IT Audit Risk & Control Specialist

Overview

Santander () is evolving from a global, high‑impact brand into a technology‑driven organisation, and our people are at the heart of this journey. Together, we are driving a customer‑centric transformation that values bold thinking, innovation, and the courage to challenge what’s possible. This is more than a strategic shift. It’s a chance for driven professionals to grow, learn, and make a real difference.

Our mission is to help more people and businesses prosper. We embrace a strong risk culture and expect all professionals to take a proactive and responsible approach toward risk management.

Santander Digital Services is the team of technology and operations  are convinced of the importance of technology that is aligned with the requirements of the business and that our work not only brings value to users, people and communities but also fosters individual creativity. Our team of over 7,000 people in 8 countries develops and implements financial solutions across a broad spectrum of technologies on all kinds of on‑premise and cloud‑based platforms.

We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced Line 1 IT Risk & Control Specialist for CIO. The specialist will provide expertise and leadership of cloud and on‑premise technology risks and controls across a range of legal, regulatory and company requirements, and support all technology audits.

• Leading and promoting a solid culture of risk awareness and management across the function.
• Develop, recommend, and implement control measures to maintain risk management practices in technology for financial services while keeping up to date with industry best standards.
• Prepare reports for executive management, Board and regulatory bodies as needed.
• Provide thought‑leadership as the Risk and Controls specialist for all cloud and on‑premise technology.
• Ensure controls are effective, efficient, and aligned with best practices, regulatory and company requirements.
• Leading by example, foster a culture of control which balances risk reduction through control effectiveness against the needs of the business and its customers.

The following requirements represent the knowledge, skills, and abilities essential for success in this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Providing senior oversight of audit facilitation and support across multiple stakeholder areas, ensuring the integrity and consistency of golden source data, proactively addressing impediments to fieldwork delivery, and escalating material issues where audit timelines or outcomes are at risk. (Required)
• Proven experience managing relationships with internal and external auditors, business and technology stakeholders and leading large‑scale assessment programmes. (Required)
• Delivering insightful management information and reporting by leveraging data analytics and advanced analysis techniques to interrogate large and complex datasets, identifying trends, control weaknesses, or anomalies indicative of heightened technology risk. (Required)
• Holding end‑to‑end accountability for audit delivery, ensuring audits progress in line with agreed plans, milestones are met, and management actions are remediated within agreed time frames, with clear escalation of delays or control concerns to senior governance forums. (Required)
• Producing clear, executive‑level audit reporting for senior stakeholders, articulating key risks, control deficiencies, root causes, and priority remediation actions in a concise and decision‑focused manner. (Required)
• Driving continuous improvement of IT processes and control environments by identifying opportunities arising from audit outcomes, regulatory expectations, and industry best practice, and influencing stakeholders to implement sustainable control enhancements. (Required)
• In‑depth knowledge and experience of operating at a senior level in risk management with a demonstratable understanding of current regulatory and IT Risk & Control Management. (Required)
• Excellent communication skills with stakeholders…