Investment Operations Manager - Paternity Cover

Brightwell Overview

Brightwell is the primary service provider providing fiduciary management services, member services, operational and secretariat services to the £37bn BT Pension Scheme (BTPS), one of the largest private sector pension schemes in the UK with c.260,000 members. Brightwell also provides fiduciary management services to the defined benefit section of the EE Pension Scheme which has c.£1bn AUM and 8,000 members.

The Scheme fully integrates environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into its investment process and promotes active stewardship of its portfolio companies and assets. In 2020, the Scheme set a 2035 net zero goal for its entire investment portfolio.

By working with Brightwell, defined benefit pension schemes have the opportunity to leverage Brightwell’s expertise, innovation and market leading technology to improve quality, value for money and outcomes for members. We aim to support our people in achieving their full potential. We’re comprised of over 320 staff based across our offices in London, Chesterfield and Bristol. We are focused on fostering a truly diverse, inclusive, and equitable culture with a workforce that is reflective of society.

Role Overview

Purpose:

The Investment Operations Manager will be a member of the Brightwell Investment Operations team and contribute to delivering a high quality and robust control environment to Brightwell and its clients. They will deliver an excellent service to our internal clients, acting as an Investment Operations SME, collaborating with other functions and service providers, and contribute to achieving our strategic and firm-wide objectives. They will also provide SME support and training to junior members of the Investment Operations team.

Main tasks & responsibilities:

• Operational Support of Brightwell’s Markets team for client Hedging and Treasury activities, covering Exchange Traded derivatives, OTC derivatives, FX, money markets, gilts and repo.
• Reconciliation of Order Management System to Investment Book of Record.
• Margin and Collateral Management Oversight.
• Cash and Collateral requirement management.
• Ensuring compliance with all regulatory reporting requirements (EMIR; SFTR; MiFIR; Shareholder Disclosures).
• Provision of SME support and training to junior members of the team.
• Producing management information for weekly and monthly reporting packages.
• Managing Operational Risks and applying appropriate controls.
• Deal with incoming queries and communicating with internal clients in an open and transparent manner.
• Work with internal stakeholders and external service providers and vendors to ensure all requirements are met.
• Create and maintain internal team process documentation to ensure that new processes and changes are captured in a clear and timely manner.
• Provision of MIS reporting to be shared with senior management and the wider company.
• Liaison with Service Providers, monitoring and overseeing outsourced services to ensure they are delivered at the expected level.
• Participate in relationship management of service providers.
• Look for ways to improve BAU tasks, ensuring efficiency and scalability.
• Take ownership for the delivery of elements of the team’s BAU and Strategic change agenda in support of BTPSM’s company goals.
• Maintain and develop Team knowledge and competencies to continue performing the role effectively and that competency and qualification requirements are met whilst taking ownership of your own development by ensuring that you have a clear and defined development plan.
• Ensure that BTPSM’s core values are embedded within the team and demonstrate positive behaviours in relation to the objectives of the role and all stakeholders.
• The role of Investment Operations Manager is considered under the statutory Duty of Responsibility and the Senior Manager conduct rules. You must comply with any and all relevant regulatory responsibilities assigned to the role.

Person Specification

Essential knowledge, skills & experience:

• Significant experience in operations roles in the financial sector, performing BAU functions and controls, improving processes and introducing efficiencies.
• Experience in multiple operations roles including:
  • Trade support
  • Collateral Management
  • Settlements
  • Regulatory Reporting (EMIR, SFTR; MiFIR; Shareholder Disclosures)
• Experience in fixed income products, including OTC and exchange traded derivatives.
• Experience in treasury and currency products.
• Experience of the full trade lifecycle.
• Track record in training and supporting people in BAU functions.
• Track record in overseeing multiple outsourced providers.
• Track record in participating in and delivering a change agenda.
• Track record in improving processes and increasing efficiency of deliverables.

Desirable knowledge, skills & experience:

• Strong organisational skills, able to oversee multiple tasks and priorities.
• Strong time management skills.
• Good level of technical skill, particularly Excel
• Prior use and experience of FIS Front Arena as an OMS a plus
• Experience of report building in Power BI and experience with DAX a plus
• Able to coordinate and manage multiple stakeholders in an efficient manner.
• Good communicator, both verbally and written, with the ability to articulate issues clearly and influence others.
• Able to work both independently and as part of a small team to achieve goals.
• Pro-active enquiring approach to actual and potential business activities.
• Exercise initiative, lateral thinking and flexibility with accuracy and attention to detail and propose practical, realistic recommendations.
• Team player.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Brightwell is committed to developing and maintaining an inclusive culture, ensuring that behaviours, working practices and policies promote fair treatment and access to development opportunities for every colleague. We value the benefits a diverse workforce can bring and want Brightwell to be a place where all colleagues can thrive, feel that they belong and are valued and contribute to our success. This is underpinned by Brightwell’s RISE corporate values: Responsible, Impactful, Supportive & Expert.

Our RISE Values

Our values guide our behaviour and are embedded throughout the organisation.

Responsible – we take individual responsibility for making things happen. We take ownership of the decisions we make. We never walk past a problem. We are both open and brave - supporting and challenging each other to resolve issues.

Impactful – we are driven to do all that we can to create a better future for our members. We recognise that the way we invest can benefit wider society. We constantly strive to make a difference.

Supportive – we work together across teams to deliver the best outcomes for members and wider society. We support each other when taking difficult decisions and are always respectful, thoughtful and helpful.

Expert – we set very high standards, constantly looking at how we can be better and bolder – whether serving members, improving how we work, or invest. We are constantly innovating – challenging ourselves to find new ideas. We use our commercial acumen to deliver value for members and wider society.