As Head of Enterprise Operations, Europe, you will report to the Vanguard Europe Chief Operating Officer (Head of Operations) and work as part of Europe’s senior operations leadership team. You will have responsibility for building critical capabilities from the ground up and embedding the disciplines required to operate them in a complex, multi-jurisdictional asset management business. The role is highly visible, with material regulatory, operational, and strategic impact.
About Vanguard
Vanguard has a unique, client-owned structure which means decisions are made solely in the interests of our investors. Europe is a strategic growth priority for the firm, with both a Direct-to-Consumer platform in the UK and an intermediated retail model across Continental Europe. Both channels are extremely well placed to take advantage of the broader shift to indexing, and to serve retail investors directly through our own platform, or through DXO, wholesale, and other channels. We have an ambitious target to double European assets under management from approximately $500bn to $1tn by 2030. Delivering this ambition requires a resilient, well-controlled, and efficient operating model that provides confidence to regulators, boards, and clients while enabling sustainable growth.
Key Responsibilities
Designing, embedding, and maturing Europe’s operations management and governance system, ensuring clear accountability, effective decision-making, and strong risk ownership.
Leading Europe’s Operational Resilience and Business Continuity programmes, including scenario testing, impact tolerances, and severe-but-plausible event planning.
Owning and evolving Europe’s Third-Party Risk Management and Outsourcing operating model, including lifecycle oversight, resilience, and exit planning.
Building and leading a central controls office, responsible for control effectiveness assurance and control design advisory.
Leading Europe’s regulatory operations team, enabling Vanguard’s distribution of UK and Irish funds across Europe
Producing high-quality management information and board-level insight on Europe’s control environment and risk profile.
Acting as a senior interface with regulators and Boards.
Building and leading high-performing teams, uplifting organisational capability and embedding a disciplined, risk-aware culture.
Experience & Capabilities Required
Extensive senior leadership experience in operations, resilience, controls, or enterprise risk roles within regulated financial services.
Deep expertise in Operational Resilience, Business Continuity, Third-Party Risk Management, and control assurance disciplines.
Strong understanding of UK, EU, and Irish regulatory regimes with proven experience engaging regulators.
Demonstrated experience building enterprise operating systems, governance frameworks, or assurance functions from an immature or fragmented baseline.
Ability to communicate complex risk and control topics with clarity and executive impact.
Proven track record of building credibility, influencing senior stakeholders, and leading through complexity.
How We Work
Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.
