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Karen Pimentel

@karenpimentel1

Risk advisory consultant across financial institutions who built Patelco Credit Union’s ERM program and launched its RCSA program from inception.

United States

Message

At Patelco Credit Union, I led ERM program design and execution, creating governance frameworks and enterprise risk taxonomies aligned with regulatory expectations.

I built and launched an RCSA program from inception, with risk libraries, templates, rating scales, and alignment protocols. I also advanced GRC platform utilization from 0% to 80% and embedded risk appetite monitoring and committee-level reporting across business lines.

At Comerica, I advised business-unit risk officers and operationalized second-line frameworks into practical strategies. I led RCSA workshops and control testing, increasing satisfactory testing and audit results by 50%.

Across financial institutions including Bank of the West, East West Bank, and MUFG Union Bank, I worked on regulatory exam readiness, risk governance, vendor risk, and control remediation. I’ve also developed board-level dashboards, KRIs, and risk appetite reporting for executive and committee audiences.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Business Unit Risk Advisor, VP

Comerica

Jan 2024 - Jan 2026 (2 years)

Delivered risk governance advisory and coaching to 1LOD risk officers, operationalized 2LOD frameworks, and produced risk appetite monitoring and board-level dashboards. Led RCSA workshops and control testing, increasing satisfactory testing and audit results by 50%.

Risk Governance OCC Heightened Standards RCSA Control Testing Risk Appetite Statements GRC AI Issue Management Root Cause Analysis Executive Reporting

Enterprise Risk Management Lead, VP

Patelco Credit Union

Jan 2022 - Jan 2023 (1 year)

Led ERM program design and execution, built and launched an RCSA program from inception, and drove GRC platform implementation raising utilization from 0% to 80%. Established an Issues Management framework and developed KRIs and board-level dashboards.

ERM RCSA GRC Risk Appetite Statements KRIs Issues Management Root Cause Analysis Board Reporting Training

Principal Risk Analyst, VP

Bank of the West

Jan 2017 - Jan 2022 (5 years)

Identified and reported enterprise and business-unit risks, led new product assessments and incident management, and coordinated OCC, FRB, and FDIC exam support. Facilitated enterprise oversight forums and developed executive dashboards and risk-culture training programs.

Risk Analysis OCC Heightened Standards RCSA Third Party Risk Change Management Incident Management Root Cause Analysis Regulatory Exams Executive Dashboards Training

Risk Management Officer, VP

East West Bank

Jan 2016 - Jan 2017 (1 year)

Advised executives on risk identification, governance, and exam readiness; conducted business impact analyses and enhanced BCPs. Led KRI monitoring and issue validation, and directed regulatory exam and internal audit coordination.

Risk Management Governance Exam Readiness Business Impact Analysis (BIA)BCP KRIs Issue Validation Internal Audit

ACH Operations Manager, VP

East West Bank

Jan 2016 - Jan 2017 (1 year)

Established the ACH Origination department and control framework, authored policies and procedures, and led successful internal and external audits. Implemented KPI/KRI metrics and deployed BCP/DR plans.

ACH Operations Policy Development Internal Audit External Audits KPIs KRIs BCP DR迁移数据校验

Senior Vendor Risk Analyst, AVP

MUFG Union Bank

Jan 2015 - Jan 2016 (1 year)

Maintained the Third-Party Risk Management Framework and vendor lifecycle policies, conducting due diligence across financial, operational, cyber, legal, compliance, and resilience areas. Responded to regulatory inquiries and partnered with Legal and Business Continuity on contract risk mitigation.

Third Party Risk Vendor Management Due Diligence SOC Reporting Regulatory Response Contract Risk Analysis Business Continuity

Operational Risk Analyst, AVP

MUFG Union Bank

Jan 2013 - Jan 2015 (2 years)

Maintained the Operational Risk Framework and facilitated risk committees, leading RCSAs and new product/technology and third-party risk assessments. Monitored KRIs and risk appetite metrics, oversaw issue validation, and supported regulatory exams.