WMAS Risk Manager

This position serves as the primary WM&AS fiduciary oversight manager, supporting the WM&AS division and assisting the Chief Fiduciary Officer with the design, execution, and administration of a division-wide fiduciary governance, risk management, and compliance oversight framework. The role provides management-level direction for the WMAS Compliance Officer and related analyst functions and leads the aggregation, analysis, reporting, and escalation of fiduciary, operational, compliance, audit, examination, vendor, and control-related risk matters.

This position develops and maintains an integrated view of WM&AS risk exposure by interpreting information from compliance testing, audit findings, regulatory examination matters, operational incidents, fiduciary reviews, vendor oversight, management action plans, and other risk sources. The role identifies themes, trends, root causes, control gaps, and emerging risks to support informed decision-making by the Chief Fiduciary Officer, WM&AS leadership, applicable committees, senior management, and enterprise oversight partners. This role does not replace day-to-day compliance monitoring, testing, or analyst work; rather, it directs, prioritizes, oversees, and consolidates that work into a coordinated WM&AS fiduciary, risk, and compliance oversight structure.

Essential Functions:

• Leads the administration and continuous improvement of the WM&AS fiduciary, risk, and compliance oversight framework, including risk identification, compliance oversight, risk assessment, risk monitoring, risk reporting, escalation protocols, governance routines, and enterprise-level issue aggregation and oversight.
• Coordinates periodic WM&AS risk assessments and maintains appropriate documentation of risk categories, inherent risk, control effectiveness, residual risk, key risk indicators, and emerging risk themes.
• Aggregates, analyzes, and synthesizes risk information from compliance testing, audit findings, operational incidents, fiduciary reviews, exception reporting, watchlists, vendor reviews, legal and regulatory developments, and management reporting to identify themes, root causes, emerging risks, and control implications supporting a comprehensive, enterprise-level view of WM&AS risk.
• Prepares and presents consolidated risk reports, dashboards, committee materials, meeting agendas, minutes, management action updates, and follow-up tracking for WM&AS management, executive leadership, risk committees, senior leadership, the Board, internal and external auditors, regulatory examiners, and corporate oversight functions.
• Provides management oversight, direction, prioritization, coaching, and review for the WMAS Compliance Officer and related analyst functions, including compliance monitoring activities, testing results, issue tracking, regulatory observations, training needs, management reporting, workload prioritization, and performance input.
• Owns and oversees the WM&AS enterprise risk issue tracking framework, including aggregation of open risk issues, audit findings, examination findings, supervisory recommendations, management action plans, remediation activities, validation evidence, closure documentation, owner accountability, target dates, status reporting, aging, and escalation of overdue or high-risk matters.
• Distinguishes between day-to-day control-level compliance work performed by assigned compliance and analyst resources and management-level oversight performed by this role to ensure clear accountability, appropriate escalation, and effective coordination across WM&AS risk and compliance activities.
• Escalates significant, overdue, recurring, or high-risk matters to the Chief Fiduciary Officer, WM&AS leadership, applicable committees, and corporate oversight partners, as appropriate.
• Leads audit and examination readiness coordination for WM&AS by organizing risk-related documentation, evidence gathering, consolidated management responses, remediation status reporting, issue validation, leadership updates, examiner-ready materials, and follow-up activities.
• Serves as a senior WM&AS liaison with Corporate Risk, Corporate Compliance, Legal, Internal Audit, Operations, Investments, Fiduciary Administration, and other internal stakeholders to identify, evaluate, prioritize, escalate, and resolve fiduciary, operational, compliance, regulatory, audit, and control matters impacting WM&AS.
• Supports WM&AS vendor and third-party risk oversight by assisting with due diligence, issue escalation, contract and control monitoring, documentation, and coordination with enterprise vendor management resources.
• Recommends and helps drive process, control, policy, procedure, reporting, training, issue management, and governance improvements designed to strengthen the WM&AS fiduciary, risk, compliance, and control environment.
• Establishes and maintains regular communication with WM&AS employees, outsource partners, and corporate oversight functions to obtain information needed to support an effective risk management program.
• Obtains and maintains professional certification and expertise through participation in continuing education and attendance at meetings of professional organizations, conferences, seminars, etc. on topics related to fiduciary risk management, operational risk, audit and examination readiness, regulatory expectations, governance, and internal controls.
• Performs or assists with special projects as needed.
• Supervises, mentors, and provides management guidance, direction, prioritization, coaching, performance input, and accountability oversight for the WMAS Compliance Officer, analyst resources, and other WMAS team members as assigned, and carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organization’s policies and applicable laws.
• Regular, reliable attendance is required.

Qualifications: 

• College degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, Risk Management, Law, or related field and 10 or more years of progressively responsible experience, including supervisory, risk management, compliance oversight, audit, regulatory response, fiduciary governance, issue remediation, or senior committee reporting responsibilities, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Professional experience in fiduciary administration, trust services, investment management, risk management, audit, compliance, operations, regulatory response, or quality assurance, with Certified Fiduciary Investment & Risk Specialist (CFIRS), Certified Trust and Fiduciary Advisor (CTFA), Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager (CRCM), Certified Enterprise Risk Professional (CERP), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), or similar designation preferred.
• Strong knowledge of fiduciary risk management, trust administration, investment management, banking regulations, internal controls, audit and examination processes, issue remediation, vendor oversight, governance practices, regulatory expectations, management reporting, and enterprise risk management concepts.
• Experience at a financial institution required with specific experience in a fiduciary, trust, investment management, wealth management, risk management, audit, compliance, or regulatory liaison role preferred.
• Supervisory, staff oversight, project leadership, committee coordination, cross-functional risk governance, regulatory response, management reporting, or issue remediation experience required.
• Ability to understand financial securities markets, read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, technical procedures, governmental regulations, audit reports, risk assessments, and management action plans.
• Ability to write reports, business correspondence, committee materials, risk summaries, management responses, and procedure manuals.
• Ability to effectively present complex fiduciary, risk, compliance, audit, examination, and issue remediation information to middle and senior WMAS leadership, executive leadership, committees, internal and external auditors, regulatory examiners, legal, compliance, and corporate oversight sources, and respond to questions requiring judgment, discretion, and subject-matter expertise.
• High degree of PC based technical skill, including proficiency with the Microsoft Suite of products.

Compensation:

Spokane/Boise - $106,485 - $159,727
Portland - $133,106 - $199,660
Seattle - $149,079 - $223,619

The compensation range represents the low and high end of the base compensation range for this position. Actual compensation will vary and may be above or below the range based on various factors including but not limited to location, experience, and performance. This position is eligible to participate in an applicable annual bonus plan.

What Our Culture Can Offer You:

Our benefit philosophy is to provide you with a comprehensive package to secure your overall wellness and help you become and remain a fulfilled and productive employee. Our benefits include Health, Financial, Retirement and Work/Life Benefits. We are proud to share an overview of our benefits HERE as part of your total compensation.

Washington Trust Bank celebrates diversity in the workplace and actively recruits talent to help reflect the unique communities where we live and work. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and prohibit discrimination or harassment based on race, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, genetic information and any other protected characteristics outline by state, federal and local laws. We believe strength comes from the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our team, and we are dedicated to fostering a supportive and inclusive work environment.