Legal, Corporate Governance, Associate, Birmingham

Our Impact

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is a leading global financial services firm providing investment banking, securities and investment management services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high-net-worth individuals. The firm is headquartered in New York and maintains offices in London, Birmingham, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Hong Kong and other major cities around the world. The Goldman Sachs Legal Division works at the intersection of finance and law, providing counsel and advice that support activities across the firm. This opportunity is to work in the Goldman Sachs UK Corporate Governance Team ("CGT") in Birmingham, within the Goldman Sachs EMEA Legal Division. The CGT currently comprises a team of five, three based in London and two based in Birmingham. A senior lawyer manages the team. The CGT is responsible for the corporate administration of all the Goldman Sachs UK entities and branches and a number of overseas entities, including in the Middle East. These entities include regulated UK companies, for whom the CGT manages the Board and Board committees. CGT is part of the International Corporate Governance Team responsible for all of the Goldman Sachs legal entities (excluding the US).

Your Impact

This interesting position will provide an opportunity to deliver expert support for, and gain an in-depth understanding of, the corporate duties undertaken by Goldman Sachs in the UK. The successful applicant will be part of a small, professional team, focused on teamwork, ownership and high performance. This role requires the ability to manage a diverse and complex workload, meet tight deadlines, and thrive on the pressures of delivering consistently high-quality professional services, in a dynamic and constantly evolving business environment. Goldman Sachs continues to build out its presence in Birmingham, so the applicant will join a growing highly-skilled Legal team in a world-class workplace, focused on collaboration, productivity and sustainability.

Responsibilities

• Providing company secretarial services to all the GS UK entities and branches and several overseas entities, which includes assisting with the documentation for, attending and minuting board/committee meetings for key regulated entities.
• Liaising with other divisions (risk, compliance, regulatory liaison, executive office) to ensure the smooth running of the boards and committees of these Goldman Sachs entities.
• Advising on and assisting with the execution of various corporate actions for the UK entities (and others in EMEA) including director changes, accounts approvals, capital transactions and the establishment or closure of entities.
• Maintaining accurate entity and director records, assisting with processing key returns to Companies House, and maintaining the PSC register.
• Responding to numerous requests for timely entity and director information, including for KYC enquiries, transaction completion, internal and external auditors and regulators.
• Providing secretary's certificates, delegated signing authorities and advising on powers of attorney and on the execution of documents.
• Identifying, analysing and helping implement emerging corporate governance developments.
• Maintaining regular contact and coordination with external counsel and notaries as well as senior members and relevant groups throughout the firm.
• Assisting in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the CGT, through streamlining processes, technology solutions (including Artificial Intelligence), building collaboration and alignment globally, developing and maintaining processes, policies and systems and sharing good practices.

Skills / Experience

• Experience of working in a global financial or professional services company secretarial role will be advantageous, however relevant company secretarial experience gained in other industry sectors will be considered.
• Working knowledge of Companies Act 2006 and corporate governance principles, experience managing multiple entities and dealing with all aspects of company secretarial practice.
• Experience in preparing for, attending and minuting board and committee meetings, including agenda setting, preparation of board packs and liaison with presenters is highly desirable.
• Entity management experience and exposure to managing multiple entities.
• Practical experience of using Diligent, e-filing at Companies House and other online resources.
• Proven track record of teamwork, ownership and most importantly high performance.
• Comfortable going that extra mile to do the best job possible.
• Excellent interpersonal and communications skills and willingness to be part of a team.
• Proven excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
• Able to work independently and manage deadlines and work well under pressure in a fast-paced environment.
• Enthusiasm, flexibility, proactive nature, and an interest in company secretarial matters and the business of the various business divisions at Goldman Sachs.

Competencies

• Functional Expertise - Keeps up-to-date with emerging business, economic, and market trends.
• Attention to Detail and Organisation - Demonstrates ability to manage multiple projects and workstreams in a dynamic and constantly evolving business environment, thinks proactively about what needs to be done, meets deadlines and manages stakeholders.
• Technical Skills - Demonstrates strong technical skills required for the role, pays attention to detail, takes initiative to broaden his/her knowledge and demonstrates appropriate financial/analytical skills.
• Drive and Motivation - Proven track record of teamwork, ownership and most importantly high performance. Comfortable working in a small team with numerous time critical demands. Successfully handles multiple tasks, takes initiative to improve his/her own performance, works intensely towards extremely challenging goals and persists in the face of obstacles or setbacks.
• Client and Business Focus - Effectively handles difficult requests, builds trusting, long-term relationships with clients, helps the client to identify/define needs and manages client/business expectations. Comfortable going that extra mile to do the best job possible.
• Teamwork - Gives evidence of being a strong team player, collaborates with others within and across teams, encourages other team members to participate and contribute and acknowledges others' contributions.
• Communication Skills - Communicates what is relevant and important in a clear and concise manner and shares information/new ideas with others. Comfortable with public speaking, including presenting at divisional meetings.
• Judgement and Problem solving - Thinks ahead, anticipates questions, plans for contingencies, finds alternative solutions and identifies clear objectives. Sees the big picture and effectively analyses complex issues.
• Creativity/Innovation - Looks for new ways to improve current processes and develop creative solutions that are grounded in reality and have practical value.
• Influencing Outcomes - Presents sound, persuasive rationale for ideas or opinions. Takes a collegiate position on issues and positively contributes to solutions.
• Efficiency - At Goldman Sachs we strive to improve our effectiveness and efficiency, including through technology. This role requires a demonstrable interest in identifying and driving such change.

About Goldman Sachs

At Goldman Sachs, we commit our people, capital and ideas to help our clients, shareholders and the communities we serve to grow. Founded in 1869, we are a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm. Headquartered in New York, we maintain offices around the world. We believe who you are makes you better at what you do. We're committed to fostering and advancing diversity and inclusion in our own workplace and beyond by ensuring every individual within our firm has a number of opportunities to grow professionally and personally, from our training and development opportunities and firmwide networks to benefits, wellness and personal finance offerings and mindfulness programs. Learn more about our culture, benefits, and people at GS.com/careers. We're committed to finding reasonable accommodations for candidates with special needs or disabilities during our recruiting process. Goldman Sachs is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, veterans status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.