Head of Risk – Energy Markets, Trading

Our client is a major energy company with substantial commodities and energy trading operations across Australian markets. They actively trade power, gas, environmental certificates, and related derivatives whilst managing diverse portfolios including generation assets, supply contracts, and proprietary trading positions. The business operates sophisticated trading operations requiring robust risk management frameworks, independent oversight, and deep expertise in energy market dynamics.

They are seeking to appoint a
Head of Risk – Energy Markets, Trading & Credit Risk
to lead the risk function for energy trading operations. This is a critical senior leadership role offering the opportunity to shape risk strategy, build high-performing teams, and directly influence business development. You will lead an experienced team through their next phase of growth, driving enhanced risk capabilities and system improvements.

The Role

As
Head of Risk – Energy Markets, Trading & Credit Risk
, you will lead the market and credit risk functions, providing independent oversight and challenge to energy trading desks while acting as a trusted partner to front-office leadership. The role balances disciplined risk management with commercial enablement, supported by strong governance and accountability.

You will define risk strategy, set risk appetite, and ensure frameworks and controls are consistently applied across all trading activities. Working closely with executive leadership and trading heads, you will challenge complex transactions, guide strategic decisions, and ensure exposures remain within approved limits. You will lead and develop a team of risk professionals, fostering high analytical standards, clear escalation processes, and a commercially focused risk culture.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Shape the strategic development of the energy trading platform through continuous evaluation and improvement of risk frameworks, metrics, and limits
• Establish and maintain risk appetite frameworks in partnership with executive leadership
• Act as trusted adviser to trading leadership, balancing prudent risk control with business growth objectives
• Drive enhancements to risk management systems, analytical models, and operational processes
• Build consensus with senior stakeholders for implementation of risk frameworks and governance structures
• Contribute risk perspective to business strategy discussions and commercial opportunities

Risk Governance & Oversight

• Provide independent challenge and assessment of complex trades, structured transactions, and new products
• Oversee approval processes for large transactions requiring escalated delegations
• Review and secure approval for risk frameworks on an annual basis or as required
• Ensure risk policies remain current and effective across market risk, credit risk, AML/KYC, and liquidity risk
• Maintain robust risk control environments across all trading activities
• Identify emerging risks and ensure proactive mitigation strategies

Market Risk & Credit Risk Leadership

• Lead the market risk function with full oversight of power, gas, environmental certificates, and carbon trading
• Monitor and report key risk metrics, including value-at-risk, stress tests, scenario analysis, and profit and loss attribution
• Manage the trading limits framework, including position limits, value-at-risk thresholds, and stop-loss mechanisms
• Oversee independent price verification and accurate valuation of trading positions and derivatives
• Lead the credit risk function, covering counterparty assessment, limit setting, exposure monitoring, and master agreement oversight
• Ensure governance of anti-money laundering, know-your-customer, and liquidity risk frameworks
• Maintain comprehensive awareness of risk exposures to provide informed challenge and support decision-making

Stakeholder Management & Influence

• Build and maintain strong relationships with front office profit centres, establishing trust whilst maintaining independent oversight
• Partner with trading desks on portfolio optimisation, hedging strategies, and risk-adjusted performance
• Communicate effectively across all levels of corporate governance up to executive level
• Prepare and present risk reporting to executive leadership, board risk committees, and senior stakeholders
• Manage relationships with external auditors, regulators, and risk committees
• Collaborate with IT, quantitative analytics, and portfolio teams to drive system implementations and model development
• Navigate organisational dynamics to drive risk initiatives across multiple stakeholders

Systems & Analytics Enhancement

• Lead the implementation and adoption of trading and risk management systems, working with IT teams to deliver target capabilities
• Oversee collaboration with quantitative and risk methodologies teams to implement appropriate asset and transaction pricing models
• Ensure your team supports front office in modelling Australian market positions within target systems
• Drive continuous improvement of risk reporting and analytics capabilities
• Ensure independent benchmarking processes for all profit and loss assessment parameters including market prices, forward curves, volatility, and shaping parameters

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead and develop a team of market and credit risk analysts, fostering high performance and continuous improvement
• Guide team members towards productivity and quality standards, driving engagement and retention
• Oversee resourcing and hiring, building team capability aligned to business strategy
• Provide coaching, mentoring, and career development opportunities
• Manage performance through goal setting, continuous feedback, and development planning
• Empower your team to own their responsibilities, ensuring accountability whilst maintaining open communication
• Build risk capability across the organisation through training and knowledge sharing

Requirements

Leadership Experience & Qualifications

• Tertiary qualification in finance, engineering, mathematics, science, or related quantitative discipline; postgraduate qualification highly regarded
• 15+ years' experience in energy trading, risk management, or commodities markets with significant progression to senior leadership
• Proven track record leading risk teams in sophisticated trading environments
• Experience managing teams of risk professionals with demonstrated success developing high-performing teams
• Demonstrated ability to influence at executive level and build credibility with senior trading leadership

Strategic & Commercial Acumen

• Extensive experience designing and implementing business governance frameworks and risk structures including frameworks, limits, and delegation authorities
• Proven ability to balance rigorous risk control with commercial enablement, acting as both partner and challenger to front office
• Experience contributing to business strategy discussions and commercial decision-making
• Track record leading transformation initiatives including system implementations and process redesign
• Experience working with multiple business units and stakeholders in complex change programmes

Energy Trading & Risk Expertise

• Deep knowledge of energy markets: power, gas, and environmental certificates
• Extensive power trading experience: asset portfolios, physical trading, derivatives, spot/balancing markets
• Expertise in power portfolio management and joint ventures between traders and asset owners
• Familiar with mark-to-market and accrual accounting
• Strong grasp of risk frameworks: VaR, stress/scenario testing, earnings-at-risk, stop-loss, economic capital modelling
• Experienced in independent price verification, valuation methods, and mark-to-market processes
• Credit risk management: counterparty assessment, exposure measurement, collateral management
• Broad understanding of market, credit, and liquidity risk
• Experienced with energy derivatives: swaps, options, structured products
• Knowledge of trading and risk management systems and analytics platforms

Stakeholder Management & Communication

• Exceptional stakeholder management skills with proven ability to build trust with front office whilst maintaining independent oversight
• Experienced communicating across multiple levels of corporate governance, comfortable presenting to board risk committees and executive leadership
• Ability to translate complex risk concepts into clear insights for trading and executive audiences
• Strong negotiation and influencing skills, able to gain support and commitment from diverse stakeholders
• Experience managing relationships with external auditors, regulators, and risk committees

Essential Attributes

• Strong analytical judgement with the ability to distil complexity into clear direction
• Proven ability to manage challenge constructively while maintaining effective relationships
• Clear communicator with the credibility to influence senior, diverse stakeholders
• Strategic perspective with an understanding of broader organisational dynamics
• Commitment to developing talent through coaching and capability building
• Commercial acumen balanced by disciplined risk judgement
• Resilient and adaptable in fast-paced trading environments

Please submit your CV and executive biography addressing:

• Experience leading risk teams in energy trading or commodities markets
• Proven track record in designing and implementing risk frameworks, governance, and transformation initiatives
• Skilled at balancing independent risk oversight with commercial partnership
• Demonstrated ability to influence executive decisions and build senior stakeholder credibility
• Leadership experience in developing high-performing risk teams
• Strong understanding of energy markets, derivatives, and trading strategies

For Further Information Contact

Ivan Pignataro | Director

D'Arcy Weil

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• Candidates must have Australian working rights prior to applying.
• This role is being managed exclusively by Ivan Pignataro at D'Arcy Weil.
• All conversations are confidential.