Nancy Shanik
Group EVP, Chief Risk Officer, RBS Citizens Financial
In a little over two years, Nancy Shanik has completely upended RBS Citizens' risk organization just as outgoing CEO Ellen Alemany hoped she would.
Alemany hired Shanik in 2010 from the workout specialist firm Alvarez & Marsal, where she landed after three decades in finance, restructuring and risk management roles at Citigroup.
At RBS Citizens, Shanik has streamlined the number of risk committees from 33 to 10 and broken through the company's silos to manage risk across products rather than divisions, thus eliminating the "handoff risk" that occurs when oversight of a particular product or relationship shifts from one department to the next.
She also has introduced a concept she calls "affirmative risk-taking," ensuring that management understands and signs off on the risks before an action is taken.
