Baobab is a leading digital financial inclusion group focusing on serving individuals, micro and small businesses in Africa and China. Our mission is to unleash the potential of our clients offering them simple and easy to use financial services. Founded in 2005 as Microcred, today Baobab has over 900,000 customers and 3,800 employees in Madagascar, Senegal, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Mali, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo and China.
We are recruiting to fill the position below:
Job Title: Chief Risk Officer
Location: Lagos
Job Type: Permanent
Reports to: Affiliate CEO
Dotted lines to : GCRO & Board Credit Committee
Mission / Overview
The Chief Risk Officer (“CRO”) is directly responsible for managing all aspects of risk management. As a member of Executive Committee, the CRO is accountable to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the effective management of enterprise risks through leadership of the Risk function:
- Ensuring Credit, Market, Funding, Fraud and Operational risks are effectively managed and escalated to the CEO.
- Ensuring the Risk team articulates requirements to support the strategic ambitions whilst operating with the risk appetite framework set for the business through adherence to credit policy and standard frameworks.
- Ensuring the Risk team adds value using expert lending and collection experience to support business in delivering to client expectations and operations teams through early engagement in shaping and structuring transactions.
- Building and maintaining a strong partnership approach and collaborative culture with all key stakeholders and functions, specifically Operations, Finance, and IT.
- Driving process improvements, efficiencies, and simplification of the organizational design.
- Ensuring that resources are managed in an efficient and cost effective manner to improve business and client satisfaction.
- Compliance with CBN regulatory ratios for Microfinance Banks Risk function and control covering Operations, Finance, HR, IT, Marketing, FX, Credit, Digital channels, Regulatory, Reputational, Liquidity etc.
Responsibilities
Enterprise Risk Management Framework (ERMF):
- Implement the ERMF for the management and oversight of all Enterprise Risks across the affiliate.
Credit Risk Management:
- Review and approve loans according to the Chart of Loan approval; coordinate all recovery activities including through legal actions; control pre-disbursement conditions and loan contracts through the network of client advisors in the branches; frequently tracks credit risk indicators (approval rates, time to decision, vintage quality, PAR, losses...) and establish frequent reviews with team and stakeholders.
Report on the affiliate risk position:
- Present the affiliate risk position to the affiliate CEO and Management Committee, the Group CRO, and the Risk Committee, including material concentration of risk highlighting market imbalances, and other external or outlook risks that could impact the Risk Appetite or Risk Profile of affiliate, under normal and stressed scenarios.
- Ensure the affiliate risk profile is appropriate to the external environment in the markets in which it operates.
Strategy and Plan:
- In conjunction with the affiliate CEO, defines and sets the affiliate's Risk Appetite and Risk Profile for the local business that underpins Baobab strategy and business plans.
- Actively contributes to the Business Plan process (BP) and provides clear direction on the affiliate’s strategic goals, translating and prioritizing them into business and performance measures.
Monitor and provide oversight, advice and challenge:
- Provide appropriate guidance, challenge and advice to the affiliate CEO and executive management on all risks that they own and that they have accountability to manage.
- Specifically for Market, Credit, Funding and Operational risk and all associated Key Risks.
Leadership and Execution:
- Lead, manage and organize all risk resources to achieve the execution of the Baobab strategy, approved Risk plan, and adherence to Policies.
Group Policies:
- Be accountable for the oversight of all enterprise risks. Oversee the implementation of risk control frameworks, policies and business standards aligned with Group policies and procedures in Credit, Market, Funding, and Operational risk.
- Monitor and report through the risk assessment process on the consistent application and effectiveness policies and business standards across the affiliate.
Internal control:
In partnership with the Compliance function, designs and implements an effective system of controls. This should include a clear organization structure, formal system of delegations of authority and accountability and a framework of supervision ensuring:
- Baobab Policies are implemented and consistently applied within the affiliate;
- All risks arising from any affiliate activities / services are proactively identified, assessed, controlled, reported, managed and challenged on a normal and stressed scenario basis and contingency plans are developed as appropriate;
- Processes and controls are designed to comply with Policies to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. The Risk Function is aligned to the affiliate’s system of internal control, operates as designed and effectively manages all risk types in accordance with Baobab Policies.
Segregation of Roles & Duties
- Responsible for ensuring that effective segregation of all significant roles and duties exists in the Risk Function.
- People & Organization: Lead, manage and develop Risk Function resources aligned to the affiliate in the most effective and efficient manner to execute the Risk Function’s Plan, including:
- Building a culture to deliver performance consistent with the values;
- Direct involvement in all Risk Function appointments and setting competencies for the roles;
- Designing remuneration structures for all Risk Function employees aligned to the affiliate remuneration guidelines;
- Defining performance objectives and remuneration structures for the Risk Function employees aligned to the affiliate guidelines and designed to achieve a balance between risk, individual reward and the long term objectives of Baobab;
- Inputting into the performance management process for Risk Function employees;
- Defining leadership, talent development and succession plans for main Risk Function employees.
- Candidates must be able to prove effective capacity for Change Management.
Citizenship and Reputation:
- Maintains effective relationships and deals openly with all key stakeholders, taking into account their needs and taking decisions which, in the long term, are positive form customers and clients, shareholders, colleagues and the communities in which Affiliate operates.
Risk Culture and Appetite:
Responsible for embedding a clearly articulated risk culture within the Risk Function which reflects a constructive Risk management approach:
- Exercise independent and expert judgement;
- Exercise reasonable skill, care and diligence;
- Promote the success of the company;
- Avoid conflicts of interest and demonstrate high integrity.
- Risk treatment and control.
Regulatory compliance & Relevant Sector expertise:
Candidate must possess:
- Extensive knowledge of legal requirements and compliance regulations.
- Certification as a Microfinance Banker.
- Understanding of all International standard in compliance to SON.
Requirements / Qualifications
Educational and Professional Qualification:
- Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Business Administration, Finance, or Risk Management.
- Master of Business Administration
- Certified Microfinance Banker.
Required Profile:
- Technical skills
- Must have microfinance experience
- Must be grounded in enterprise risk
- Microfinance certification is an added advantage
- Excellent knowledge of Secured / Unsecured lending and collections principles and its strategy ideally across Banking, Corporate and Retail customer segments
- Broad risk management knowledge including fraud and operational risk Management and the ability to lead risk governance and control through recognized frameworks:
- Strong decisive leadership through the credit risk cycle;
- Demonstrated ability to develop portfolio analytics and use them to support decision-making
- Excellent knowledge of financial planning and project / change management processes.
- Emerging risk and the ability to handle unexpected crisis
Personal skills:
- Fluent in English
- The highest ethical and professional standards.
- Strong analytical, and decision-making skills.
- Demonstrated effective leadership, team building and coaching skills.
- Demonstrated ability to motivate people, assess and develop employee skills.
- Excellent planning and organizational skills.
- Demonstrated ability to use logic, reasoning, and critical thinking in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Ability to work with teams and lead decision-making processes in a team environment.
- Ability to interact with Senior staff within an organization as well as teams in a foreign HQ.
Experience:
- Minimum of 8 to 10 years of relevant experience in the field of Risk Management preferably in an international organization, in the domain of finance or financial services.
- Must be grounded in enterprise risk
- Microfinance banking experience is mandatory.
How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidiates should send their Resume to: pokoko@baobab.bz Using the "Job Title" as the subject of the mail.
