Balance Recruitment Ltd
Senior Accounting Operations Manager
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Senior Accounting Operations Manager
London | 35 hours per week
About the Role
Take ownership of European accounting operations, strengthen controls and modernise the way a leading global law firm works.
This is an opportunity to lead and modernise the European accounting operations function of one of the world’s leading international law firms.
Responsibilities
- Reporting to the Director of Finance for Europe, you will oversee the firm’s European Accounts Payable, supplier onboarding, Cashiers and Cash Receipts functions.
- You will take responsibility for the accuracy, timeliness and compliance of these critical processes while leading and developing the accounting operations team.
- SRA Accounts Rules and client money compliance will sit at the heart of the position. You will act as the team’s subject matter expert, ensuring that processes, controls and reconciliations meet the required standards and provide a strong foundation for internal and regulatory audits.
- This is not a role for someone who wants to manage entirely from a distance. Alongside providing operational leadership, you will remain close to the detail and be prepared to provide hands-on transactional support when workloads, absences or competing priorities require it.
- A significant part of the role will involve strengthening the team’s capability. With two direct reports, you will identify skills gaps, introduce effective training and cross-training, and ensure resources can be deployed flexibly across the different accounting functions.
- You will also review and improve internal controls across cash handling, supplier management and disbursements. Working with finance leaders in London and across the firm’s European and Middle Eastern offices, you will help standardise processes and explore opportunities for greater regional consistency and shared-service working.
- The firm is keen to modernise its accounting operations. You will identify opportunities to use automation and AI-enabled tools to improve efficiency, accuracy and capacity while ensuring that appropriate financial controls remain in place.
- You will also establish meaningful performance measures for the Accounts Payable and Cashiers teams, using data to identify operational weaknesses, resourcing requirements and opportunities for further improvement.
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Requirements
- More than ten years’ progressive accounting operations experience, including responsibility for managing people and overseeing Accounts Payable, Cash Receipts, Treasury, Cashiers or supplier management activities.
- Expert knowledge of the SRA Accounts Rules and client money requirements is essential. Your experience will ideally have been gained within a UK law firm or another SRA-regulated environment.
- Ability to demonstrate experience of improving internal controls, developing team members and managing several visible priorities without losing sight of daily operational requirements.
- Experience using invoice and expense workflow software is required. Previous exposure to Coupa, Emburse, Elite 3E or similar finance systems would be particularly useful.
- An ILFM, ACCA, ACA, CIMA or comparable professional qualification would be strongly preferred, although a degree is not essential.
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What We Offer
This will suit an experienced accounting operations leader who combines strong technical knowledge with a practical approach. You will be comfortable challenging existing processes, supporting your team when necessary and explaining your recommendations clearly to senior stakeholders.
Application
Interested? Please apply now or contact Neil Gibbs at Balance Recruitment to discuss the opportunity. Do not worry if your CV is not fully up to date. Send what you have and we can deal with that later.
We are an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a fair, inclusive workplace and welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds. If you require any adjustments or additional support at any stage of the recruitment process, please let us know.
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