Vice President, Compliance (Testing & Monitoring)

The Vice President, Compliance (Testing & Monitoring) is a senior leader responsible for the strategy, design, and execution of Aqua Finance’s enterprise Compliance Testing and Monitoring program. This role provides independent second-line oversight of regulatory risk across all consumer lending products and services, ensuring adherence to federal and state laws while strengthening a culture of compliance throughout the organization.

Essential Functions

• Lead the enterprise Compliance Testing and Monitoring program, including strategy, methodology, execution oversight, and continuous improvement

• Develop and maintain risk-based, multi-year and annual testing plans aligned with enterprise risk assessments, regulatory changes, business initiatives, and emerging risks

• Oversee end-to-end compliance control testing across the product and service lifecycle, ensuring adherence to applicable federal and state regulations

• Design and implement scalable, technology-enabled testing solutions, including automated and semi-automated approaches to improve coverage, consistency, and efficiency

• Translate risk assessments into clearly defined, audit-defensible testing strategies, including scope, frequency, and depth of testing activities

• Provide effective second-line oversight and challenge of first-line monitoring activities, including evaluation of monitoring design, execution quality, and issue escalation practices

• Partner with business leaders to strengthen ownership of compliance risk while holding stakeholders accountable for timely remediation of identified issues

• Deliver clear, concise, and actionable reporting on testing results, trends, and remediation status to senior leadership, management committees, and the Board

• Support the Chief Compliance Officer in the execution of the overall Compliance Program and strategic initiatives

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field or commensurate work experience required

• Advanced degree or CRCM certification strongly preferred

• 12 years of progressive experience in Compliance, Risk Management, or Regulatory Oversight, with demonstrated leadership at the enterprise or line-of-business level

• 7 years of people management experience, including building and scaling high-performing compliance teams

• 5 years of experience in consumer financial services, with direct responsibility for compliance testing, monitoring, or second-line assurance programs

• Proven experience designing and leading enterprise-level Compliance Testing and Monitoring programs

• Experience developing risk-based test plans and testing methodologies

• Experience creating and maintaining audit-defensible documentation and workpapers

• Experience implementing automated or semi-automated testing solutions, dashboards, and reporting frameworks

• Advanced knowledge of federal consumer protection laws and regulations (e.g., UDAAP, Reg B, FCRA, FDCPA, TCPA, and privacy frameworks), including the ability to incorporate state law requirements

• Demonstrated ability to translate complex risk assessments into actionable testing strategies and compliance insights

• Experience overseeing compliance metrics, reporting, and issue tracking for senior leadership and Board-level audiences

• Strong executive communication skills, with the ability to present complex information clearly and influence decision-making

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and compliance data management, workflow, or GRC tools; experience leveraging technology to scale compliance testing programs strongly preferred

Physical Demands

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, stand, walk, visualize, talk, hear, and handle or touch objects or controls. The employee may occasionally lift, push, or pull up to 20 pounds.

This position is an office-based position where you must be able to sit for long periods of time. The employee will be working on a computer 90% of the time.