Head of Digital & Transformation Risk Section

Job summary

This leadership role is responsible for heading the Digital & Transformation Risk function within TRD. The position provides independent oversight, challenge, and assessment of technology-related risks created by the bank’s digital and transformation agenda.

The scope covers major change programs such as core banking modernization, data and AI initiatives, cloud migration, API enablement, and DevOps transformation. The role focuses on identifying risks early, evaluating them thoroughly, and ensuring they are managed across the full delivery lifecycle.

The section head also approves transformation risk assessments, validates risks in architecture and execution, and makes sure impacts to business value, delivery outcomes, and operational stability are clearly understood and addressed. In addition, the role contributes forward-looking views on emerging technology risks and supports executive decision-making so that change remains controlled, resilient, and aligned to value.

Key responsibilities

• Provide end-to-end oversight of transformation risk across design, build, testing, deployment, and stabilization phases.
• Engage early in programs to surface risks at architecture and design stages rather than only reviewing them later.
• Check that risk coverage is complete, robust, and maintained throughout delivery.
• Approve assessments related to solution architecture, system design, and integration approaches.
• Challenge decisions involving core banking and platform choices, API and middleware patterns, event streaming, and data flows.
• Identify exposure from system dependencies, tight coupling, integration complexity, and future scalability concerns.
• Oversee risk assessment for data platforms, data pipelines, analytics solutions, and AI-enabled capabilities.
• Set and approve risk frameworks covering AI design and deployment, data sufficiency, data quality, leakage, privacy, and regulatory compliance.
• Ensure strong data governance, including lineage, usage controls, migration accuracy, mapping, and reconciliation.
• Review DevOps, CI/CD, and engineering change risks, including code quality, peer reviews, release approvals, automation, and configuration management.
• Prevent untested or incorrectly configured code from reaching production environments.
• Review cloud adoption and infrastructure modernization risks, including security dependencies, availability, scalability, and vendor reliance.
• Assess program delivery risks such as skill gaps, resource adequacy, vendor dependencies, timeline pressure, scope issues, and complexity.
• Challenge execution assumptions and escalate material risks through the relevant governance channels.
• Evaluate whether transformation initiatives are likely to deliver the intended business value and ROI.
• Highlight value-at-risk caused by delays, design weaknesses, or control gaps and support prioritization and risk acceptance decisions.
• Represent TRD in governance forums such as Project Review Teams, Steering Committees, and executive meetings.
• Work closely with CIO, CTO, CDO, and transformation leaders to provide independent challenge and decision support.
• Ensure transformation risk outputs are aligned with Risk Analysis, Governance, and Resilience functions.
• Contribute structured inputs for enterprise risk reporting and dashboards, with clear traceability across TRD outputs.
• Align practices with SAMA ITGF, NCA, and other applicable regulatory expectations.
• Support audits and regulatory reviews, and approve responses to observations linked to digital and technology transformation.
• Continuously improve the transformation risk methodology and strengthen the team’s capability across architecture, data, cloud, and engineering.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related discipline.
• Professional certifications such as CISA, CISM, CGEIT, TOGAF, or similar credentials are preferred.
• At least 12 years of experience in technology, digital transformation, or technology risk within banking or financial services.
• Strong background in large-scale transformation programs, including core banking, data, cloud, and APIs.
• Solid understanding of modern technology architecture and delivery models.
• Working familiarity with regulatory frameworks including SAMA ITGF, NCA, SDAIA, and PDPL.
• Advanced English communication skills.

Additional information

This role is intended for a senior leader who can build a high-performing team and promote proactive, forward-looking risk management practices across emerging technologies and digital capabilities.

The function requires close coordination with cyber, governance, resilience, and enterprise risk stakeholders to maintain a consistent and defensible view of transformation risk.