Credit Risk Implementation Associate

Description:

Santander Bank, N.A. is seeking a highly analytical and experienced Sr. Associate, Credit Risk – Implementation to join their Liberty Street, New York office in a full-time, on-site capacity. This position is pivotal in implementing and maintaining decision engine logic across Santander US’s Unsecured Lending portfolio. The role focuses on the translation of strategic business and credit policies into automated logic used in credit decisioning systems.

You’ll work cross-functionally with teams in credit risk, data science, technology, operations, and compliance to ensure that lending decisions are consistent, accurate, and aligned with risk guidelines. The role combines technical knowledge, risk insight, testing rigor, and collaboration skills to deliver robust credit strategies across the customer lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategy Implementation:

• Convert business and credit strategies into executable logic within decision engines

• Collaborate with multiple departments to understand and deploy risk models and policies

• Ensure timely documentation of change history and rule configuration

• Support pre- and post-production testing of decision strategies

Testing & Validation:

• Design and carry out test plans for strategy performance validation

• Perform defect identification and coordinate with QA teams

• Participate in UAT, functional, and non-functional system testing

Performance Monitoring:

• Track KPIs such as approval, automation, and error rates

• Evaluate the impact of strategy modifications and suggest optimizations

• Ensure compliance with internal governance and regulatory frameworks

Cross-functional Collaboration:

• Act as a liaison between product, risk, compliance, operations, and technology teams

• Prepare reports and system insights for audits and governance reviews

Requirements:

• Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Computer Science, Engineering (required)

  • Master’s degree preferred

• Experience:

  • Minimum of 9 years in risk management or credit risk within the financial services sector

  • Experience in decision engines like FICO, Experian PowerCurve, or Provenir

  • Strong understanding of consumer credit models, lending policies, and financial products

  • Prior experience in software testing or QA roles

  • Proficiency in Excel; familiarity with SQL and Python is a plus

• Skills:

  • Strong problem-solving and analytical mindset

  • Excellent communication (written and verbal)

  • Agile methodology exposure and A/B testing frameworks preferred