Senior Assistant Accountant

We’re looking for a Senior Assistant Accountant to join our Bertelsmann Global Business Services (BGBS) team based in Frating, Colchester and play a key role in supporting the smooth and accurate delivery of month-end processes. Working closely with the Financial Accountant, you’ll be involved in a range of core accounting activities, including preparing accrual calculations, posting journals, and contributing to monthly and quarterly reporting.

Bertelsmann Global Business Services Ltd (BGBS) is an accounting shared service centre established in 2018 to provide accounting functions for Bertelsmann group companies in the UK. Comprising of a team of over 50 and based at the Penguin Random House distribution centre on the outskirts of Colchester, the group companies served by BGBS include Penguin Random House, Dorling Kindersley, BMG, Arvato SCM and Little Tiger. The services provided by BGBS include Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Banking and General Accounting (general ledger, fixed assets, tax, financial reporting etc.).

Key responsibilities

• Assist the [Senior] Financial Accountant with monthly, quarterly and year end reporting requirements, including the posting of journals into the relevant SAP system.
• Perform simple intercompany reconciliations of debtor/creditor balances and profit and loss intercompany trading for simple entities.
• Produce balance sheet reconciliations and perform timely investigations and clearance of any discrepancies.
• Assist the [Senior] Financial Accountant with the provision of information and answers to the Bertelsmann groups tax consultants.
• Assist the [Senior] Financial Accountant with the provision of information and answers to the Bertelsmann group auditors during half-year and year-end audits.
• Ensure the correct application of group accounting policies.
• Liaise with internal teams and Compliance Accountant on any relevant internal audits.
• Deliver any other appropriate departmental tasks required within the General Accounting team under the direction of the [Senior] Financial Accountant.

What you’ll bring

• At least level 3 AAT qualified, working towards level 4 AAT and/or has 3-4 years’ experience working as an assistant accountant or equivalent role elsewhere.
• Good experience using IT systems, particularly Microsoft Excel.
• Good understanding of key accounting concepts through on the job training and study.
• Understanding of general reporting requirements for a company both internally and externally and their importance to the organisation.
• Strong numerical skills, with at least a pass at GCSE.
• Well-organised.

Disability Confident

As a Disability Confident Committed organisation, we offer interviews to candidates with a disability who meet the essential criteria for the role, and opt-in on their application form. The essential criteria for this role are listed as part of the ‘What you’ll bring’ section. There may be times when the volume of applications means we cannot take all eligible candidates to interview. We encourage you to tell us about any reasonable adjustments you may need by emailing PRHCareersUK@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable with, for us to support your request.

Application instructions

Please apply with your CV and cover letter outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by 11:59pm on Wednesday 18th February. Please ensure you include a cover letter, as it is a crucial part of our assessment process. The cover letter offers an opportunity to show how your experience and interests align with the role requirements. Typically, we expect the cover letter to be no more than one or two pages in length.

Here at Penguin, we believe in the power of authenticity and human creativity. When you apply for a position, we want to encourage you to showcase your unique voice. Throughout our recruitment process, please share your own thoughts, experiences, and skills. This helps us get a true sense of who you are and what you might bring to our team. We celebrate creativity and diverse perspectives, so please be yourself! While we recognise AI tools can be helpful, we recommend using them thoughtfully to ensure your responses reflect you.

£28,000 - £33,000 dependent on how your skills and experience align to the role, plus bonus and benefits. While our offices across the UK are places to connect, collaborate and celebrate with colleagues, we recognise that flexibility around where you work is just as important. For this role we expect that you will work from our office in Frating, Essex, 2 days per week. There would be the expectation to work from the office more frequently during an initial training period.