Compliance Manager (First Line Operations)

• Full-time; reporting to Head of First Line Compliance
• Southwark, London / Remote (UK) Only
• UK Right to work required
• Starting at £32,000, annual bonus and share options
• Start Date: ASAP

For far too long, pensions have been difficult to understand and manage. Founded in 2014, we aspire to make as many people as possible pension confident so that everyone can enjoy a happy retirement.

PensionBee is creating a global leader in the consumer retirement market with over £5.2 billion in assets on behalf of more than 252,000 customers. We help our customers to combine their retirement savings into a new online account, which they can manage from the palm of their hand.

PensionBee accounts are invested by the world’s largest investment managers, collectively looking after more than $10 trillion in savings between them. Each PensionBee customer has a personal account manager (“BeeKeeper”) to guide them through their savings and retirement journey. PensionBee has an “Excellent” Trustpilot rating based on over 10,000 reviews.

As a public company, we aspire to the highest standards in everything we do because our customers deserve peace of mind. Our team of over 200 pension professionals, based in London and New York, has one focus: our customer.

PensionBee is named in FT1000 Europe’s ‘Fastest Growing Companies in 2023 and 2024’ and is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LON: PBEE).

PensionBee is growing at scale and we need a Compliance Manager to help us administer our specialist processes in First Line Operations. 

About the role

As a Compliance Manager in First Line Operations, you will use your specialist pensions knowledge to support what is an incredibly important area of any financial services company and an increasingly significant area for PensionBee as a rapidly growing company. Working with our Head of First Line Compliance, the role is an exciting opportunity to be involved in the growth of a team which focuses on being administratively compliant with a wide range of regulations and guidelines (HMRC, TPR, FCA, JMLSG etc).

You’ll specialise in specialist administrative areas including, but not limited to, Know Your Customer (KYC), Death Benefits, Early Pension Access requests (Ill Health), Pension Sharing Orders (PSOs) and Powers of Attorney. You’ll liaise with customers and third parties, using empathy and strong communication skills, as well as exceptional attention to detail when requesting and reviewing supporting evidence. Being part of the First Line Compliance Team also means occasionally providing support for other specialist areas such as Transfers Out Due Diligence and third party authority requests. 

As well as managing your own caseload, you’ll support members of the Customer Success Team (our BeeKeepers), in ensuring that we deal with all areas of KYC and specialist tasks smoothly and efficiently. You’ll be expected to resolve or answer a wide variety of queries, helping handle complex customer situations. At times you’ll take on new responsibilities including contributing to projects and process reviews within the compliance landscape. You’ll be expected to demonstrate the ability to grasp new concepts quickly and be happy to liaise with a range of internal departments.

Key responsibilities

Know Your Customer

• Reviewing information related to KYC at onboarding, withdrawal or the updating of customer details, ensuring appropriate documentation has been received and approving updates.
• Reviewing watchlist reports with matches and verifying any discounted PEP checks / adverse media findings.
• Maintaining awareness of JMLSG / KYC  guidelines and legislation governing Customer Due Diligence and how they apply to internal KYC and Anti Money Laundering (AML) procedures.

Specialist Processes (Death Benefits, Power of Attorney, Ill Health Claims, and others)

• Conducting thorough research / investigations relating to specialist transactions and requests, both in writing and on the telephone, using strong attention to detail and ensuring all regulatory deadlines are met.
• Where documentation has to be reviewed and a decision made by PensionBee, presenting comprehensive and well informed findings with appropriate commentary and recommendations. 
• Liaising with our customers via telephone, email, and post, to complete relevant tasks. Always ensuring communications are clear. demonstrating strong yet professional empathy skills and proactively asking about communication preferences.
• Championing vulnerable customers throughout all work, always considering whether or not a customer or bereaved family member has the ability to understand, remember, and weigh up relevant information.
• Liaising with third parties, as appropriate, ensuring appropriate authority is held and third parties are directed only to relevant plan information or online resources. 

Compliance and Customer Success Team Support

• Communicating policies, procedures and guidance to maintain compliance with regulations, including rationale for requirements. 
• Training Customer Success Team on all Compliance and/or specialist related processes.
• Monitoring and responding to internal referrals, including answering and researching technical queries. 
• Acting as a dynamic team member, actively contributing to team meetings and Slack channels, engaging with delivery of overall team and customer requirements.

• Occasionally supporting the Transfer Out Specialists with provider, customer or adviser queries related to due diligence investigations or adviser information requests.
• Engaging with colleagues across customer facing teams and second line to provide support and guidance to help resolve incidents or potential incidents within operations. 

Process Improvement

• Making suggestions to improve compliance processes and documentation, with particular focus on risk mitigation and assisting the wider customer success team or customers understand requirements.
• Supporting new projects and initiatives form the perspective of the First Line Compliance Team.
• Helping to review, maintain and document all Compliance processes, working with Senior Compliance Manager(s) and Head of First Line Compliance.

Requirements

• Proven track record in dealing with complex or specialist administration. The ideal candidate will have at least 3 years of direct experience in pensions, including:

- General pensions technical knowledge (HMRC) and FCA regulations (essential)

- KYC requirements and Death Benefits (essential)

- Pension Sharing Orders, Early Access due to Ill Health, Powers of Attorney, Benefit Crystallisation and/or Transfer Out Due Diligence (desirable)

• Clear written and spoken English 
• Organised and detail-oriented
• Team player yet also a self-starter who is able to work independently 
• Ability to balance achieving the right outcomes for customers with remaining compliant at all times within the regulatory landscape
• Comfortable working 100% in line with internal processes, regulatory requirements and the PensionBee Trust Deed and Rules.

Diversity & Inclusion at PensionBee

We welcome all candidates and are proud to have been awarded Employer of the Year at the Financial Adviser Diversity in Finance Awards 2022 and Trailblazing Company of the Year 2024. 

We know the need to meet every criteria can sometimes get in the way of meeting brilliant candidates. We believe the right drive is often more important than degrees, so if you have an interest in the role, relevant past experience and are passionate about what we do, get in touch as we'd love to hear from you. 

Additionally, it’s not just about paying lip service but monthly celebrations of our differences and opportunities to learn more about our colleagues and friends; from our discussion on men’s mental health to our Pride Picnic. At PensionBee we're committed to provide equal rights, opportunities and treatment for all. We believe all companies have a duty to provide a supportive working environment for their employees and should be transparent. Here you can find our Gender Equality policy and Diversity and Inclusion policy which provide more information on our approach, including our commitments to flexible working requests and reasonable adjustments from day one. 

We want everyone to be able to access the same opportunity, and some people might need extra support to have this access. If there’s an adjustment we can make that would help you perform to the best of your ability during the application process, like using a computer during a task instead of writing by hand, or booking in time for a longer interview, please reach out to our Training & Culture Manager, Emma. You can contact Emma on emma.ferenc@pensionbee.com. 

Benefits

• End of year bonus and generous equity schemes

●     Fully remote working enabled environment and culture

●     25 days annual leave, 5 extra days for people with caring responsibilities and additional leave day for people living with a disability

●     Generous and transparent gender inclusive Parental Leave policy 

●      Pension scheme with 5% matching employer contribution

●      UK Healthcare Cash Plan, Thrive, SmartHealth Virtual GP, Income Protection Insurance and Enjoy Benefits

●     Regular company-wide sessions: CEO Session, Show & Tell and varied D&I agenda; giving you an opportunity to share your ideas and learn about other areas of the business

●     Happiness! Meeting: Every 6 weeks you will have the chance to speak with your manager about your well-being

●     A warm and motivated team working to make a real difference for our customers

Hiring Process 

1. Initial conversation with the hiring manager 
2. Written tasks relating to areas of specialism in First Line Compliance Team
3. Shortlisted candidates will have a structured interview (45-60 mins)

• Run through tasks
• General behavioural/competency interviews
• Questions are pre-determined to keep things consistent

4. Final decisions will be made and unsuccessful candidates will receive feedback.