A Day in the Life of a VP Compliance and Operational Risk at a Large Bank
A vice president of compliance and operational risk at a large bank spends the day in "back-to-back meetings," often focused on "strategic-looking things" like 2023 and 2024 budgeting and initiatives. Success in this role hinges on strong cross-functional collaboration, requiring "building a lot of relationships" and effectively communicating with diverse teams, from data analytics to legal and sales, emphasizing the importance of "being really grateful and how to be kind" to foster mutual support.
Executive/Leadership, Communication, Project Management, Teamwork, Problem-Solving
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Karin Lin
VP, Compliance and Operational Risk
Large Bank
UC Berkeley, 2005
UCLA - Anderson School of Business / MBA
Political Science, American Studies
Finance (Banking, Fintech, Investing)
Finance
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Pell Grant Recipient, Took Out Loans, Immigrant, Worked 20+ Hours in School, First Generation College Student
Video Highlights
1. The day of a VP of Compliance and Operational Risk involves many back-to-back meetings, often starting early due to colleagues in different time zones.
2. A significant part of the role focuses on strategic planning, budgeting, and prioritizing initiatives for upcoming years.
3. Building and maintaining relationships across various teams (data analytics, legal, operations, sales) is crucial for successful project execution, requiring effective communication and collaboration skills.
Transcript
What does the day in the life of a vice president of compliance and operational risk look like?
My day starts really early. The bank I'm with now has colleagues on the East Coast, so meetings can start as early as 7:30 AM. Because I'm on the West Coast and our headquarters is here, our days can go all the way until five.
The day is filled with back-to-back meetings. A lot of times, we're meeting about strategic, forward-looking things that need to happen for 2023 or 2024. We discuss how we're going to budget, which initiatives are the most important, and how to connect those.
Building relationships throughout the bank is crucial because for any big project to really lift off, we need to be able to speak the same language. This applies to people like the data analytics team, the attorneys who interpret the law, and the operations people, even salespeople.
It's so important to understand how to talk to people, how to be grateful, and how to be kind. Someone could be helping you today, and you could be helping them tomorrow. That back and forth is just so important.