Associate Director - Projects Risk Management

Job description

Job Purpose The Associate Director, Projects Risk Management is responsible for leading Finance Risk Management & Controls (FRMC) engagement across major global finance transformation and change programmes. The role provides strategic risk leadership from the earliest stages of initiative development through implementation, go-live, and post-implementation stabilisation. Working at the intersection of Finance, Technology, Digital, and Transformation teams, the role ensures that key finance risks, governance requirements, and control expectations are appropriately considered and embedded throughout the programme lifecycle. The Associate Director acts as a trusted advisor to senior stakeholders, helping shape investment decisions, delivery approaches, and transformation outcomes while maintaining a strong focus on risk, compliance, and sustainable control environments. Key Responsibilities: Strategic Programme Risk Leadership: • Lead FRMC engagement across complex, high-value global finance transformation programmes and strategic change initiatives. • Provide independent risk insight during programme conception, business case development, and solution design to support informed decision-making. • Influence programme scope, governance structures, delivery approaches, and benefit realisation plans to ensure appropriate management of finance risk. • Ensure material finance risks are identified, assessed, prioritised, and addressed throughout the programme lifecycle. Transformation Risk Management: • Partner with Finance Process Owners and Global Process Towers to evaluate key risks and prioritise control enhancements. • Assess the impact of process, technology, operating model, and organisational changes on the control environment. • Oversee risk readiness activities leading up to major milestones, including testing, deployment, go-live, and post-implementation qualification. • Monitor emerging risks and provide timely escalation of material issues to programme and business leadership. • Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement, and professional development. Stakeholder Engagement and Governance: • Build strong relationships with senior business leaders, programme sponsors, process owners, and transformation teams. • Act as the primary FRMC point of contact for assigned programmes and initiatives. • Coordinate engagement across FRMC teams to ensure consistent messaging, clear ownership, and seamless handovers between workstreams. • Support governance forums by providing risk insights, reporting, and recommendations to senior stakeholders. Digital, Data and Innovation: • Champion the use of digital capabilities, analytics, automation, and emerging technologies to enhance risk management and control effectiveness. • Support the development of data-driven risk insights and continuous monitoring approaches. • Identify opportunities to simplify, standardise, and modernise risk and control activities across transformation programmes Qualifications & Skills: Essential: • 16+ years of experience in financial risk management, internal controls, audit, compliance, finance transformation, or related disciplines. • Significant experience supporting large-scale business or finance transformation programmes within complex global organisations. • Strong understanding of finance processes, financial controls, governance frameworks, and regulatory requirements. • Demonstrated experience leading teams and managing stakeholder relationships at senior leadership levels. • Experience applying risk management principles within programme and project environments. • Professional qualification such as CA, CPA, ACCA, CIA, CISA, or equivalent. Preferred: • Experience supporting ERP implementations, finance modernisation programmes, or global operating model transformations. • Knowledge of SOX, RACMs, internal control frameworks, and risk governance methodologies. • Experience leveraging data analytics, automation, AI, or digital technologies within risk and controls environments. • Exposure to pharmaceutical, healthcare, consumer healthcare, or other highly regulated industries. Key Leadership Attributes • Strategic thinker with the ability to balance risk management and business objectives. • Strong influencing and stakeholder management skills. • Ability to operate effectively in complex, ambiguous, and fast-changing environments. • Collaborative leader who builds strong relationships across functions and geographies. • Commercially minded with a focus on delivering practical and sustainable outcomes. • Passion for innovation, continuous improvement, and digital transformation. Skills Compliance SOX, ERP Implementation, Financial Risk Management (FRM), SAP S/4HANA    Why GSK? Uniting science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together. GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together. We aim to positively impact the health of 2.5 billion people by the end of the decade, as a successful, growing company where people can thrive. We get ahead of disease by preventing and treating it with innovation in specialty medicines and vaccines. We focus on four therapeutic areas: respirat