JAMIE COPAS
St. Cloud,FL
Summary
Energetic and dedicated Operational Risk Senior Manager with experience in enterprise risk management. Demonstrated expertise in risk identification, control creation, and effective stakeholder engagement. Skilled in performing thorough control assessments, recommending improvements, and ensuring timely and accurate implementation. Experienced in managing the Integrated Assurance Framework. Proven ability to collaborate across disciplines, provide guidance to multiple stakeholders, and drive continuous improvement.
Overview
27
27
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Manager Operational Risk Oversight
Discover Financial Services
Remote
07.2023 - Current
- Manage a team that develops and is accountable for the operational risk oversight program
- Provide support, coaching, development opportunities, feedback, and counsel to all team members
- Manage the development of team members by defining and assigning goals, conducting periodic coaching and feedback reviews, and administering annual performance evaluations
- Defines and executes the risk-based approach to independent risk assessments and oversight for the business
- Defines the monitoring and testing strategy to ensure effective oversight of the business and leverages the results from NFRM Testing COE to drive an effective risk and control environment for the business
- Execute operational risk advisory and effective challenge for programs across the Non-Financial Risk Programs
- Participate in and engage with business leaders in governance and management committee forums to help drive a culture of effective risk management
- Creates and updates status reports of program initiatives, activities, and nonfinancial risks to management and committees and escalate concerns and successes
- Leads a team of individual contributors and oversee the operational risk activities across the business in partnership with business line leaders, business line control leaders, and other second and third line leaders including compliance risk and internal audit
- Leads and participates in cross-team Non-Financial Risk department special projects and ad hoc analysis/reporting to senior management on operational risks
- Develops and coaches’ teams to be able to identify, manage, and escalate risk, and effectively manage risk within the teams you oversee.
Principal Enterprise Change Management Consultant
Discover Financial Services
Remote
07.2021 - 07.2023
- Drove organizational engagement for initiatives that drive Operational Excellence
- Includes but not limited to implementing the strategy and ensuring standards/processes are aligned to support goals
- Implemented and executed an Operational Excellence framework and provided solutions to value streams to implement the components
- Assess maturity against the Operational Excellence framework and develop customized action plans for each value stream to drive the highest value
- Improve capture, documentation of incidents and root cause identification; develop sustainable process to implement which value streams can execute
- Partnered with Business Units such as Business Technology to ensure quality of system development efforts and identify opportunities to enhance resiliency of Card technology infrastructure
- Identify effectiveness of operational risk management processes and develop controls to ensure adherence to risk management standards
- Coordinate with leaders of Operational Excellence initiatives across lines of business to ensure application of best practices and establish enterprise standards where appropriate
- Provided timely communication and transparency; work across key stake holders proactively communicating with all levels of the organization to drive implementation, execution and continuous improvement
- Shepherd key initiatives through the Change Management process
- Conducted focus forums for change process owners and Change Management toolkit users to introduce updates, collect feedback, and share best practices
- Held problem solving sessions to resolve blockers to effective change management
- Led Executing and evolving the Change Management Auditing program
- Conducted quarterly audits around Change Types accuracy, Artifact Validation and Quality monitoring
- Provide education around how to complete artifacts holistically
- Partnered with Bric, Legal and Compliance to limit and reduce Risk
- Educated Stakeholders on the execution of Change Management within Issues or Eprobs.
Product Excellence Manager
Discover Financial Services
Remote
02.2020 - 07.2021
- Created Product Excellence Framework
- Educated Stakeholders on Impact Analysis, Process Management, Testing and Monitoring, Launch Readiness Planning and Continuous Improvement
- Worked with Product Teams to Create Process Flows in Blue Works Live
- Created and Maintained the Product Excellence Playbook
- Educated Product Teams on how to create a RACI, Risk and Controls plan and gathering Voice of the Customer
- Created and Maintained State of Excellence Miro Board.
Senior Operations Certification & Support Consultant
Discover Financial Services
New Albany, OH
05.2016 - 02.2020
- Team Lead on Process Excellence and Process Improvement
- Responsible for configuration of the Release Compliance Tool
- Completed Participant Certification Testing; IMR, IPSE, CORE, DPAS, Ecommerce, Active Active, Central Submissions
- New Product and Release Certifications including Authorizations and Settlement
- Responsible for assigned projects from beginning to completion
- Managed the Participant IIC’s process
- Trained new peers on the DCI Certification process
- Created and updated SOP’s
- Managed all Central Submission Certifications
- Managed Compliance Reporting
- Chaired on Numerous Natural Work Groups
- Managed Salesforce, Visio, Six Sigma Lean Methodology training within the Department
- Certification of Issuers, Acquirers, Processors, N2N, Merchant
- Merchant Service Platforms; including but not limited to Interchange, Xpress, Exchange
- Implemented Change Management; eliminated waste and added automation
- Blue works Live Process Mapping SME.
Team Leader (Manager)
Discover Financial Services
New Albany, OH
07.2011 - 05.2016
- Responsible for Managing agents to prevent loss
- Administrative tasks not limited too but including corrective action, timekeeping and forecast scheduling
- Managed team/department contests budgets
- Managed attrition
- Trained new agents on department processes
- Developed team coaches
- Communicate with peers and other departments
- Used of MyHR, Workforce Management Tool, Kronos
- Managed High level of Delinquent accounts to charged off accounts
- Managed Discover Business Cards accounts
- Managed dialer and order of account campaigns
- Reviewed matrix’s and KPI’s with Team Leaders, Coaches and Agents in order to gain team unity improve overall results
- Reviewed Compliance Violations and Call Monitoring calls with Leadership and agents
- Conducted Customer Engagement round tables sessions
- Held Peer Call Monitoring Session
- Lead multiple teams with 20 plus direct reports.
Disputes Specialist
Discover Financial Services
New Albany, OH
10.2008 - 07.2011
- Responsible for assisting manager in daily duties
- Ensured assigned area maintains a high level of productivity
- Maintained motivation and high quality work ethic amongst co-workers
- Responsible for the care of merchant disputes ensuring our customers are completely satisfied
- Specialized in customer service and relations
- Assisted with the litigation processes
- Completed all cases within the disputes process to include but not limited to; Chargeback, Representment, Pre-Arbitration, Arbitration.
SSGT. Unit Diary Clerk (0131)
United States Marine Corp
10.1997 - 11.2001
- Served four years in the United States Military Maintain accurate records of payroll
- Responsible for various timekeeping duties
- Coordinated leave for over a thousand military personnel
- Maintained a high level of clearance and integrity
- Performed personal and general administrative duties
- Advanced in the MCTFS, OLDS, UD/MPS and ARMS Systems Maintenance of files, directives, and various audits.
Education
MBA - Finance
The Ohio State University
Columbus, OH01.2014
Bachelor of Science - Economics
The Ohio State University
Columbus, OH01.2008
Skills
- Certified Product Manager
- Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Certified
- Demonstrated analytical, critical thinking, and problem solving
- Excellent communication skills
- Convincing and persistent personality
- Outstanding leadership skills
- Experience in a role in a financial institution with experience of managing Operational Risk
- Program Auditing
- Managing work across organization lines to address competing priorities and achieve results
Timeline
Senior Manager Operational Risk Oversight
Discover Financial Services
07.2023 - Current
Principal Enterprise Change Management Consultant
Discover Financial Services
07.2021 - 07.2023
Product Excellence Manager
Discover Financial Services
02.2020 - 07.2021
Senior Operations Certification & Support Consultant
Discover Financial Services
05.2016 - 02.2020
Team Leader (Manager)
Discover Financial Services
07.2011 - 05.2016
Disputes Specialist
Discover Financial Services
10.2008 - 07.2011
SSGT. Unit Diary Clerk (0131)
United States Marine Corp
10.1997 - 11.2001
MBA - Finance
The Ohio State University
Bachelor of Science - Economics
The Ohio State University