It goes without saying that you’ll be a strong technical accountant, but it’s also really important to us that you’re the kind of person who leads with integrity, builds others up, and helps maintain our culture of speaking up about problems or mistakes, and working collaboratively to resolve issues.

Role and Responsibilities

• Leading the management accounting function – delivering high quality financial and management reporting, analysis, and insight on a timely basis to help the business understand performance and make more informed decisions.
• Managing, coaching and developing the management accounting team.
• Supporting the firm’s ongoing growth and acquisitions strategy, including due diligence and post-completion integration of acquired law firms.
• Managing the annual budgeting process, forecasts as required, and improving the wider budgeting and forecasting process.
• Managing the production of key monthly performance reports to the business, assisting with business partnering with fee earning departments and individual fee earners, and ensuring appropriate revenue recognition.
• Managing the production of monthly management accounts – including reporting to fee earning teams, budget holders, business partnering with support managers, and ensuring integrity of the balance sheet.
• Assist in improving financial awareness and understanding across the business
• Building and maintaining key relationships with internal and external stakeholders such as the Managing Partner, management team, support department heads, banks, auditors, tax accountants, advisers, and suppliers.
• Managing the general ledger, month end and year end processes, the annual audit, and preparation of the annual statutory accounts. Ensure appropriate accounting policies are applied in accordance with FRS102.
• Overseeing firmwide bonus schemes.
• Managing partner drawings, tax reserves, tax payments, capital contributions, and assisting in profit sharing assessments.
• Overseeing and reviewing monthly staff payroll including payroll related tax reporting and payments (PAYE/NIC/PSA).
• Managing the preparation of tax computations (partnership and limited company) and ensuring VAT returns are prepared and filed.
• Overseeing banking matters, including bank reconciliations, cashflow forecasting, treasury management and financing (including partnership capital loans)
• Overseeing the purchase ledger function
• Ensuring appropriate and effective policies, procedures, and controls are in place and developed as the business grows in size and complexity
• Driving improvements of processes, procedures, and controls as required.

Other Information

We are looking for an experienced Financial Controller to join our ambitious law firm. The role will provide commercial analysis, insight, support and advice to the business to improve commercial awareness and financial understanding across the firm, help achieve revenue growth and profitability targets, and improve business performance. The role will work closely with the Finance Director and the wider Accounts department, as well as business partnering with group / department heads and fee earners as required.

Essential

• Experience providing commercial accounting support, business, profitability analysis, forecasting and budgeting in a professional services business
• Business partnering with non-finance staff, helping them understand and assess financial / commercial implications
• Ability to build good working relationships with all contacts both inside and outside the firm
• Excellent IT skills, including advanced Excel skills, experience of report design / writing, and using finance and accounting systems
• Senior accountancy qualification (eg ACA, ACCA or CIMA)
• Experience of annual audit process and FRS102 accounting with a focus on revenue recognition
• Knowledge of LLP’s/partnership accounting, partnership taxation and VAT
• High level of accuracy, numeracy, and attention to detail
• Well organised and able to work under pressure to strict deadlines
• Experience of managing and developing a finance team
• Strong sense of teamwork and hands on attitude
• Focus on continuous improvement and a pro-active approach to problem solving

Desirable

• Experience of working in a law firm
• Experience of working with Aderant
• Ability to design and run SQL reports
• Knowledge of Solicitors Accounts Rules
• Audit background

Benefits

• 25 days holiday (of which 3.5 are taken during the Christmas period), plus Birthday holiday, plus Bank Holidays.
• Buying Holiday Scheme
• Enhanced Maternity/Paternity Pay
• Life Assurance
• Private Healthcare
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Sodexo Discounts
• Pension Scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Cycle to work scheme
• Discounts on Legal work