**When you join Sallie Mae, you become a champion for all students.** We’re on a mission to power confidence as students begin their unique journey. To help them plan their higher education, successfully finish, and prepare for life after school. To help them Start smart. Learn big. Students need guidance navigating this important time in their life. They need someone who acknowledges that their education path is unique. They need a partner willing to evolve and not only meet but surpass their expectations. We’re changing. Because students need a better way. We’re looking for people who are excited to drive this transformation. To break barriers and think of new ways to adapt, help, and create better experiences for students—and for each other. This is where diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and perspectives matter. It’s where you’re empowered to bring your authentic self to work. Feeling your best allows you to do your best. Our benefits take care of the whole you—from physical and mental to financial and professional. You’ll get opportunities to further your education and career, support for you and your family (including your pets!), paid time off to volunteer for the things that matter to you, and more. We’re obsessed with impact and making a real difference. For us, that means putting relationships first, asking “why not?” when tackling challenges, and continuously learning new skills. Come do more than join something, change something. For students, for future generations, for the future of education. **What You'll Contribute** The Senior Director will join a small and very talented team in the Finance organization. The team provides analytical support for a number of high visibility functions ranging from company’s loan loss allowance and stress-testing activities to loan sales and securitization. The Senior Director will have the opportunity to manage established, but evolving processes and bring her/his own unique perspective on ways to create value and innovate. This individual will also have the opportunity to develop new and improve existing mission critical models and analytical frameworks. She/he will utilize broad expertise and specialized modeling knowledge to translate quantitative performance metrics into easily understood analysis for senior management. Make recommendations for process enhancements and development of alternative methodologies. As part of these activities, the Senior Director will also work closely with the cross-functional partners such as FP&A, Accounting, Financial Reporting, Treasury, Credit, Collections, and Risk to ensure model results and assumptions are being used appropriately. He/she will have the opportunity to present results to Senior Management. The Senior Director will work collaboratively with the Credit and Collection Strategies to stay up to date with the existing and emerging performance trends, changes to operational strategies, and policy changes. Business updates will need to be incorporated into cash flow results from time to time. The Senior Director will also play a key role in cross functional projects such as the launch of new programs, portfolio strategies, or risk classifications. Collaborate with peer groups to effectively plan, communicate, organize, and execute business objectives. Lead efforts to migrate analytical products to a common format and production environment. **What You'll Do** + Oversees SLM’s suite of prepayment and default models including in critical assumptions used in CECL, Financial, Planning, Stress Testing, Interest Rate Risk, and elsewhere in the organization. + Understands impacts of default and prepayment models on the allowance for loan losses (ALL), including evaluating the impact of macroeconomic trends, new strategies, and changes to underlying models. Identifies, analyzes, and supports significant assumptions used in credit loss models and ALL methodologies. + Evaluate allowance for loan losses forecast model methodologies, monitor portfolio key risk drivers, and present analysis to senior management. + Ensures that the models undergo periodic validation to show they remain accurate for use. Oversees the redevelopment or enhancement of the models to maintain their predictiveness over time. + Oversee the preparation of executive-level presentations and reports, presenting complex financial information in a clear and concise manner. Presents analysis findings to senior management and working groups governing critical assumptions and act as the subject matter expert on matters related to loan performance. + Work closely with Model Risk Management to ensure compliance to all policy requirements. + Provide leadership and guidance to a team of financial analysts, fostering their professional growth and ensuring high-quality deliverables. + Plans course of related enhancement projects, including milestones, use of tools and documentation. Maintains project tracking and report status to management. + Identify opportunities to reduce risk and increase efficiencies and develop and execute plans to take advantage of the opportunities. + Drive process improvements and implement automation tools to enhance efficiency and accuracy in financial modeling and analysis. + Develops analysis products to support projects that arise because of new loan products, operational changes and legislative developments. + Plans, directs, and organizes work of staff within respective team. + Provides coaching and guidance to staff. Effectively communicates performance expectations and performance against those goals as well as offer insights as to methods to achieve goals. + Assists new hires in on-boarding and training process ensuring smooth integration to team. _The above information is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by employees assigned to this job; it is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees in this role._ **What you have** Minimum education, skills and experience required. + Bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics, or a related field. 10+ years of modeling/analytics experience in the financial services industry. + Expert knowledge of financial modeling techniques and methodologies, including the capacity to understand and interpret complex financial and econometric models, in areas related to forecasting (including default and prepayment risk), scenario analysis, discounted cash flows, and sensitivity analysis + Excellent written, communication and presentation skills. + Exceptional proficiency in financial analysis tools and software, such as SAS and SQL, or related database language, Excel, PowerPoint and Word. + Ability to collaborate well with teammates and business partners and influence business decisions. + Strong business acumen and the ability to think strategically, understanding the financial implications of business decisions. + Proactive and results-oriented mindset, with a focus on driving continuous improvement and delivering high-quality deliverables. + Strong planning, organizational and follow up skills; ability to multi-task and maintain composure; strong sense of urgency. + Experience with CECL methodologies and accounting framework + Experience with regulatory communications and capital stress testing. Preferred education, skills, and experience. + PowerBI or Tableau data visualization skills preferred. + Master’s degree in finance, accounting, economics, or a related field, MBA, and/or CPA preferred. **The Americans with Disabilities Act** _The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) prohibits discrimination by employers, in compensation and employment opportunities, against qualified individuals with disabilities who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the “essential functions” of a job. A function may be essential for any of several reasons, including: the job exists to perform that function, the employee holding the job was hired for his/her expertise in performing the function, or only a limited number of employees are available to perform that function._ **Feeling your best helps you do your best:** **Our benefits take care of the whole you—so you can build your work around your life (not the other way around!).** + Competitive base salaries + Bonus incentives + Generous PTO, Floating Holidays and 12 Federal Holidays observed + Support for financial-well-being and retirement 401k with employer match + Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, hospital indemnity, critical illness, pet insurance and more + Employer paid short-term/long-term disability and basic life insurance + Flexible hybrid working arrangements. + Paid parental leave and adoption reimbursement programs + Free access to on-site staffed fitness centers (in Delaware) and gym subsidy (for locations outside Delaware) + Confidential counseling support (EAP), Health Advocacy services and Wellness program with financial incentives + Tuition Reimbursement and Family Scholarship Programs + Career development and training opportunities Not the right fit? Let us know you're interested in a future opportunity by clicking _Introduce Yourself_ in the top-right corner of the page or create an account to set up email alerts as new job postings become available that meet your interest! **Sallie Mae is proud to be an equal opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, genetic information, gender identity, disability, Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. Click here (https://salliemae.com/legal/pay-transparency-policy/)** **to view the U.S. Pay Transparency Policy,** **here (https://mandatoryview.com/?LicenceId=b723c601-1179-462b-a551-71dec216fdbf&ProductType=IntranetLicense&SubType=PG)** **for federal job applicant notices, and** **here (https://www.salliemae.com/content/dam/slm/writtencontent/Policies/CA\_Privacy\_Notice\_2023.pdf)** **to view the California Employee Privacy Notice.** **Reasonable accommodations are available for applicants with disabilities in all phases of the application and employment process. To request an accommodation please call (855) 756-2007 and choose option 9. All information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodations.** Sallie Mae is proud to be an equal opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, genetic information, gender identity, disability, Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. If you'd like more information about your EEO rights as an applicant, please click https://https/www.eeoc.gov/employees-job-applicants. https://https/www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/OFCCP_EEO_Supplement_Final_JRF_QA_508c.pdf. Click https://https/www.salliemae.com/legal/pay-transparency-policy/ to view the U.S. Pay Transparency Policy.