audit-ready evidence and supporting artifacts
- Collaborate with business and compliance partners to develop and execute remediation plans
- Report status, trends, and outcomes through established governance and oversight routines
- Identify, prioritize, and drive control enhancements to improve risk management and customer experience
- Maintain and continuously strengthen business acumen across products, processes, and risk domains
- Coordinate internal audits and external assessment engagements, as needed
- Centralize and maintain standardized documentation to support audits and ongoing control activities
Education and Experience:
- Bachelor’s degree (Business Administration, Finance, Economics, Accounting) preferred or 5+ years of equivalent work experience
- 5+ years of Credit Card experience, credit risk management, controls, audit and/or compliance
- 5+ years of experience documenting processes, conducting process assessments, and assessing risks
- 5+ years of experience in quality assurance, quality control and/or similar operational risk experience
- Experience with Enterprise Governance Risk& Compliance (GRC) systems (e.g. Archer)
- Experience with third party and vendor management preferable
Summary of Qualifications:
- Demonstrated ability to work independently while building strong, collaborative partnerships across multiple teams
- Proven track record of driving issues through to resolution in complex, high-risk environments
- Ability to manage multiple high-priority initiatives simultaneously, with strong prioritization and execution discipline
- Experience facilitating meetings with large, diverse audiences, including senior leadership stakeholders
- Confident in constructively challenging and advising subject matter experts and business partners
- Strong leadership capabilities with sound judgment, decision-making, problem-solving, and communication skills
- Ability to influence and challenge leaders effectively while maintaining productive working relationships
- Intellectually curious, with a commitment to continuously expanding business and risk acumen
- Highly organized with strong attention to detail and the ability to execute with precision in a fast-paced environment
- Excellent time management skills with a consistent ability to meet deadlines
- Quality-focused mindset with a strong emphasis on accuracy, completeness, and continuous improvement
Work Environment/Physical Demands:
- Work is in an office environment, sustained posture in a seated position for prolonged periods of time; works with computer equipment for prolonged periods of time
- Travel is generally not required
- This position reports to Vice President First Line Risk and has no direct reports
#INDHP
Our Employee Value Proposition
- Competitive Pay, including a Bonus Target or Variable Pay Incentive Program
- Benefits Package -Medical, Dental, and Vision (plus much more)
- 401(k) Plan with Company Match
- Short- & Long-Term Disability
- Wellness Programs
- Group Life and AD&D Insurance
- Paid Vacation, Sick Days and bank Holidays
- Employee Engagement Activities including Employee Appreciation Day, DEI Employee Resource Groups, Corporate Social Responsibility, Service Recognition
We offer a total rewards package comprised of a competitive base rate of pay, variable pay incentive programs based on the role, and a comprehensive benefit suite. Offered rates of pay are determined based on job-related knowledge, relevant experience, skills, certifications, and geographic location.
We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to age, race, color, sex, or gender identity/expression (including pregnancy, childbirth, transgender status, or sexual orientation), religion or creed, ancestry, citizenship, national origin, disability, military or veteran status, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
We do not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or retaliation. Employment decisions are based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs. Everyone is welcome here, and we hire based on your ability to do the job, not any protected characteristics.
If you need help or reasonable accommodation during the application or hiring process, please let your TA Partner know.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Finance, Economics, Accounting (or 5+ years equivalent)
- 5+ years credit card experience, credit risk management, controls, audit and/or compliance
- 5+ years documenting processes, conducting process assessments, and assessing risks
- 5+ years in quality assurance, quality control, or similar operational risk experience
- Experience with Enterprise GRC systems (e.g., Archer)
- Experience with third party and vendor management
- Strong stakeholder management, communication, and ability to drive remediation to closure
CardWorks Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about CardWorks and has not been reviewed or approved by CardWorks.
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Healthcare Strength — The company provides multiple medical, dental, and vision options with preventive care supported in-network and access to mental-health resources via an EAP. Feedback suggests coverage breadth is solid and comparable to mainstream employers.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) with a company match, Roth availability, and defined eligibility/vesting supports long-term savings. This structure adds tangible value to total compensation beyond base pay.
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Wellbeing & Lifestyle Benefits — Programs such as EAP counseling, wellness platforms, and specialty care services contribute to non-cash value. Employee resource groups and events further round out the perks experience for those who value community and programming.
CardWorks Insights
What We Do
Cardworks is one of the largest privately held providers of end-to-end operational servicing and support functions for credit card and installment loan products in North America. As a leading consumer firm, we service our consumer and small business loan clients across the credit spectrum, from super-prime to non-prime, and provide comprehensive support to bank and non-bank lenders in the United States and Canada. Our management expertise and customized servicing solutions enable banks and financial institutions to mitigate risk, increase profitability, and support their customers. Cardworks is also the parent of Merrick Bank Corporation, a top-15 issuer of credit cards, top 15 merchant acquiring bank, and leader in the recreational vehicle lending industry. As a CardWorks employee, you are at the very heart of all that we do. Our corporate success is based on your contributions. The most valuable resource we have at CardWorks is our employees. Each individual has an impact on how well we execute and on whether we achieve our enterprise objectives
