Senior Manager, Audit Quality & Risk Reporting in City of Westminster

We’re BDO. An accountancy and business advisory firm, providing the advice and solutions entrepreneurial organisations need to navigate today’s changing world. We work with the companies that are Britain’s economic engine – ambitious, entrepreneurially-spirited and high‑growth businesses that fuel the economy – and directly advise the owners and management teams leading them.

Audit quality is central to our strategy as an Audit Stream, the key ingredient to our success. Consistent high audit quality enables us to attract, develop and retain talented people and be proud of our work. Audit quality allows us to compete in the market and demonstrate that we can play a key role in market reform. Consistently high audit quality does not happen by chance. It requires a mindset and culture of challenge and professional scepticism, appropriate resources both people and intellectual, investment in central support for engagement teams and technology solutions. Within the last year we have increased our headcount significantly, invested in new partners, and commenced a significant investment programme in our central quality support team.

The work we do is underpinned by quality. We deliver audits which are trusted and transparent which can be relied upon by companies and their stakeholders. You’ll be someone who is comfortable working pro-actively and managing your own tasks, as well as confident collaborating with others and communicating regularly with Senior Managers, Directors, and BDO’s Partners. You’ll help deliver accurate and transparent reporting to all relevant stakeholders as you provide long term value.

This is an opportunity for talented, high performing and ambitious individuals to join the Audit Stream Risk and Reporting team in the Audit Quality Department (AQD) in an exciting period and help to shape the role and the expanding team. You will report into the Audit Stream Risk and Reporting Partner and work closely with Audit Stream Risk and Reporting Director.

The Audit Stream Risk and Reporting team is a growing team and provides support to audit teams when audit risk and contractual issues emerge on audit engagements and with audit reporting matters. The role will include providing the teams with proactive support to resolve the issue and involving specialists from the wider AQD team when required. As part of this supportive and knowledgeable team, you’ll have a chance to use and develop your technical skills to solve complex issues and contribute to the delivery of high quality audits.

The key responsibilities of the role include:

• Triaging and handling queries on form and content of audit report, engagement letters and other reporting matters.
• Review and approval of non-standard engagement letters, amendments to terms of business, hold harmless letters and NDAs.
• Advise on audit stream risk issues that emerge ensuring that the correct support is provided to the audit team and review of audit working papers when required.
• Approval of modified audit reports and non-standard audit reports including component auditor reporting.
• Take responsibility for ad hoc projects and ensure that all processes and controls related to audit stream risk and reporting are correctly implemented to support a System of Quality Management, ensuring that any remediation points are addressed.
• Proactively identify wider risk and reporting issues and implement policies and guidance to assist the audit teams.
• Write and maintain templates, manuals, guidance and articles for use by the audit teams.
• Contribute to audit quality initiatives led by the wider Audit Quality Department.

You’ll be someone with:

• ACA or similar professional accountancy qualification.
• Recent audit experience working on PIE and listed audit engagements or performed an internal role advising on PIE and listed entities.
• Excellent practical and technical audit risk and reporting experience.
• Ability to be objective and sceptical and to have confidence to challenge more senior members of an audit team.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a small team and able to use own initiative.
• Ability to think innovatively and creatively to identify ways to improve processes and guidance.
• Attention to detail.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, including an ability to communicate difficult messages.
• Takes personal responsibility and accountability for own work.
• An awareness of the UK regulatory requirements is useful but not essential.

At BDO, we’ll help you achieve your personal goals and career ambitions, and we have programmes, resources, and frameworks that provide clarity and structure around career development.

Mutual support and respect is one of BDO’s core values and we’re proud of our distinctive, people-centred culture. From informal success conversations to formal mentoring and coaching, we’ll support you at every stage in your career, whatever your personal and professional needs.

Our agile working framework helps us stay connected, bringing teams together where and when it counts so they can share ideas and help one another. At BDO, you’ll always have access to the people and resources you need to do your best work.

We know that collaboration is the key to creating value and satisfying experiences at work, so we’ve invested in state-of-the-art collaboration spaces in our offices. BDO’s people represent a wealth of knowledge and expertise, and we’ll encourage you to build your network, work alongside others, and share your skills and experiences. With a range of multidisciplinary events and dedicated resources, you’ll never stop learning at BDO.

At BDO, we help entrepreneurial businesses to succeed, fuelling the UK economy. Our success is powered by our people, which is why we’re always finding new ways to invest in you. Across the UK thousands of unique minds continue to come together to help companies we work with to achieve their ambitions.

We’ve got a clear purpose, and we’re confident in our future, because we’re adapting and evolving to build on our strengths, ensuring we continue to find the right combination of global reach, integrity and expertise. We shape the future together with openness and clarity, because we believe in empowering people to think creatively about how we can do things better.