Head of Data & Intelligence Protect: Fraud & Financial Crime

Location: Sydney, NSW, Australia

Create your best future and join Westpac as Head of Data & Intelligence Protect: Fraud & Financial Crime. 

What’s the role?

This is a rare opportunity to build and lead one of the most critical capabilities in the bank.

As Head of Data & Intelligence - Protect: Fraud & Financial Crime, you'll lead the data, analytics and intelligence capability that enables Westpac to better anticipate, detect and respond to fraud, scams and financial crime threats across the Group. At a time when threats are becoming more sophisticated and increasingly powered by technology, you'll create the strategic intelligence capability that helps Delivery Unit(s) keep our customers, people and business safe.

You'll lead the vision, strategy and execution of enterprise-wide data and intelligence capabilities that provide earlier warning of threats, improve the quality of insights and support faster risk-based decision-making by accountable business, operations, Fraud, Financial Crime, Cyber Security, Risk, Technology and Data & AI teams. You'll connect signals, reduce blind spots and transform complex data into actionable intelligence, recommendations and decision-support products.

This is a highly visible leadership role where you'll partner with senior executives to provide intelligence-led recommendations, evidence and prioritisation inputs that inform investment decisions and enterprise protection planning. Most importantly, you'll champion a prevention-first mindset by enabling earlier signals, sharper analytics and actionable intelligence that help accountable teams intervene sooner.

Accountability boundaries

This role sits within Data & AI and is accountable for the data, analytics, AI and intelligence capabilities that enable earlier prevention, detection, stronger insight and more informed risk-based decisions. It will be responsible for the integration of data signals, development of intelligence products, analytical models, dashboards and decision-support tools. 

The role will operate through a close partnership model with Financial Crime Risk, using agreed forums, decision rights and handoff protocols to translate financial crime typologies and regulatory priorities into intelligence requirements, while preserving Financial Crime Risk’s independent oversight, challenge and formal risk accountabilities.

What do I need?

To be successful in this role, you'll bring:

• Extensive executive leadership experience building and leading enterprise-scale data, intelligence or analytics capabilities that support fraud, scams and financial crime outcomes.
• Demonstrated success developing intelligence-led data and analytics strategies that support improved fraud, scam and financial crime prevention, detection and disruption outcomes by accountable teams.
• Deep understanding of fraud, financial crime and risk data ecosystems, including the ability to connect signals across multiple domains to generate actionable insights.
• Strong experience leveraging advanced analytics, AI and emerging technologies to improve detection quality, speed of response and operational effectiveness.
• Proven ability to influence and align senior stakeholders across complex organisations, often without direct authority.
• Experience operating within highly regulated environments with strong governance, risk, privacy and compliance requirements.
• Exceptional strategic thinking and decision making capability on best-in-class Data and Intelligence approach, with the ability to translate complex threat landscapes into clear intelligence priorities, analytical requirements and supporting business with recommendations.
• A track record of building high-performing teams and fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation and responsible AI adoption