Data Solutions & Validation Sr. Specialist

About the team + role

We are building an elite team, applying frontier technologies to the world’s biggest financial problems. We’re looking for bold thinkers. Sharp problem-solvers. Builders who are wired to make an impact. Robinhood isn’t a place for complacency, it’s where ambitious people do the best work of their careers. We’re a high-performing, fast-moving team with ethics at the center of everything we do. Expectations are high, and so are the rewards. 

The Financial Crimes Team at Robinhood works across multiple verticals to protect our customers and ensure strict compliance with all relevant Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Sanctions regulations. As our team of passionate professionals continues to evolve the program, we are intensely focused on leveraging innovative thinking, advanced analytics, and cutting-edge technology to build a best-in-class Financial Crimes Program.

As the Senior Specialist, Model Validation & Analytics, you will play a key role in this mission by executing the validation, testing, tuning, and optimization of various transaction monitoring and filtering programs across Financial Crimes. You will partner closely with the AML Surveillance Team, engineering partners, and cross-functional verticals to ensure our financial crimes models and systems are accurately implemented, rigorously evaluated, and effectively calibrated to meet the diverse regulatory requirements of our domestic and international lines of business.

This role is based in our Denver, CO, New York, NY, or Westlake, TX office(s), with in-person attendance expected at least 3 days per week.

At Robinhood, we believe in the power of in-person work to accelerate progress, spark innovation, and strengthen community. Our office experience is intentional, energizing, and designed to fully support high-performing teams.

What you’ll do

• Model Validation & Review Execution: Perform independent, rigorous quantitative and qualitative analyses of rule-based and machine learning financial crimes surveillance models, filtering systems, and detection logic targeting model design, algorithm soundness, data integrity, and change management
• Technical Review & Remediation: Act as a technical bridge within a fast-paced fintech environment by leveraging a solid foundation in data engineering, data modeling, and infrastructure. Collaborate seamlessly with software engineers, data engineers, and data scientists to decipher complex logic, evaluate model implementations, test data pipelines, and support the remediation of model issues.
• Optimization & Model Tuning: Execute effective tuning methodologies and statistical analyses to continuously calibrate and enhance surveillance models. Work on strategic initiatives focused on maximizing risk detection capabilities while systematically reducing false positive volumes to ensure an efficient and effective alert review process.
• Logic & Data Integrity Assurance: Conduct comprehensive data validation and logic testing initiatives to establish a strong foundation of data quality. Ensure the completeness, accuracy, and end-to-end reliability of critical data pipelines and inputs feeding our compliance models, mitigating systemic risks and safeguarding the integrity of our transaction monitoring ecosystem.
• Subject Matter Expertise: Serve as a knowledgeable subject matter resource in AML and Model Risk, providing practical domain insights and supporting cross-functional partners in understanding model logic, performance, and risk trade-offs.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Build strong working partnerships across engineering, product, and compliance teams to ensure technical solutions are conceptually sound, effective, and aligned with our risk tolerance.
• Change & Issue Management: Uphold change and issue management policies for covered systems, models, and solutions, ensuring end-to-end traceability and maintaining defensible documentation for internal audit and external regulators.
• AI Strategy & Tech-Forward Adoption: Bring hands-on capabilities and experience leveraging AI tools, Large Language Models (LLMs), and automation techniques to enhance daily productivity, elevate deliverable quality, and optimize team workflows.
• Documentation & Reporting: Author thorough, concise, a