Fluent German Senior Statutory Accountant - Luxembourg or Frankfurt

Where you’ll fit in & what our team goals are…

The Columbia Threadneedle Investments asset management group is the global brand under which legal entities are registered world-wide. Your role forms part of the Columbia Threadneedle Investments (EMEA and APAC) Finance Controllership function, which has team members in London, Edinburgh, Swindon, Luxembourg and Hong Kong and is adding to the existing two Financial Reporting employees based in Luxembourg.

The initial goal of your role is the integration of the currently outsourced German Columbia Threadneedle Real Estate Property business, to bring in-house operating under the same in-house Finance processes as other companies.

As part of the Controllership Financial Reporting team you will be responsible for the preparation and/or review of the annual Statutory Accounts, Regulatory and Statistical Reporting in addition to managing the Financial Board Packs for the German entity as well as the other EU based group companies, which include Luxembourg, Netherlands and Swiss companies.

You will also aid in providing technical accounting assistance to the wider Controllership function in relation to business changes and developments across the EU region.

How you'll spend your time...

Initial Tasks – Integration of German accounting and reporting, Develop and execute a plan for insourcing all Finance functions:

• Accounts payable via the internal AP system (noting local reporting requirements).

• Personal expenses via the internal expenses management software (noting local reporting requirements).

• Revenue via our AR system, including performance fees / carried interest, liaising with the Controllership Revenue team as necessary

• Work with HR to have payroll posted direct to our Accounting Software.

• Assist with Treasuring obtaining full control of the corporate bank account.

• Develop month end accounting process to ensure correct recording of revenue, accruals, leases etc under: German GAAP / IFRS / US GAAP (appropriate support and training will be provided)

• Liaise with our Tax team to ensure tax reporting within the GL is aligned with all reporting requirements

• Aligning processes with standard processes utilised by our reporting team

• Ensure access to 10 years of historical records is available.

• Agree transition with German Columbia Threadneedle Real Estate Property team.

• Understand future invoicing / invoice reporting requirements coming out of EU Making Tax Digital project.

The above will give you a well-rounded appreciation of the wider Controllership and Finance functions and responsibilities, and also of the wider business.

The main requirements of the role relate to Statutory and Regulatory Reporting:

• Preparation of the Statutory and Regulatory reports to ensure high quality reports are submitted to the auditors / regulatory authorities.

• Demonstrating proper accounting control and that a compliant profit and loss and balance sheet can be drawn up without reliance on other providers

• Ensuring appropriate accounting policies and procedures that promote a true and fair view of the financial situation are maintained in a procedure manual

• To be responsible for ensuring the number and content of Financial Regulatory reports is kept up to date, this also includes any surveys issued by local bodies

• To liaise directly with the auditors and to challenge and resolve auditor queries, via working closely with the UK & local teams where necessary.

• To liaise with the local authorities for filing annual reports and issue resolution.

The purpose of this role also covers:

• Providing Controllership support to the Treasury Capital team for any internal risk-based assessments.

• Oversight of local Balance Sheet reconciliations produced by other functions / regions, ensuring information presented is accurately highlighting ageing items. To work with the global reconciliation team to clear aged items.

• Provide technical guidance where necessary.

• Review of Entity revenues, expenses and profitability trend to highlight any areas of concern.

• To be a key point of contact for the business, manage queries where appropriate or steer to correct business contacts in order to resolve.

• Preparation of reports for Board Meetings

• Co-ordination with Tax, Treasury and LFO on any matters arising from business operations / developments.

• Ensuring that project work and developments always result in the best business outcomes

• Ensuring the Controllership responsibilities linked project work and developments are being considered and can appropriately be managed.

• Ensuring processes are continually challenged for efficiency, appropriateness and suitability of controls.

To be successful in this role you will have...

• Business fluent in written and spoken German and English

• Sound communication skills and an ability to work closely with colleagues in other countries/regions

• Proven post-qualified experience

• Analytical problem-solving abilities

• Proactive

• Team spirit

• Working independently and reliably

A working understanding of:

• Corporate tax rules and regulations

• IFRS and Lux GAAP and ability to research and understand other GAAP treatments

If you also had this, it would be great…

• Knowledge of Ariba, Concur, Revport

• Self-starter with positive attitude

• Sets high personal goals and strives for continual improvement

• Has a flexible attitude to work and can work well in a multi-tasking environment

• Well organised and can work to deadlines under pressure

• Exposure to Workday Financials beneficial but not critical

• Experience leading external audits

About Columbia Threadneedle Investments

Working at Columbia Threadneedle Investments you'll find growth and career opportunities across all of our businesses.

We're intentionally built to help you succeed. Our reach is expansive with a global team of 2,500 people working together. Our expertise is diverse with more than 650 investment professionals sharing global perspectives across all major asset classes and markets. Our clients have access to a broad array of investment strategies, and we have the capability to create bespoke solutions matched to clients' specific requirements.

Columbia Threadneedle is a people business and we recognise that our success is due to our talented people, who bring diversity of thought, complementary skills and capabilities. We are committed to providing an inclusive workplace that supports the diversity of our employees and reflects our broader communities and client-base.

We appreciate that work-life balance is an important factor for many when considering their next move so please discuss any flexible working requirements directly with your recruiter.