A&O Shearman
Financial Controller
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Financial Controller
Finance - Belfast
Achieving the firm's strategy requires a world-class Finance department to work with the decision makers. Our teams add value through the services provided, managing compliance and providing information and insight. This is achieved by having a collaborative and high-performing team that builds relationships with the Partners and other decision-makers in the firm so that they trust us to advise them on commercial, financial, and technical matters.
What you will do
The Financial Controller is accountable for the integrity, accuracy, and timeliness of financial reporting and controls across the UK & Ireland (UK&I) offices. The role leads the UK&I financial control agenda: delivering a high-quality close, maintaining a strong control environment, ensuring statutory and regulatory compliance, and partnering with senior stakeholders to support decision-making while safeguarding the firm's financial position.
The role and responsibilities include:
Leadership and people management
- Lead and develop the UK&I financial control team, setting objectives, coaching performance, and building technical and commercial capability.
- Build effective ways of working across locations, ensuring consistent standards and resilient cover for key processes.
- Promote a collaborative, inclusive working environment and act as a role model for integrity and professional judgement.
Financial close, reporting, and balance sheet control
- Lead the month-end close for UK&I, ensuring adherence to timetables and quality standards.
- Maintain the integrity of the UK&I balance sheets through reconciliation governance, substantiation standards, and timely clearance of aged items.
- Ensure appropriate accounting treatment for complex transactions, including judgement-based areas and policy application.
Statutory, regulatory, and audit delivery
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- Maintain overall accountability for successful delivery of the UK&I audit, providing oversight of planning, issue resolution, and sign-off, and acting as an escalation point for issues arising throughout the process.
- Maintain documentation, evidence, and governance required to support audit, controls testing, and regulatory expectations.
- Oversee the preparation and delivery of UK&I statutory accounts and related filings, including technical review and coordination of inputs, and approvals.
Control environment and governance
- Maintain and strengthen the UK&I internal control framework, including financial controls, approvals, delegated authorities, and key process controls.
- Ensure consistent application of finance policies and procedures; identify control gaps and implement corrective actions.
- Foster a culture of accountability, quality, and continuous improvement within the UK&I financial control team.
Stakeholder partnership and decision support
- Deputise for the UK CFO providing support and partnering.
- Lead and coordinate the UK Business Team budget process, acting as a trusted advisor to HR, budget holders, and FP&A to ensure budgets are delivered on time, to a high standard, and in line with central guidance.
- Provide strong controllership oversight, advising on risk, internal controls, accounting treatment, and governance matters.
- Identify emerging financial, operational, and compliance risks early, and develop pragmatic, proportionate solutions.
Systems, process improvement, and transformation
- Seek opportunities to optimize UK&I controllership processes: simplifying the close, reducing manual effort, improving data quality, and standardizing controls.
- Work closely with finance systems teams on improvements to ERP, practice management, time recording, and reporting tools, ensuring controllership requirements are reflected.
- Support finance transformation initiatives and ensure smooth adoption of changes to processes, controls, training, and documentation.
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What you will have
- Fully qualified accountant (ACA / ACCA / CIMA or equivalent), with significant PQE experience.
- Strong financial control background, including leading month-end close and owning balance sheet integrity.
- Demonstrable experience delivering statutory accounts and managing external audits.
- Strong technical accounting foundation (IFRS and/or UK GAAP), with proven ability to apply judgement in complex scenarios.
- Excellent stakeholder management skills; able to communicate clearly to non-finance audiences and influence outcomes.
- Strong leadership capability: sets standards, drives accountability, and develops high-performing teams.
- Process mindset: comfortable improving controls, streamlining processes, and working with systems/data.
- High levels of integrity, resilience, and attention to detail; able to manage competing priorities in a deadline-driven environment.
You will stand out if you bring
- Professional services / partnership environment experience (law firm experience beneficial).
- Exposure to multi-site operations and matrix reporting (local + group).
Should you require additional support at any stage of the recruitment process due to a disability or a health condition, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our recruitment team who will work with you to provide any adjustments as required.
We are an equal opportunities recruiter and do not discriminate on the basis of race, colour, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or any other protected characteristic.
NO AGENCIES PLEASE - A&O Shearman does not accept unsolicited CVs.
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