Director of Lending Risk & Analytics

Our Sacramento-based client is seeking a data-driven leader to serve as Director of Lending Risk & Analytics to support a contract project. This high-impact role will support the consumer lending portfolio by driving risk strategy, optimizing performance, and enhancing member experience through advanced analytics and cross-functional collaboration. 

The ideal candidate will have prior leadership in retail bank lending overseeing risk & analytics with hands-on coding skill and thought leadership from a banking risk perspective, as well data driven strategy analysis in banking analytics required

• Pay Range: $70-78/hour 
• Hybrid work (must be in Sacramento area.)  
• Contract: Approx. 6-months with possibility for hire at the conclusion of the project.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead the development and execution of strategies to assess, manage, and mitigate risks across credit, fraud, retention, and pricing for consumer lending products.
• Oversee customer segmentation, lifetime value analysis, and performance reporting to inform strategic decisions and optimize acquisition, retention, and satisfaction.
• Ensure adherence to industry regulations and internal risk controls, maintaining operational integrity and compliance across all consumer lending activities.
• Identify and implement opportunities to automate and streamline risk-related processes, enhancing efficiency and member experience.
• Partner with product, finance, operations, IT, and marketing teams to align risk strategies with business goals and foster effective execution.
• Guide and mentor analytics and risk teams, promote professional development, and represent the organization in external engagements and industry forums.
• Contribute to credit risk committee planning, oversee departmental budgets, and support strategic planning through data-driven recommendations.

SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS:

• Holds a Bachelor's degree in a quantitative discipline, supporting strong analytical capabilities essential for banking industry roles.
• Brings over 10 years of experience in analytics and risk management, with a proven track record in banking retail lending—covering both origination and portfolio management.
• Demonstrates strategic thinking and execution in fast-paced environments, consistently aligning risk strategies with business goals across varying macroeconomic conditions.
• Possesses deep knowledge of credit, operational, and market risks within retail financial products, and applies data-driven insights to inform product, pricing, and marketing strategies.
• Communicates complex analytics with clarity and impact, influencing cross-functional teams, vendors, and stakeholders through strong leadership and collaboration.
• Proficient in SAS, R, SQL, and Python, enabling advanced data manipulation, modeling, and automation to support risk strategy and portfolio optimization.