Senior Group Finance Manager

About Law Debenture

Law Debenture is an Investment Trust supported by a wholly owned professional services business.

Law Deb is an unusual and exciting proposition; on a day-to-day basis we are nimble, ambitious and small enough to know everyone by name, whilst also benefiting from the profile and credibility of a listed business.

This is thanks to our 137-year-old FTSE250 investment trust and our fast-growing independent professional services business of over 300 colleagues across 6 business lines.

At Law Deb, doing work that has a positive impact is important to us.

We need the very best people to be the custodians of our business for the next stage of our proud history and growth.

We're ambitious to innovate, collaborate and push forward in providing peace of mind and excellence for our clients and each other.

We're on a journey to shape a culture we're all proud to be part of.

One where everyone feels trusted, supported and empowered to own their success.

Working at Law Deb, you will have access to our enviable network of clients and innovative projects, as well as brilliant colleagues to learn from and collaborate with.

Role Overview

The Senior Group Finance Manager is a hands-on role within the Group Finance team, responsible for both the management and statutory reporting of Law Debenture Plc and its' subsidiaries.

Working closely with members of the Group and IPS Finance teams and the Finance Systems Manager, this role is central to producing accurate and insightful group and IPS level reporting, managing the consolidation process, PLC reporting and ensuring the group's reporting framework is robust, scalable and fit for purpose as the business grows

• Job Role & Responsibilities
• Group reporting - production & delivery
• Prepare group management accounts including P&L, balance sheet, cash flow and variance commentary.
• Support the preparation of Board and ELT reporting, including producing MI packs, narrative analysis and ensuring data accuracy across all group reporting outputs.
• Part of the team responsible for the preparation of the Annual Report & Accounts and Half Year Report, including coordinating inputs from across the group and managing the drafting timetable.
• Produce the group's ONS statistical returns.
• Group consolidation & intercompany
• Run the monthly group consolidation process, including collection and review of submissions from the IPS Finance teams and preparation of consolidated trial balances.
• Manage intercompany reconciliation and elimination processes, resolving mismatches on a timely basis.
• Maintain the inter-group management recharge framework, including monthly calculations and reconciliation to subsidiary records.
• Support the Group Finance Director on IPS valuation and group dividend accounting.
• Budgeting & forecasting
• Support the Group Finance Director in running the annual group budget process, co-ordinating submissions from IPS Finance, Investment Trust Finance and SSC and consolidating these into a group view.
• Build and maintain the group budget and forecast consolidation models, ensuring they are accurate, well-documented and capable of producing outputs at the speed and level of detail required by senior stakeholders.
• Prepare monthly budget-vs-actual and forecast-vs-actual variance analysis at group and entity level, providing clear commentary on key drivers for inclusion in Board and Ex Co packs.
• Maintain and update rolling group forecasts in line with the Group Finance Director's direction, incorporating revised assumptions from the business in a timely manner.
• Develop and maintain standardised budget and forecast templates for use by the IPS Finance and Investment Trust Finance teams, ensuring consistency and ease of consolidation.
• Support the Group Finance Director in preparing budget and forecast outputs for presentation to the Board and Audit & Risk Committee.
• Reporting hierarchy & financial data
• Act as the day-to-day owner of the group's reporting hierarchy, maintaining entity structures, cost centre hierarchies and chart of accounts mappings across financial systems and consolidation workbooks.
• Ensure that any changes to the reporting hierarchy - including new entities, restructurings or account reclassifications - are assessed, documented, approved and reflected consistently across all group reporting outputs.
• Build and maintain financial data governance processes, including master data validation routines, intercompany matching schedules and reconciliation of reporting dimensions across systems.
• Work with the Finance Systems Manager to ensure the reporting hierarchy is correctly configured in Sage and other financial systems (including Concur, Kantata), and that data flows into consolidation and management reporting tools accurately.
• Produce and maintain clear documentation of the reporting hierarchy structure, including change logs, so that the framework is auditable and resilient to personnel changes.
• Report design, build & maintenance
• Own the design and build of group and IPS reporting templates and packs, ensuring they are clear, consistent and structured to meet the needs of senior stakeholders and the Board.
• Maintain and continuously improve the group consolidation model, including chart of accounts mapping, intercompany elimination schedules and entity-level reporting structures.
• Build and maintain management information reports and dashboards that provide timely, accurate and actionable insight across the group.
• Develop and maintain standardised reporting templates for use by the IPS Finance teams, ensuring consistency of inputs into the group consolidation.
• Identify opportunities to automate and streamline reporting processes, working with the Finance Systems team to implement improvements.
• Document and maintain reporting procedures and controls to ensure continuity, auditability and ease of handover.
• Finance improvement
• Contribute to the group-wide Finance Improvement Plan by identifying and driving reporting and process improvements within the Group Finance team, IPS Finance team and the SSC.
• Work with the Finance Systems Manager on system enhancements that improve the quality, speed and reliability of group processes and reporting.

Essential Knowledge, Skills & Experience

• Qualified accountant (ACA/ACCA) with minimum 3 years post-qualification experience in a group or consolidation reporting role.
• Strong Excel and Power BI skills and experience of building and maintaining complex financial models, consolidation workbooks and reporting templates.
• Experience of supporting group budgeting and forecasting processes, including model-building and variance analysis.
• Good technical knowledge of Sage Intacct and its functionalities.
• High attention to detail with a structured approach to financial reporting and a strong controls mindset.
• Ability to manage multiple deadlines and work effectively across a complex group structure.
• Familiarity with Sage Intacct or similar general ledger systems.
• Exposure to financial reporting systems improvement or automation projects.
• Preferred Knowledge, Skills & Experience
• Experience of listed company reporting, including Annual Report & statutory accounts production.
• Experience of investment trust or financial services sector reporting.
• Your Reward
• Competitive salary with performance bonus scheme
• Generous pension contribution
• Full healthcare cover
• Health cash plan
• Life assurance
• Buy/sell annual leave scheme
• Additional Information

People who thrive at Law Deb make the most of this foundation to grow themselves, help us improve and have fun playing their part in building the culture that's fuelling our growth.

Law Deb hires people based on personal merit and qualifications regardless of age, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background or any other protected attribute.

We celebrate the diversity of our colleagues and provide an inclusive environment so you can bring your true self to work.

We recognise that our people are our strength and the diverse talents they bring to our global workforce are directly linked to our success.

If you feel that you require any reasonable adjustments to be able to participate in this recruitment process, please provide further details where prompted.

Please note that we have a thorough referencing process, which includes credit and criminal record checks.

If you'd like to find out more about Law Deb and our open vacancies, please contact our careers team on careers@lawdeb. com.

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