Governance & Change Risk Manager

Who We Are: Africa Specialty Risks (ASR) is enabling sustainable economic development by fulfilling unmet insurance needs. Our platform provides local underwriting expertise, an unparalleled distribution network and access to global capacity. Founded in the heart of Africa and with offices across the continent and the Middle East, we provide regional market knowledge, data insights, and technical proficiency for capital partners who are looking to increase their presence in growth markets. We also participate on each and every risk we underwrite with balance sheets in Bermuda, Mauritius and through Syndicate 2454 at Lloyd’s. ASR is committed to accelerating business growth by providing customised service and innovative insurance products to enable development. Role Purpose: The role holder will provide Africa Specialty Risks (ASR)'s governance, company secretarial and risk management capability across relevant jurisdictions. The role holder will act as a trusted adviser to senior leadership, working closely with the Head of Risk, Risk Manager, Executive, Board and Committee stakeholders. The role combines practical company secretarial delivery with three complementary risk responsibilities: providing second line oversight of programmes and projects delivered by the first line; delivering risk-owned projects and subprojects through to hand-over to operations; and providing operational risk governance cover where needed. Role Responsibilities: Board & Committee Support Lead the planning and delivery of Board and Committee meetings, including agendas, papers, minutes, action logs and decision records. Manage governance standards, information flows, minute quality and follow-up of agreed actions. Run Board effectiveness reviews and deliver agreed governance improvements with relevant stakeholders. Maintain a clear governance calendar for meetings, filings, approvals, policy reviews and key statutory matters. Record Board and Committee decisions accurately and track agreed actions through to completion. Support Board member onboarding and training on governance, statutory and entity-specific requirements. Entity Management and Statutory Records Maintain accurate records, including constitutional documents, statutory registers, share records, directors' details, powers of attorney and delegated authority records. Manage statutory filings, regulatory notifications and corporate approvals across relevant jurisdictions, using local advisers where needed. Keep governance and statutory records secure, organised and accessible. Alongside these governance and company secretarial responsibilities, the role provides second line oversight of programme and project change. Second Line Oversight of Programme and Project Change Provide independent second line oversight, challenge and guidance in respect of programmes and projects owned and delivered by the first line, in line with ASR's Three Lines of Defence model. Establish and prioritise proportionate second line oversight arrangements for first line change initiatives, based on their materiality, complexity and delivery risk. Review and challenge project risks, assumptions, issues and dependencies (RAID) logs, materiality assessments, stage-gate submissions, risk escalations and delivery risk reports prepared by project managers and first line owners. Report the second line risk view on proposed and ongoing projects to the Change Committee, Risk Management Committee, Board and other relevant Committees, as required. Reporting should focus on material project risks and delivery status. Feed change and project risk considerations into the Enterprise Risk Management Framework, including linking project delivery risk to enterprise risks and controls. Delivery of Risk-led Projects and Hand-over to Operations Lead the delivery of assigned projects and subprojects owned by the Risk function, and support other Risk-led change initiatives as required. These may include implementing risk management systems, migrate risk registers and enhance risk oversight tools. Plan and manage delivery of risk-owned (sub)projects, including scope, milestones, resourcing, dependencies and stakeholder engagement. Maintain project documentation, business cases, RAID logs and governance records to support a clear audit trail for risk-led change activity. Plan and coordinate the hand-over of completed Risk-led projects to Operations, including approved documentation, training, agreed business-as-usual ownership and any outstanding actions or risks. Capture lessons learned from risk-led project delivery and feed improvements back into risk and change processes. Operational Risk Cover Provide operational risk governance cover, including support for risk and control assessments, risk event reporting and Risk Management Committee activities. Monitor operational risk and governance developments relevant to programme and project change, translating them into practical actions for ASR. Support risk-based reviews, counterparty assessments and governance reviews alongside relevant business teams as capacity requires. Prepare, maintain and update procedures, controls and records to support a clear audit trail for change, project and operational risk governance activities. Skills & Experience: Essential: Strong drafting skills across Board and Committee papers, minutes, risk reports and action logs. Experience across governance, company secretarial and risk management roles in financial services, with exposure to programme or project change. Sound knowledge of enterprise risk management, corporate governance, statutory records and Board and Committee administration. Practical knowledge of project delivery, including risks, assumptions, issues and dependencies (RAID) logs, stage gates, business cases and change governance, with the confidence to provide second line challenge. Proficient in Microsoft 365, Board portal software and appropriate artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled tools. Desirable: Experience of multi-jurisdictional governance, overseas corporate regimes or cross-border entity management. Chartered Governance Institute (CGI), Institute of Risk Management (IRM) or equivalent qualification, or progress towards one. Experience in insurance, reinsurance, the Lloyd’s market, a Managing General Agent (MGA), underwriting, claims or risk governance. Programme or project management experience, including governance, business cases, benefits management and hand-over into business-as-usual operations. Exposure to Risk Frameworks, Key Risk Indicators (KRIs), Risk and Control Assessments (RCAs), Emerging Risks and Own Risk and Solvency Assessment (ORSA) processes. Experience working across multilingual environments.