Oversee and maintain high standards of excellence and quality of client relations provided by CAT Operations staff. Ensure that the CAT Operations team meet stated performance and quality standards in compliance with the CAT NMS Plan. Proactively respond to and resolve escalation calls from internal and external customers. Serve as the subject matter expert for the CAT system. Build and maintain strong partnerships with internal stakeholder and external member firms/partners to serve as a trusted advisor on CAT-related data/incidents.
Promote a culture of continuous learning, training, and development in support of individual employees’ growth, while connecting to the critical skills, knowledge, and competencies needed to meet the unique and ever-evolving challenges of the market/CAT system. Assess and mitigate CAT data-related risk to maintain the integrity of the CAT system and all CAT data.
Essential Job Functions:
- Manage day-to-day operations of the CAT Operations team.
- Serve as a subject matter expert (SME) and properly support industry members, plan participants and regulatory users.
- Routinely analyze and interpret CAT exception reports and provide detailed follow-up and training to firms/end users.
- Serve as a point of escalation for all CAT-related queries.
- Ensure adequate staffing levels to address call volume.
- Monitor the accuracy of information and quality of service provided to the customer.
- Ensure timely responses to customer inquiries.
- Perform regular review of CRM (customer relationship management) queues to ensure timely and accurate resolution and assignment of cases.
- Review daily stats and CRM reports for adherence to agent and plan expectations.
- Plan and develop strategy for staff training and developmental needs and ensure that they meet stated performance and quality standards.
- Provide one-on-one coaching on how to improve the level of customer service provided.
- Lead improvement projects.
- Provide training and mentoring to new employees.
- Ensure information requests are completed accurately and assign calls to the appropriate department or individual.
- Ensure timely resolution of caller issues.
- Review reports and related applications to identify firm transmission errors. Contact firms and provide assistance to resolve any possible errors, allowing an accurate and problem-free transmission.
- Provide feedback to management on the efficiency of all customer service center functions.
- Attend all application related training.
- Lead and participate in ad hoc special projects and major initiatives, as requested.
In addition, the Associate Director will:
- Educate internal and external stakeholders on proper system use, critical processes, submission, retrieval, and interpretation of CAT data.
- Ensure integrity and accuracy of CAT data via requests received via the CAT Operations team and other methods.
- Engage in proactive stakeholder management and demonstrate a strong ability to build, develop, and maintain relationships over time, in support of the mission of FINRA CAT.
- Demonstrate aptitude in strategic thinking/problem-solving and tactical execution, both from a forward-thinking and current state day-to-day operations need and perspective.
- Provide proactive communication around technical system issues.
- Possess a solid knowledge of risk mitigation techniques and ability to implement/follow-up.
- Ensure data integrity to enable critical data-decision making for all CAT-related topics.
- Serve as coach and mentor to staff, embracing continuous improvement and development throughout the employee career lifecycle.
- Responding to business needs via planning/implementation and sustainment of critical products/systems in support of FINRA CAT, engaging all needed and necessary stakeholders and resources, as needed.
Other Responsibilities:
- Take an active role in meetings involving the CAT Plan Processor.
- Maintain essential skills by attending training programs and participating in required staff meetings.
- Perform any other duties required to the effective operations of the CAT Operations team, which may occur outside normal business hours
Education/Experience Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in STEM-related fields, Finance, Economics, or equivalent work experience in the financial industry demonstrating knowledge of regulatory reporting, research, and analytical skills and a minimum of six (6) years of directly related experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- At least three (3) years of managerial experience.
- Excellent analytical and interpersonal skills with proven effective communication skills, both written and verbal, required.
- Demonstrated ability to provide excellent internal/external customer service.
- A comprehensive understanding of the securities industry is required.
- Experience with automated tracking systems is required.
- Extensive knowledge of securities markets, member firm operations, and books and records.
Work Conditions:
- Work is normally performed in an office and/or hybrid work environment, with potential for occasional travel.
- Extensive use of the PC and telephones.
For work that is performed in CA, CO, IL, Jersey City, NJ, New York City, NY, MA, MD, Washington, DC, NJ State and NY State, please refer to the chart below for the salary range for the corresponding location. In addition to location, actual compensation is based on various factors, including but not limited to, the candidate’s skill set, level of experience, education, and internal peer compensation comparisons.
CA: Minimum Salary $128,000, Maximum Salary $242,600
CO*: Minimum Salary $111,400, Maximum Salary $202,100
IL*: Minimum Salary $122,800, Maximum Salary $222,400
Jersey City, NJ/NYC, NY: Minimum Salary $133,700, Maximum Salary $242,600
MA: Minimum Salary $111,400, Maximum Salary $232,500
MD/Washington, DC: Minimum Salary $128,000, Maximum Salary $232,500
NJ State: Minimum Salary $122,800, Maximum $242,600
NY State: Minimum Salary $111,400, Maximum Salary $242,600
*Including positions performed outside the state but reporting to an office or manager in that state.
Candidates can expect salary offers that range from the minimum to the mid-point of the salary range. FINRA provides full pay ranges so that the candidate can consider their growth potential while at FINRA.
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To be considered for this position, please submit an application. Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis.
The information provided above has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work of the position. It is not a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required.
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FINRA strives to make our career site accessible to all users. If you need a disability-related accommodation for completing the application process, please contact FINRA's Employee Relations team at 240.386.4865 or by email atEmployeeRelations@finra.org.Please note that this process is exclusively for inquiries regarding application accommodations.
Employees may be eligible for a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Non-exempt employees are also eligible for overtime pay in accordance with federal, state, or local law. As part of its dedication to employee wellness, FINRA provides comprehensive health, dental and vision insurance. Additional insurance includes basic life, accidental death and dismemberment, supplemental life, spouse/domestic partner and dependent life, and spouse/domestic partner and dependent accidental death and dismemberment, short- and long-term disability, long-term care, business travel accident, disability and legal. FINRA offers immediate participation and vesting in a 401(k) plan with company match and eligibility for participation in an additional FINRA-funded retirement contribution, tuition reimbursement, commuter benefits, and other benefits that support employee wellness, such as adoption assistance, backup family care, surrogacy benefits, employee assistance, and wellness programs.
Time Off and Paid Leave*
FINRA encourages its employees to focus on their health and wellness in many ways, including through a generous time-off program of 15 days of paid time off, 5 personal days and 9 sick days, unless otherwise required by law (all pro-rated in the first year). Additionally, we are proud to support our communities by providing two volunteer service days (based on full-time schedule). Other paid leave includes military leave, jury duty leave, bereavement leave, voting and election official leave for federal, state or local primary and general elections, care of a family member leave (available after 90 days of employment); and childbirth and parental leave (available after 90 days of employment). Full-time employees receive nine paid holidays.
*Based on full-time schedule
Important Information
FINRA’s Code of Conduct imposes restrictions on employees’ investments and requires financial disclosures that are uniquely related to our role as a securities regulator. FINRA employees are required to disclose to FINRA all brokerage accounts that they maintain, and those in which they control trading or have a financial interest (including any trust account of which they are a trustee or beneficiary and all accounts of a spouse, domestic partner or minor child who lives with the employee) and to authorize their broker-dealers to provide FINRA with duplicate statements for all of those accounts. All of those accounts are subject to the Code’s investment and securities account restrictions, and new employees must comply with those investment restrictions—including disposing of any security issued by a company on FINRA’s Prohibited Company List or obtaining a written waiver from their Executive Vice President—by the date they begin employment with FINRA. Employees may only maintain securities accounts that must be disclosed to FINRA at one or more securities firms that provide an electronic feed (e-feed) of data to FINRA, and must move securities accounts from other securities firms to a firm that provides an e-feed within three months of beginning employment.
You can read more about these restrictions here.
As standard practice, employees must also execute FINRA’s Employee Confidentiality and Invention Assignment Agreement without qualification or modification and comply with the company’s policy on nepotism.
Search Firm Representatives
Please be advised that FINRA is not seeking assistance or accepting unsolicited resumes from search firms for this employment opportunity. Regardless of past practice, a valid written agreement and task order must be in place before any resumes are submitted to FINRA. All resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at FINRA without a valid written agreement and task order in place will be deemed the sole property of FINRA and no fee will be paid in the event that person is hired by FINRA.
FINRA strives to make our career site accessible to all users. If you need a disability-related accommodation for completing the application process, please contact FINRA's Employee Relations team at 240.386.4865 or by email at EmployeeRelations@finra.org. Please note that this process is exclusively for inquiries regarding application accommodations.
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, citizenship status, color, disability, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, veteran status or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local laws.
FINRA abides by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-741.5(a). This regulation prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals on the basis of disability and requires affirmative action by covered prime contractors and subcontractors to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with disabilities.
FINRA abides by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-300.5(a). This regulation prohibits discrimination against qualified protected veterans and requires affirmative action by covered prime contractors and subcontractors to employ and advance in employment qualified protected veterans.
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