Tax Risk and Operating Model Lead (Singapore, UK)

Job Summary

This role could be based in Singapore and UK. When you start the application process you will be presented with a drop down menu showing all countries, please ensure that you select a country where the role is based.

The Tax Risk and Operating Model Lead is responsible for designing, maintaining and overseeing the Group’s tax risk management framework and operating model. The role ensures that tax risks are identified, assessed, managed and reported in line with the Enterprise Risk Management Framework (ERMF), the Operational Technology & Cyber Risk (OTCR), Financial Reporting Controls Framework (FRCF) and applicable internal tax policy and standards.

Define and maintain the end‑to‑end tax operating model, including process taxonomies, RACI, and clear roles and responsibilities across Tax and non‑Tax functions. Design, set and monitor tax risk thresholds, appetite metrics and associated controls. Support effective governance, oversight and escalation for all material tax risks globally.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy

Tax Risk Framework, Policy and Standards

• Own and maintain the Group Tax Risk Management Framework, ensuring it is:
• Comprehensive, principles‑based and aligned to the ERMF, OTCR and FRCF
• Consistent with regulatory expectations and internal governance standards.
• Draft, review and update the Group Tax Policy and all underlying Tax Standards ensuring:
• Clear articulation of tax risk appetite and mandatory requirements.
• Consistent application across regions, legal entities and business lines.
• Coordinate periodic reviews, approvals and implementation of tax policy and standards via appropriate governance forums.
• Act as Tax contact for engagement with Risk Officers (for Operational Risk assurance and stress testing), Compliance, and Internal Audit on tax framework, policy and standards related matters.
  
  

Tax Risk Culture

• Promote a strong tax risk culture across the organisation through:
• Training, awareness sessions and targeted communications.
• Clear articulation of expectations, roles and accountability.
  
  

Business

Operating Model, Process Taxonomy and RACI

• Design, document and maintain the global tax operating model, including:
• End‑to‑end tax process taxonomy for processes within and outside Tax
• Develop and maintain RACI matrices for material tax processes, ensuring:
• Clear allocation of roles and responsibilities within Group Tax.
• Formalised responsibilities with functions outside Tax (e.g. Finance, Treasury, HR, Operations, Technology, Products, Requisition to Pay).
• Lead engagement with non‑Tax stakeholders to agree responsibilities, hand‑offs and information flows for tax‑relevant activities.
• Ensure operating model documentation is current, accessible and embedded into BAU processes and training.
  
  

Risk Management

Risk Appetite, Thresholds & Monitoring

• Define and maintain tax risk appetite statements, metrics and thresholds in line with Group Risk Appetite Framework.
• Implement processes to monitor tax risk indicators and thresholds, including:
• Breach detection, escalation paths and remediation requirements.
• Periodic reporting of tax risk profile, breaches and emerging risks.
• Oversee the design and quality of tax risk and control assessments (e.g. RCSAs, key controls) and challenge their effectiveness.
• Support scenario analysis and stress testing for tax‑related risks where relevant.
  
  

Governance

Governance and Reporting

• Support Tax Risk Committee, preparing and presenting materials on:
• Tax risk profile, incidents, emerging risks, issues and remediation.
• Key changes to Tax Policy, Standards and operating model.
• Coordinate responses to internal and external assurance and oversight (e.g. Internal Audit, reviews) relating to tax risk.
• Maintain an effective audit‑issue and risk‑issue remediation log for tax, tracking progress and ensuring timely closure.
• Provide periodic updates to senior management and Board‑level committees (as appropriate) on tax risk and control environment.
  
  

Regulatory and Business Conduct

• Display exemplary conduct and live by the Group’s Values and Code of Conduct.
• Take personal responsibility for embedding the highest standards of ethics, including regulatory and business conduct, across Standard Chartered Bank. This includes understanding and ensuring compliance with, in letter and spirit, all applicable laws, regulations, guidelines and the Group Code of Conduct.
• Effectively and collaboratively identify, escalate, mitigate and resolve risk, conduct and compliance matters.
  
  

Key stakeholders

• Global Head of Tax
• Cluster/Country Tax Heads and Business Unit CFOs
• Risk & Control functions, Internal Audit, Model Risk (if applicable)
• Transformation / Technology and Operations teams
  
  

Role Specific Technical Competencies

• Tax Risk Management
• Organisational Effectiveness
  
  

Our Ideal Candidate

Essential Qualifications And Experience

• Professional tax and/or accounting qualification preferred (e.g. CTA, ACA, ACCA, CPA or equivalent).
• 10+ years of experience in tax within a large financial institution or Big 4 / multinational environment.
• Involved in transformation projects.
• Familiarity with Operational risk principles.
• Significant post‑qualification experience in tax within a large financial institution or Big 4 / multinational environment.
• Demonstrable experience in tax risk management, governance and operating model design.
• Proven track record of working within or alongside second line Risk / Operational Risk frameworks (ERMF, OTCR or equivalent).
• Experience leading cross‑functional initiatives and managing senior stakeholders across jurisdictions.
  
  

Core Skills And Competencies

• Deep understanding of corporate tax risk drivers and control environments in a financial services context.
• Strong knowledge of enterprise risk management concepts, including risk appetite, RCSAs, KRIs, issues & incidents.
• Excellent analytical, conceptual and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to translate complex tax and risk concepts into practical frameworks.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, able to produce high‑quality policy and governance documentation and present to senior management.
• Ability to influence and challenge constructively, working collaboratively with multiple functions and geographies.
• High level of integrity, professional judgement and sound risk mindset.
  
  

About Standard Chartered

We're an international bank, nimble enough to act, big enough for impact. For more than 170 years, we've worked to make a positive difference for our clients, communities, and each other. We question the status quo, love a challenge and enjoy finding new opportunities to grow and do better than before. If you're looking for a career with purpose and you want to work for a bank making a difference, we want to hear from you. You can count on us to celebrate your unique talents and we can't wait to see the talents you can bring us.

Our purpose, to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, together with our brand promise, to be here for good are achieved by how we each live our valued behaviours. When you work with us, you'll see how we value difference and advocate inclusion.

Together We

• Do the right thing and are assertive, challenge one another, and live with integrity, while putting the client at the heart of what we do
• Never settle, continuously striving to improve and innovate, keeping things simple and learning from doing well, and not so well
• Are better together, we can be ourselves, be inclusive, see more good in others, and work collectively to build for the long term
  
  

What We Offer

In line with our Fair Pay Charter, we offer a competitive salary and benefits to support your mental, physical, financial and social wellbeing.

• Core bank funding for retirement savings, medical and life insurance, with flexible and voluntary benefits available in some locations.
• Time-off including annual leave, parental/maternity (20 weeks), sabbatical (12 months maximum) and volunteering leave (3 days), along with minimum global standards for annual and public holiday, which is combined to 30 days minimum.
• Flexible working options based around home and office locations, with flexible working patterns.
• Proactive wellbeing support through Unmind, a market-leading digital wellbeing platform, development courses for resilience and other human skills, global Employee Assistance Programme, sick leave, mental health first-aiders and all sorts of self-help toolkits
• A continuous learning culture to support your growth, with opportunities to reskill and upskill and access to physical, virtual and digital learning.
• Being part of an inclusive and values driven organisation, one that embraces and celebrates our unique diversity, across our teams, business functions and geographies - everyone feels respected and can realise their full potential.
  
  

Recruitment Assessments

Some of our roles use assessments to help us understand how suitable you are for the role you've applied to. If you are invited to take an assessment, this is great news. It means your application has progressed to an important stage of our recruitment process.

Visit our careers website www.sc.com/careers