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Principal Associate, Risk Manager

Capital One
United Statesfull_timeVerifiedPosted 29 Jun 2026
💰 $137,900/yr($109,900/yr$137,900/yr)

About the role

Principal Associate, Risk Manager

At Capital One, models are the engines that drive our most salient business decisions. Capital One’s Model Risk Office (MROf) governs and maintains these engines to meet regulatory standards by defining the model risk management (MRM) framework and model governance practices for the company. 

As a Principal Associate, Risk Manager within the Model Risk Office, you will serve as a critical line of defense in ensuring the integrity of the models that power our enterprise. This isn't just about checking boxes; it’s about becoming a subject matter expert in Model Policy and applying high-level judgment to ensure our model inventory remains stable, effective, and compliant.

You will sit at the intersection of policy and execution, managing the controls that mitigate risk and performing deep-dive compliance testing to ensure our most complex tools meet rigorous internal standards.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

  • Control Execution: Rigorously execute both key and non-key controls to identify and manage risk within the Model Risk Office.

  • Compliance Testing: Conduct detailed testing of sampled models to verify they meet established policy criteria and regulatory expectations.

  • Policy Stewardship: Become a go-to expert on Model Policy, interpreting guidelines to provide clear direction to stakeholders. Become a go-to expert on our governance system of record, deep understanding of how policy is supported by the system and assist stakeholders with issues.

  • Reporting & Communication: Translate complex testing results into clear, professional business and technical write-ups for leadership.

  • Process Optimization: Actively identify "the better way"—finding efficiencies in existing workflows and control environments.

The ideal candidate for this role can be described as someone who is:

  • Technical Toolkit: Proficiency in Google Workspace (specifically Sheets for data tracking and Slides for executive presentations).

  • Communication Mastery: Exceptional business and technical writing skills. You can take technical findings and turn them into a narrative that influences stakeholders.

  • Judgment & Influence: The ability to look beyond a checklist to identify underlying risks and the confidence to influence partners to adhere to policy.

  • Ownership Mentality: A "full-stack" approach to tasks—taking projects from initial assignment to final delivery with minimal oversight.

Basic Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree or military experience

  • At least 5 years of risk management experience 

  • At least 2 years of operational or model risk management experience

  • At least 3 years of Project Management experience

  • At least 2 years of experience supporting, partnering and interacting with internal business clients

  • At least 3 years of experience using Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, with a proficiency in joining disparate data sets to analyze and solve challenges

Preferred Qualifications:

  • 3+ years of operational or model risk management experience

  • 2+ years of experience within financial services

  • At least 2 years of experience working with and applying the standards set forth in supervisory letters guiding model risk management, to include OCC Bulletin 2011-12 and FRB SR 11-7

  • Lean, Agile or Six Sigma certification


At this time, Capital One will not sponsor a new applicant for employment authorization for this position.

The minimum and maximum full-time annual salaries for this role are listed below, by location. Please note that this salary information is solely for candidates hired to perform work within one of these locations, and refers to the amount Capital One is willing to pay at the time of this posting. Salaries for part-time roles will be prorated based upon the agreed upon number of hours to be regularly worked.

McLean, VA: $120,800 - $137,900 for Principal Risk Specialist


 

Richmond, VA: $109,900 - $125,400 for Principal Risk Specialist


 

Riverwoods, IL: $109,900 - $125,400 for Principal Risk Specialist


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

Candidates hired to work in other locations will be subject to the p

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Company

Capital One

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