Quantitative Analyst: Sustainability Risk at Absa South Africa

Job Summary

• The role for Quantitative Analayst:  Sustainability Risk (AVP) is available in our Group Sustainability Risk team. The incumbent will play a key role in establishment, implementation and administrative management of the Environmental and Social Sustainability Framework and Principal Risk type across the bank.

Job Description

This activity encompasses the following key areas:

• Facilitating implementation of the newly established Environmental and Social Sustainability Framework and Sustainability Principal Risk type across the bank’s Enterprise Risk Management Framework (ERMF);
• Working in collaboration across Group Risk Management in the 1LOD and 2 LOD in business areas for assessing and identifying controls for environmental and social risks i.e. direct risks (own operations and procurement) and indirect risks (environmental credit, collateral, or reputational risks, etc);
• Administration, implementation and integration of environmental and social controls, policies and procedures into various processes in the bank (e.g. prioritization of UN Sustainable Development Goals, Paris Climate Agreements, target setting and related disclosures, credit processes, direct footprint processes, etc);
• Performance of specialist administrative risk management tasks on environmental and social risk governance activities and systems administration as for the Sustainability Risk team and as required by the ERMF;
• Administration and co-ordination of engagements with industry associations, external bodies (e.g. Banking Association of South Africa, United National Environmental Finance Initiative, etc.) and other stakeholders (e.g. emergent environmental and social legislation, such as the National Environmental Management Act, Climate Change legislation and best practice, etc) and participation in industry initiatives (e.g. UNEP FI Pilot Groups, BASA peer learning groups, etc.);

Accountability

• Ensure implementation and administration of the Sustainability Principal Risk Framework across risk types and business units in the bank;
• Ensure implementation of appropriate Group Sustainability Framework policies, standards and controls throughout various business units and refinements are made to policies on an annual basis;
• Ensure administration and co-ordination of annual Sustainability combined assurance is conducted as required by the ERMF and various internal and external frameworks to manage and close out any findings and issues and implement corrective action timeously;
• Administration of the Sustainability Principal Risk Framework in terms of the ERMF pillars (governance, systems input, setting up of key risk forums, reporting and administrative assistance to the Group Sustainability Risk Team;
• Provide pivotal key administrative and governance liaison for the Sustainability Risk Type with various internal and external stakeholders.

Business Transformation    

• Staying abreast and implement the requirements of technical governance and administrative requirements for effective implementation of the Sustainability Principal Risk type,
• Analyze, monitor and interpret developments in the Sustainability risk management arena to understand potential risk controls and implementation across all risk types affected by Sustainability Risk and administer appropriate response as necessary to monitor and report the overall risk exposure for Sustainability Risk for the bank;
• Proactively identify areas where the bank has touch points across business and risk areas and where the bank would benefit from additional guidance and identify opportunities for positive impact and reducing negative impact in terms on Sustainability Risk;

Stakeholder  Management  and  Reputational  Enhancement 

• Act as an ambassador for Absa, representing the Bank’s position on Sustainability Risk to external audiences, invariably engaging at senior management levels e.g. Banking Association of South Africa and The United Nations’ UNEPFI, internal governance committees, industry working groups, etc.
• Co-ordinate contribution to the content of environmental and social reports for internal or external stakeholders thereby strategically positioning Group Sustainability in the annual integrated report and Group Sustainability report and various other reporting required across the group;
• Develop and maintain effective working relationships with colleagues across Absa (e.g. wholesale credit, legal, CRES, Procurement and corporate citizenship) and provide expert guidance and support as appropriate;
• Administration and coordination of Sustainability training responsibilities.

Grow  Talent  and  Capability  

• Provide direction, development and guidance to staff members in Sustainability Risk Management to help staff to bridge any knowledge gaps;
• Ensure ongoing performance development to ensure generic personal skills are enhanced for future employability and staying abreast with the Sustainability Risk management subject matter;
• Raise general staff awareness and develop training on Sustainability Risk (environmental & social) and related strategy considerations  through development of learning programs, formal training of staff and various internal learning academies;
• Maintaining tools, techniques and processes to enable business areas and risk teams to place greater reliance on self-analysis and feeding back to the Sustainability Principal Risk type.

Drive   Performance  

• Support the manage Sustainability Risk as a commercial business partnership, ensuring minimal incremental or unjustified cost or delay to governance and processes;
• Quality assure input by various other risk types to ensure that conclusions and recommendations are commercial, risk and Sustainability focused in alignment to Absa’s strategic objectives;
• Administer and report on Sustainability Key Risk Key Indicators by establishing the necessary governance forum (with required Terms of Reference, Agenda’s minutes, invitations, etc)
• Ensure input into measurement of the Key Indicators aggregation where necessary and generating quarterly Key Risk Report;
• Act as the conduit to commissioning and defining the work of consultants, ensuring shared trust and respect, by using a flexible approach to obtain mutual understanding of general Sustainability Risk requirements between the bank and the consultants, in order to minimize potential liabilities and costs within set timescales ;

Education

Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)

• Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.
• Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised