Head of Middle Office - Trading

We’re making zero carbon happen

We’re OVO Group, a big family of companies united by a single vision: to get to zero carbon, fast. 

We call this Plan Zero – and it shows how we’ll be fighting the climate crisis and transforming the way people use energy over the next decade. To do this, we need the sharpest minds. Are you up for the challenge?

Do great green things with OVO Energy

So much has changed since we launched in 2009.  Our goal remains the same though: make energy cheaper, greener, and simpler. Just as it was on day one.

Everyone belongs at OVO

Our aim is to build a diverse and inclusive movement: teams of brilliant people, with unique talents, skills, passions, and experiences. 

We encourage everyone to join us, whatever your gender identity, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, life experience, or background. So please come as you are – we can’t wait to meet you.

Where in the world of OVO will I be working?

 

As part of the Trading & Portfolio Management (TPM) function, this role will report directly into the VP of Trading & Portfolio Management, with an additional dotted reporting line in the Head of Risk.  The role holder will be responsible for owning, developing and operating robust middle office policies, processes and controls to ensure that the key risks to OVO profitability are being effectively managed by the TPM team.  With annual wholesale costs in excess of £10bn in 2022, it is critical that our wholesale trading activities are effectively managed and monitored and that we have robust systems and business processes in place to achieve this.  This role will be responsible for closely monitoring all activities across TPM and raising any concerns with the Head of Risk and the Senior Leadership Team.

OVO’s TPM function is a dynamic and fast paced environment.  This will give you the opportunity to build relationships across all areas of the business and to help to ensure that key internal stakeholders have a clear understanding of the opportunities and risks associated with Wholesale Energy Trading. You will need to be confident being an Industry Expert within the business in this area and sharing and communicating that knowledge with others.

Key responsibilities for the will include but are not limited to:-

TEAM MANAGEMENT

• Line management of up to four Risk Analysts / Assurance Leads and prioritising workload for the team
• Chair the “Risks and Controls” section of the Monthly Trading Risk Committee Meeting, ensuring that senior leadership are aware of the risks to profitability and the decisions taken on how to mitigate them

RISK POLICY AND LIMITS

• Work with Risk Function to agree, document and maintain a TPM Risk Appetite statement that is aligned with the risk appetite of the board
• Own and maintain a “Market Risk Register” that identifies all material external risks to profitability, approximates the potential downside and captures agreed action plans to further mitigate risk where appropriate
• Own the Trading Risk Policy and Limits agreed with OVO’s exclusive wholesale market access provider, ensuring that policy remains fit for purpose and that any excursions outside limits are reported and rectified in line with agreed processes.
• Develop and own an internal Trading Risk Policy & Limits that define range of assumptions and hedge strategies that can adopted within TPM and the open positions that we are willing to hold at any point in time
• Assess the competency of Traders and Decision Makers within TPM and propose risk limits and delegations of authority limits to the Risk Committee for approval
• Create daily position and trader activity reports to ensure that TPM remains compliant with all limits and policies
• Run and monitor daily VaR reporting and escalate any concerns regarding open positions held
• Escalating any concerns that any TPM strategies, processes or decision making process may be misaligned with the agreed Risk Appetite and Risk Policies to the Head of RIsk and the Retail Senior Leadership Team

TRADE CONFIRMATION AND SETTLEMENT

• Own and operate business processes to ensure all Wholesale Energy Trades are confirmed with external counterparties
• Own and operate business processes to reconcile forward wholesale energy hedge positions with external counterparties
• Review and approve wholesale energy invoices from external counterparties

CREDIT RISK

• Develop and own a robust Credit Risk Policy to allocate credit limits to external Trading Counterparties
• Monitor Counterparty Credit positions against Policy and take appropriate actions when exposures approach or exceed limits

PROCESS ASSURANCE

• Coordinate the update of a TPM  “Operational Risk Register” that identifies that key process risks across all key TPM processes and captures the agreed action plans to mitigate these risks
• Coordinate the mapping of core processes and controls and the identification of potential improvements
• Coordinate the identification and review of process issues across TPM and ensure progress of agreed actions to rectify the issue
• Lead and/or support ad hoc process improvement projects as required

REVIEW HEDGE STRATEGIES, ANALYSIS AND DATA

• Provide independent review and sign off of material changes to the modelling approach and / or risk mitigation strategies being adopted across TPM.  This will include;
• Retail Hedge Strategies
• Demand Forecast Assumptions and Methodologies
• Retail / Trading Transfer Price Mechanisms
• Forward Curve Price Inputs and methodologies
• Trading P&L reporting
• Retail Hedge Strategy performance reporting
• Structured deal valuations
• Month end wholesale cost recognition
• Wholesale cost inputs into Financial Forecasting process

 

Is this the job for me?

• Experience of developing and operating a risk management framework within energy or a related sector
• Experience of leading an analytical team
• You will also need to be an Energy Industry expert with a deep understanding of how the industry functions and the drivers of wholesale energy costs and risks for Suppliers

• You will need to be a numbers person, confident in dealing with large data sets and extracting key insight & results

• Experience with data analysis through advanced Excel knowledge and/or using programming languages (eg. Python)
• Experience with working with SQL queries

• You will need the ability to learn quickly in order to develop a detailed understanding of current models and processes, the energy market and our wholesale energy risk management activities
• You will need to be able to take the initiative in addressing complex challenges. 
• Demonstrable high attention to detail.
• Strong communication skills.
• A team player who thrives in a challenging environment.
• Flexibility; willing to contribute on a range of work aspects.
• Commercial awareness to support prioritisation and communication at a senior level.
• Self-starter, comfortable working both autonomously and with colleagues to deliver value in a small, high-functioning team.

 

 

 

 

Brilliant benefits for a world-changing team

Our people are at the heart of Plan Zero. That’s why we offer plenty of green benefits and progressive policies to make you feel at home.

For starters, you’ll get 34 days of holiday (including bank holidays).

Then there’s Flex Pay. It’s an extra 9% of your salary on top of your core pay to use as you like. You can take it as cash, add to your pension, or choose to spend it on a huge range of flex benefits.

Here’s a taster of what’s on offer:

For your health
With benefits like a healthcare cash plan or private medical insurance depending on your career level, critical illness cover, life assurance, health assessments, and more

For your wellbeing
With gym membership, gadget, travel and cyber insurance, workplace ISA, will writing services, DNA testing, dental insurance, and more

For your lifestyle
With extra holiday buying, discount dining, culture cards, tech loans, and supporting your favourite charities with give-as-you-earn donations

For your home 
Get up to £300 off any OVO Energy plan (when you pay by Direct Debit), plus personal carbon offsetting and great discounts on smart thermostats and EV chargers

For your commute
Nab a great deal on ultra-low emission car leasing, plus our cycle to work scheme and public transport season ticket loans 

Want to hear about our full range of flexible benefits and progressive people policies? Our People Team can tell you everything you need to know.

Oh, and one last thing...

We’d be thrilled if you tick off all our boxes yet we also believe it’s just as important we tick off all of yours. And if you think you have most of what we’re looking for but not every single thing, go ahead and hit apply. We’d still love to hear from you!