Thematic Risk Assessment, RQA, Associate

About this role Business Overview Understanding and managing risk is the cornerstone of BlackRock’s approach to responsible investing. The Risk & Quantitative Analysis (RQA) group provides independent oversight of BlackRock’s fiduciary and enterprise risks. Our mission is to advance the firm’s risk management practices and to deliver independent risk expertise and constructive challenges to drive better business and investment outcomes. RQA promotes BlackRock as a leader in risk management by providing independent top-down and bottom-up oversight to help identify investment, counterparty, operational, regulatory, technology, and third-party risks. RQA is committed to investing in our people to increase both individual enablement and a strong collaborative environment. As a global group located all around the world, our goal is to create a culture of inclusion which encourages teamwork, innovation, diversity, and the development of our future leaders.  We actively engage in discussions on career growth and work with team members to understand how personal passions and strengths connect with our purpose. Who We Are The Thematic Risk Assessment team sits within the Enterprise Risk Management group (a Second Line of Defense function) and has enterprise-wide coverage through its risk and control assessment programs. The team’s Book of Work is crucial to both the “true-up” understanding of our enterprise risk and control landscape and facilitating the timely identification, analysis and treatment of gaps. These help provide assurance that senior management has defined and implemented controls that protect our clients and firm and support the achievement of firm-wide business goals within our risk tolerance. We strive to help senior management close the last mile with risk insights that are timely, reliable and trackable. What You Will Be Doing : Your primary responsibilities include: Perform independent evaluations of business-led self-assessments and independent data metrics (KRI/Near Miss Incidents/Industry Events etc ) to identify recurring risk themes and control weaknesses. Lead end-to-end assessments of targeted enterprise risks to uncover systemic patterns, blind spots, and early warning indicators. Identify and analyze cross-functional risk issues to drive consistent and sustainable improvements firmwide Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ideate and develop actionable solutions addressing identified thematic risk gaps. Example - Conduct in-depth assessments of critical risk areas, including but not limited to Cybersecurity risks /Concentration risks/ Access management controls / Incorrect Payment instructions etc Perform risk assessment activities that evaluate the design &/or effectiveness of risk management strategies, including independent testing of operating controls against industry standards and internal policies and standards. Perform and support thematic risk assessments that evaluate enterprise risks of interest. Build and maintain an internal repository to ascertain and quantify the potential risks of identified enterprise risk themes using tools such as (but not limited to) Python, Power BI, Excel, and SQL. Perform risk-based deep dives into identified areas of interest &/or concern. Partner with business stakeholders to discuss the thematic risk findings and their implications. Translate complex risk findings into actionable insights for stakeholders. Prepare detailed assessment reports highlighting risk priorities and control deficiencies or design gaps and proposing pragmatic recommendations for remediation. Perform independent reviews of control self-assessments performed by Control Owners, including supporting evidence. Support continuous improvements to enterprise risk and control assessment programs. What We Look For : The successful candidate should have a keen interest in performing risk and control assessments, analyzing data, identifying and managing risks, performing dat ... (truncated, view full listing at source)