Internal Controls Manager (Remote, can be based anywhere in the UK, minimal travel) in Hampshire, Portsmouth

A highly respected FTSE-listed organisation with a significant international footprint is seeking an Internal Controls Manager to join its expanding Group Controls team. This is an important role within a business that has won multiple awards for its culture, employee engagement, and long-term investment in its people.

The company operates across a diverse portfolio of sectors, with a strong UK presence and established operations throughout Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. Over recent years, the organisation has seen substantial growth and continues to scale at pace. With that growth comes a renewed focus on strengthening governance, enhancing process standardisation, and building a robust internal controls framework across all business units.

About the Role

Working as part of a collaborative and forward‑thinking Group Controls function, you will help develop, implement, and embed a Group-wide internal controls framework that supports the organisation’s financial control, risk management, operational excellence, and compliance objectives. You will be joining a modern, growing “controls community” spread across several regions, working closely with colleagues in finance, internal audit, operations, shared services, technology, and external advisers.

Although the Group HQ is based in the UK, the role offers significant flexibility, with hybrid or predominantly remote working available. Occasional travel to UK or European sites may be required, but is minimal and planned well in advance.

Key Responsibilities

• Support the design and enhancement of the Group’s internal control standards
• Test the effectiveness of controls across multiple business units
• Identify opportunities to automate or streamline control activities
• Work with local teams to document processes and create clear control narratives
• Identify control gaps and agree practical remediation plans with local management
• Monitor remediation progress and ensure timely closure of actions
• Support alignment of controls with evolving systems and ERP changes
• Partner with internal audit, external auditors, technology teams, and senior finance leadership
• Provide clear updates and reports for Group stakeholders, including senior finance leads and audit governance forums
• Champion good governance, risk awareness, and continuous improvement across the organisation
• Act as a subject-matter expert for selected processes or risk areas

Who We’re Looking For

You’re likely to have 3–7 years' experience in one or more of the following in a Big 4 / Top 10 professional services firm, or in industry, or a mix of the two:

• Internal controls
• Internal audit
• Risk advisory
• Financial or operational audit
• Finance or accounting

You’ll bring an understanding of controls design and testing, and ideally some exposure to listed-company or regulatory control environments (e.g., SOX or similar). Experience with complex, multi-entity or multisite organisations is also beneficial. Professional qualifications (ACA, ACCA, CIA, CPA, or equivalent) are useful but not essential — mindset, capability and appetite to learn are more important.

Why This Role?

• A business with genuine ambition and strong values
• A culture that supports development, progression, and innovation
• Flexibility and autonomy in how you work
• Exposure to senior stakeholders and Group-level visibility
• A chance to shape and influence a major controls transformation programme
• Long-term career pathways across controls, audit, finance, and beyond