Senior Business Analyst - T&IO Solutions

At M&G, our purpose is to give everyone real confidence to put their money to work. With a heritage dating back more than 175 years, we have a long history of innovation in savings and investments, combining asset management and insurance expertise to offer a wide range of solutions.
Our two distinct operating segments, Asset Management and Life, work together to provide access to balanced, long-term investment and savings solutions.
Through telling it like it is, owning it now and moving it forward together with care and integrity; we are creating an exceptional place to work for exceptional talent.
We will consider flexible working arrangements for any of our roles and offer workplace adjustments to ensure you have the support you need to succeed in your role.

Senior Business Analyst – Business Solutions

Function Overview:

The role of Business Solutions is to provide an analysis, design and implementation capability within the COO Operations Change area for product launches and related change, ensuring that M&G Investment’s operating models are robust, scalable and flexible. This involves scoping and assessing change across front, middle and back-office functions, working across internal and external stakeholders. Typically the team will work closely with colleagues from across the organisation such as Investment teams, Risk, Compliance, Technology and others.

Role Overview:

This is a pivotal role that requires active participation in feasibility and assessment activities with the ability to conduct detailed analysis and work collaboratively across design and implementation. This will cover a range of areas, such as product structures, trade and cash flows, interfaces with third parties. It will also entail understanding and definition of various complex transition events that can occur within the product lifecycle.

This role is intended to be predominantly based in the team supporting our Life Investment Office product ranges. As such, experience of insurance, reinsurance, annuity and liability driven products would be beneficial but is not mandatory.

Key responsibilities for this role:

• Owns the end-to-end Operational Model impact analysis and design to support complex transition events. This includes translating high-level operating model requirements into detailed design components.

• Support the relevant Business Solutions Design Lead by providing an additional point of contact for key stakeholders (internal or external) for operational design and implementation through all stages of the product lifecycle.

• Ensure that scalability, operational risk and regulatory compliance are considered in the definition of the support model for any new mandate/fund launch.

• Ensure that the Fund Manager and Client requirements for running the mandate are captured and understood, and a viable operating model is agreed and implemented.

• Responsibility for ensuring appropriate handover of new processes or operating models to Investment Operations.

• Responsibility for Client / TPA interaction on complex product change and client/fund onboarding activities.

• Ensure appropriate level of engagement with Investment Operations senior management covering status updates, capacity constraints and decisions on operating model changes.

• Work with wider team to maintain template library and up-to-date proformas, playbooks and blueprints, for all areas of operating models.

• Assist with analysis on implementation of new requirements resulting from a non-standard product event, and define new processes where required.

• Work with external parties (Custodians, Third Party Administrators) and to support the definition and implementation of operating models.

• For Operations specialists with specific domain expertise, (e.g. Derivatives), utilise SME knowledge to provide input into future operating model design as well as co-ordinate specialist set-up activities.

• Perform end-to-end set-up and complete operational readiness (configuration) activities associated with both vanilla and complex product events (e.g. product launch, product maintenance, enhancement, and closures).

• Conduct testing of successful transition set-up and any new processes.

• Perform workflow configuration and maintenance in internal workflow tools, e.g. changing users, tasks, SLAs and amending dependencies.

• Maintain all static and reference data in the workflow tool that is required to deliver the product.

• Provide support for process improvement initiatives where workflow needs reconfiguration.

• Ensure procedures and risk / controls frameworks are complied with and kept up-to-date.

• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives and ideas to ensure that processes remain standardised and efficient.

• Provide support and guidance to less experienced colleagues, through informal mentorship, on-the-job coaching and general performance guidance.

Key Skills, Competencies & Experience:

Skills and Competencies

• Delivery focused with strong planning skills and the ability to manage, recognise and prioritise deadlines.

• Proactive, organised approach to completing activities and deliverables.

• Strong written and verbal presentation and communication skills, with keen attention to detail.

• Ability to create appropriate supporting collateral when required through the life of a project/product event

• Deliver knowledge-sharing sessions to improve cross-team knowledge and contribute to overall best practice.

• Ability to confidently present ideas in order to inform and influence leadership decisions.

• Ability to form working relationships and demonstrate credibility with internal and external stakeholders in order to facilitate outcomes and influence decisions.

• Strong facilitation skills to elicit information from key stakeholders, both internally and externally.

• Self-starter willing to research new concepts and fill gaps in knowledge.

• Logical and analytical mindset with proven problem solving skills.

• Ability to see “big picture” solution but equally drill down to low-level detail when required.

• Ability to think laterally and generate creative solutions.

• Awareness of potential issues relating to scalability, operational risk or compliance of the proposed solution, and ability to propose appropriate risk mitigation approaches

Experience:

• End-to-end understanding of the asset management operating model, and knowledge of the products and instrument types, and clients served.

• Experience of end-to-end operating models and change design desirable i.e. as a business analyst or subject matter expert.

• Knowledge or experience of standard technology platforms and outsource services used widely in asset management; BRS Aladdin experience desirable.

• Strong understanding of asset classes i.e. equities (public and private),  fixed income (public and private), derivatives (ETDs and OTCs) and money markets.

• Awareness of ESG principles and their practical implications on day-to-day fund management activities (preferred).

• Able to demonstrate broad industry awareness and familiarity with issues impacting asset management as a whole.

• Experience in delivering continuous improvements desirable, but not essential.

• Knowledge of Microsoft Power BI is desirable, but not essential.

What we offer:

We’re dedicated to supporting your wellbeing and helping you thrive, both at work and beyond. Our benefits are designed to help you balance your professional and personal life, and financially plan for the future. Our UK benefits include:

• A valuable pension scheme of up to 18% (13% made up of employer contributions and 5% employee contributions).
• Access to our Share Save and Share Incentive Plan, alongside financial wellbeing and support services to help give you real confidence to put your money to work.
• Enjoy 38 days annual leave (including bank holidays), with the opportunity to purchase up to five extra days. Our Time Off When You Need It policy gives you the flexibility - to balance work and personal commitments.
• Our market-leading Inspiring Families policy includes comprehensive support and paid parental leave covering maternity, adoption, surrogacy, and paternity leave - because supporting families is an important part of our inclusive culture.
• Health & Protection cover includes Private Healthcare, Critical Illness cover and Life Assurance for you, with additional family options - for peace of mind.

To explore more about life at M&G and our full benefits offering, visit Life at M&G

At M&G we strive to have a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture, underpinned by our policies and employee-led networks that offer networking, support and development opportunities for the diverse communities our colleagues represent. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds – across gender, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation and more – including neurodivergent individuals, career returners and those with military service experience.

M&G is proud to be Level 3: Disability Confident Leader under the UK Government Disability Confident employer scheme, and we welcome applications from candidates with disabilities and long-term health conditions. If you would like to participate in the initiative, you will have the opportunity to indicate this on your application.

We are committed to providing an inclusive recruitment process. All candidates have the opportunity to request reasonable adjustments when applying. If you need any additional support at any stage, please contact us at: [email protected]