Senior Manager Quality, Controls & Testing

• Glasgow, United Kingdom
• London, United Kingdom
• Swindon, United Kingdom
• Northampton, United Kingdom

This is a pivotal leadership role within the Business Direct & Customer Support (BD&CS) Leadership Team, reporting to the Director of BD&CS. As Senior Manager Quality, Controls and Testing, you will shape and lead the first-line risk and control environment across Business Banking operations, ensuring customers receive consistently high-quality outcomes while maintaining strong regulatory and operational standards.

Working across both the Virgin Money and Nationwide brands, you will provide leadership for quality testing, competency, assurance and control activities, partnering closely with Risk & Control, Financial Crime and other key stakeholders. Delivering excellent customer experiences is non-negotiable, and strong, effective controls are fundamental to achieving our ambition of being number one for service. As we continue to invest in Business Banking and prepare for future growth, you will play a critical role in ensuring our colleagues are trained, competent and equipped to deliver simply brilliant experiences for customers while supporting a safe, well-controlled and sustainable operation.

You will lead a team of Operational Managers and a Senior Lead responsible for quality testing, governance and control management, while helping to shape the operations function of the future. Through operational redesign, controls-by-design thinking, data-led insight and the intelligent use of technology, you will drive consistency, strengthen capability and ensure the business remains audit and regulatory ready in an evolving risk landscape.

At Nationwide we offer hybrid working wherever possible. More rewarding relationships are supported through our hybrid approach, bringing colleagues together across our UK wide estate, whilst also supporting generous access to home working. We value our time in the office to solve problems, to learn, and to feel connected.

For this job you'll spend at least two days per week, or if part time you'll spend 40% of your working time, based at either our Glasgow or Northampton office.If you're based at our Glasgow office, this will apply from 1 April 2027 and ahead of that there will be a need to regularly connect with colleagues for collaboration events. If your application is successful, your hiring manager will provide further details on how this works. You can also find out more about our approach to hybrid working here .

Whilst these locations are where we are primarily looking to fill the role, if you're an internal applicant based in a different location we would welcome your application and if successful, your hiring manager will provide further details on how this could work for this specific role. You can also find out more about our approach to hybrid working here .

Virgin Money is now part of Nationwide

Nationwide acquired Virgin Money in October 2024. Virgin Money continues to serve customers on the high street, and there will be a phased and considered integration over the coming years.

You'll be employed by Nationwide from day one, delivering real impact and benefitting from a highly competitive range of benefits. We're a workplace where you're rewarded, recognised and celebrated.

Nationwide is committed to the redeployment of our employees impacted by change, as such applications for redeployment candidates will be prioritised in this recruitment process.

Uncompromisingly Customer, whatever our role

The extras you'll get

There are all sorts of employee benefits available at Nationwide, including:

Private medical insurance

A highly competitive pension to help you build a strong foundation for retirement

Access to an annual performance related bonus

Training and development to help you progress your career

A great selection of additional benefits through our salary sacrifice scheme

Life assurance to provide peace of mind for you and your loved ones in the event of your death

Wellhub - access to a range of free and paid options for health and wellness

Up to 2 days of paid volunteering a year

Banking - but fairer, more rewarding, and for the good of society

We forge our own path at Nationwide.

As a mutual, we're owned by our members - those customers who bank, save or have a mortgage with us. We challenge the financial sector status quo. We don't see customers as the engine of our own profit. We share our profits with them and put their needs first. Always there when they need us. Supporting them and their lives.

If you're inspired by fairer finances, passionate about making a meaningful impact, and truly care about our customers, you're one of us.

At Nationwide, you are challenged to grow and rewarded for doing so. Valued. Recognised. Inspired to be your best. As a community, we want our working lives to count. As a team, we celebrate what we achieve. As a standard setter, we work for the good of customers, communities, and broader society.

We are purpose driven. Uncompromisingly customer. Unstoppably Nationwide.

Disability Confident

We're not just guided by data, we're driven by the real experiences of our people. We're a Disability Confident Level 3 Leader, the highest level.

That's why we're constantly evolving our policies and practices to make sure everyone feels genuinely supported, valued, and empowered to champion inclusion. Whatever your needs, we're here to support you. If you need any additional support throughout your application journey, email our team at Recruitment Support .

Apply safely with Nationwide

The hiring manager for this role is Michelle Prance and the main recruitment contact is Charlotte Hall.

Please note that should you be successful in securing this role, the job title on our internal systems will be Senior Manager Quality, Planning, Reporting & Governance.

Banking - but fairer, more rewarding, and for the good of society

What you'll be doing

You will lead the design, implementation and ongoing evolution of the first line risk, quality testing, competency and assurance frameworks across BD&CS, ensuring control effectiveness is maintained and aligned with risk appetite, regulatory requirements and internal policies. As the function continues to grow, you will build organisational capability by embedding clear standards, robust competency frameworks and effective coaching practices that strengthen colleague performance, accountability and ownership of risk and controls.

Working closely with senior leaders and key risk partners, you will provide meaningful oversight of risk appetite, control performance and customer outcomes. Through high quality management information, governance and reporting, you will deliver clear insight into emerging risks, control effectiveness and operational trends, enabling informed decision making and timely escalation where required. You will also lead the assessment, prioritisation and remediation of control weaknesses and assurance findings, ensuring sustainable improvements are delivered and embedded.

A key part of the role will be driving quality and control by design, leveraging technology, automation and operational improvements to create greater consistency, improve efficiency and accelerate colleague proficiency. You will ensure testing, assurance and control frameworks continue to evolve in line with changing regulatory expectations, including those relating to Financial Crime and vulnerable customers, while maintaining a strong focus on customer outcomes.

You will establish strong governance across BD&CS, fostering constructive challenge and transparent reporting with senior stakeholders and risk partners. Where delegated, you will also be accountable for Material Risk Taker or Senior Management Function responsibilities, ensuring all obligations are fulfilled and evidenced appropriately. Through your leadership, you will help create a resilient, scalable operation that supports the future growth of Business Banking and enables businesses of all sizes to thrive.

About you

As a minimum requirement, you will have:

• Senior leadership expertise across quality assurance, governance, risk management, controls, assurance, performance reporting and customer outcomes.
• Risk and controls expertise, with a proven record of embedding controls by design, effective governance, operational risk management, assurance and regulatory awareness within first line environments.
• Technology and automation capability, using workflow, AI, automation and digital tools to simplify processes, strengthen controls and improve operational performance.
• Continuous improvement expertise, applying Lean principles, process optimisation and standardisation to improve operational performance, customer outcomes and service experience.
• People, capability and change leadership, including leading multidisciplinary teams, building capability, performance management, knowledge management and embedding sustainable change.
• Large scale transformation experience, maintaining effective governance, controls and delivery disciplines through complex change programmes.
• Exceptional stakeholder management and influencing skills, operating effectively with senior leaders, executives and risk partners.
• Strong data, insight and commercial judgement, using performance measurement and management information to drive better decisions and outcomes.
• Clear and compelling communication skills . click apply for full job details