Financial Crimes Risk: Head of Control Functions Delivery - Vice President / Executive Director

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm that conducts its business through three principal business segments—Institutional Securities, Wealth Management (WM), and Asset Management. Morgan Stanley provides comprehensive financial advice and services to its clients including brokerage, investment advisory, financial and wealth planning, credit and lending, deposits and cash management, annuities, insurance, retirement, and trust services. 

As a market leader, the talent and passion of our people is critical to our success. Together, we share a common set of values rooted in doing the right thing, putting clients first, leading with exceptional ideas and a commitment to diversity and inclusion. Morgan Stanley can provide a superior foundation for building a professional career – a place for people to learn, achieve, and grow. 

Department Profile: 
The WM and U.S. Banks Financial Crimes Risk Team is embedded within the Firm’s business line. It is responsible for identifying, assessing, and escalating potential money laundering and reputational risk issues associated with higher risk client types. The WM and U.S. Banks Financial Crimes Risk Team is considered the first line of defense and supports the onboarding, enhanced due diligence, and negative news processes for Morgan Stanley.

Team: Technology Strategy and Solutions – Head of Control Functions Delivery
Technology Strategy and Solutions (“TSS”) is the internal team responsible for enabling and delivering technology solutions for the 1L FCR department. TSS partners with internal 1L FCR teams, Global Financial Crimes (“GFC”), Platforms, Technology, Operations and Business stakeholders to design, build, enhance, and support the systems that enable AML KYC, screening, onboarding, and other client-risk processes within the first line of defense.

TSS delivers end-to-end technology solutions for 1L FCR, including requirements development, conceptual design, functional specifications, user acceptance testing, deployment coordination and production/post-production support. 

TSS is organized into distinct delivery domains aligned to how work is executed and scaled across the business, including Enterprise Design, Channel Delivery, Control Functions Delivery, and Quality Oversight.

The Head of Control Functions Delivery oversees technology builds and enhancements supporting core AML KYC control functions under 1L FCR, including:
• KYC Office processes (e.g., enhanced due diligence, quality control)
• Risk and Controls processes (e.g., screening, customer activity reviews, governance)

This position requires extensive, proven experience in AML KYC and financial crimes control environments within a large financial institution. Candidates must demonstrate a track record of leading large-scale implementations, including a mix of technology builds and enhancements, regulatory-driven initiatives, program uplifts, global standards rollouts, and operational optimization efforts. 

The role demands seasoned judgment developed through direct experience operating in highly regulated environments, including the ability to make well-informed, defensible decisions and manage complex stakeholder dynamics across Business, Technology, Risk, Compliance, and Operations.

In addition to deep AML KYC and implementation expertise, the Head of Control Functions Delivery carries primary responsibility for supporting and advancing operational optimization efforts across high-volume control functions. This position is expected to lead thoughtful modernization efforts, including workflow refinement, automation, AI enablement, and data-driven enhancements that materially improve efficiency and scalability while preserving regulatory defensibility and control effectiveness.

Primary Responsibilities:
• Own the end-to-end book of work for the Control Functions Delivery team, including planning, prioritization, and execution across current-year and multi-year initiatives aligned to Firm and Division priorities
• Manage team capacity and resource planning to ensure appropriate skill alignment, workload balance, and delivery coverage 
• Lead delivery of system builds and enhancements supporting 1L FCR’s KYC Office and Risk and Controls processes, including platform integrations, workflow changes, system replacements, regulatory- and policy-driven updates, and other control-related initiatives
• Partner with cross-functional stakeholders across 1L FCR, GFC, Business, Technology, Compliance and Operations to define requirements and solution approaches
• Make day-to-day decisions on requirements, design, implementation approach, sequencing, and issue resolution across active initiatives
• Serve as the escalation point for delivery risks and execution challenges, ensuring timely resolution and forward momentum
• Coordinate release planning and align with cross-functional stakeholders to support rollout timing, communications, training requirements, and operational readiness
• Address production-related issues and post-release stabilization in partnership with TSS Quality Oversight, Platforms, Technology and Operations
• Drive workflow redesign, process re-engineering, automation, AI enablement, and data enrichment initiatives across control functions, ensuring measurable efficiency gains while maintaining regulatory integrity
• Lead implementation and scaling of approved workflow optimization and AI initiatives through build, deployment, stabilization, and ongoing performance oversight, including monitoring, tuning, and refinement as operational conditions evolve
• Ensure automation and technology enhancements are fully embedded within existing control operating models, including review layers, quality control processes, escalation protocols, and governance structures
• Oversee realization of operational efficiency improvements associated with workflow redesign and automation initiatives, including tracking of impact against defined performance targets (e.g., throughput, cycle time, reduction in manual processing)
• Maintain accountability for control integrity as processes are modernized, ensuring regulatory expectations, policy requirements and audit standards are met as operating models evolve
• Ensure cross-team alignment when initiatives impact other TSS delivery areas, including Channel Delivery and Enterprise Design
• Provide executive-ready reporting on portfolio status, risks, dependencies, and execution progress to senior 1L FCR leadership
• Represent the team in senior governance forums and support internal audit and regulatory engagements related to system and control implementation
• Lead and develop senior professionals, establish delivery standards and accountability expectations, and contribute to talent development and succession planning within the domain

Required Experience
• 12-15+ years of experience in AML KYC, financial crimes risk management, or technology delivery supporting control environments within a large financial institution
• Demonstrated track record of leading complex, large-scale implementations, including technology builds and enhancements, regulatory or policy-driven initiatives, and operational optimization efforts
• Experience managing portfolios of concurrent initiatives, including defining scope, sequencing work into phased delivery (e.g., MVP and subsequent release), and aligning multi-year roadmaps to business priorities
• Strong working knowledge of AML KYC regulatory requirements and how they translate into practical operating models, including onboarding, due diligence, screening, monitoring, and governance controls
• Direct experience leading workflow redesign, automation, AI enablement, or data enrichment initiatives within control functions (required)
• Demonstrated risk management judgment, including the ability to make defensible, risk-based decisions that balance regulatory integrity with operational practicality 
• Experience operating in matrixed environments and influencing senior stakeholders across Business, Technology, Risk, Compliance, and Operations
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Technology or a related field

Skills and Qualities:
• Strong risk-based decision-making capabilities in highly regulated environments 
• Ability to translate regulatory, policy and operational requirements into clear, scalable build plans and implementation approaches
• Demonstrated ability to structure complex initiatives into phased, executable delivery plans aligned to business priorities
• Executive-level communication skills, including experience presenting complex implementation plans and trade-offs to senior leadership and governance forums
• Strong ownership mindset with the ability to resolve issues, remove blockers, and maintain execution pace across multiple concurrent initiatives 
• Experience developing and leading high-performing teams, including mentoring senior professionals and establishing clear performance expectations

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM MORGAN STANLEY:

At Morgan Stanley, we raise, manage and allocate capital for our clients – helping them reach their goals. We do it in a way that’s differentiated – and we’ve done that for 90 years. Our values - putting clients first, doing the right thing, leading with exceptional ideas, committing to diversity and inclusion, and giving back - aren’t just beliefs, they guide the decisions we make every day to do what's best for our clients, communities and more than 80,000 employees in 1,200 offices across 42 countries. At Morgan Stanley, you’ll find an opportunity to work alongside the best and the brightest, in an environment where you are supported and empowered. Our teams are relentless collaborators and creative thinkers, fueled by their diverse backgrounds and experiences. We are proud to support our employees and their families at every point along their work-life journey, offering some of the most attractive and comprehensive employee benefits and perks in the industry. There’s also ample opportunity to move about the business for those who show passion and grit in their work.

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Expected base pay rates for the role will be between $140,000 and $205,000 per year at the commencement of employment. However, base pay if hired will be determined on an individualized basis and is only part of the total compensation package, which, depending on the position, may also include commission earnings, incentive compensation, discretionary bonuses, other short and long-term incentive packages, and other Morgan Stanley sponsored benefit programs.

Morgan Stanley's goal is to build and maintain a workforce that is diverse in experience and background but uniform in reflecting our standards of integrity and excellence. Consequently, our recruiting efforts reflect our desire to attract and retain the best and brightest from all talent pools. We want to be the first choice for prospective employees.

It is the policy of the Firm to ensure equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, age, sex, sex stereotype, gender, gender identity or expression, transgender, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, disability, marital and civil partnership/union status, pregnancy, veteran or military service status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Morgan Stanley is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversifying its workforce (M/F/Disability/Vet).