AMS Project Associate

The Endorsement Board; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading regulatory body is seeking a Project Associate to support the Head of Culture & Conduct in evaluating and enhancing audit firms' culture. The role involves compliance testing, project management, and stakeholder engagement, requiring strong analytical and communication skills, as well as a relevant degree.

Qualifications

• Experience in professional services, risk management, or regulatory field.
• Understanding of the audit profession and regulatory framework.
• Interest or academic background in behavioural science.

Responsibilities

• Evaluate effectiveness of audit firms' culture and conduct programmes.
• Perform compliance testing on key policies and controls.
• Assist in managing culture projects and workstreams.

Skills

Communication

Project Management

Analytical Skills

IT Skills

Education

Degree or professional qualification

Job description

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is responsible for the regulation of UK statutory auditors and audit firms and for monitoring developments in the market. We aim, through our supervision and oversight, to develop a fair, evidence-based and comprehensive view of these firms, to judge whether they are being run in a manner that enhances audit quality and supports the resilience of individual firms and the wider audit market. We adopt a forward-looking supervisory approach to audit firms, and we hold firms to account for making the changes needed to safeguard and improve audit quality. Further information about the role of the FRC can be found atwww.frc.org.uk.

Audit Market Supervision (AMS) takes a cross-market approach to areas of importance to audit quality and firm resilience, assessing the effectiveness of the audit firms’ arrangements in the following areas:

- Audit quality management arrangements

- Governance and leadership

- Values and culture

- Risk and resilience

- Operational separation

Staff have a range of backgrounds (governance, culture, risk management, internal audit, regulation, and audit) representing the broad subject matter within the team’s remit.

The team are looking to appoint a Project Associate to support the Head of Culture & Conduct and Project Director by assisting with the scoping, planning and execution of projects relating to the monitoring and supervision of culture at the largest UK audit firms.

The Role:

• Assisting in evaluating the effectiveness of audit firms’ culture and conduct programmes, including benchmarking against organisational standards and peer firms to promote continuous improvement and identify good practice.
• Performing compliance testing on the operation of key policies and controls supporting the cultural aspects of the audit firms’ quality management systems e.g. sample testing.
• Assisting in the management of culture projects and workstreams.
• Working closely with the Project Directors and other team members across the whole of AMS, with a focus on the “culture and conduct” area.
• Build and maintain relationships with internal stakeholders, principally the Audit Firm Supervision (AFS) team, Professional Bodies Supervision (PBS) and external stakeholders such as independent service providers, other regulators and the largest audit firms.

The Person:

A degree and/or professional qualification, as well as experience working in professional services, risk management or a regulatory field are required. The ideal candidates will have:

• Understanding of the audit profession, the regulatory framework for audit and knowledge of recent developments and current issues in audit. Prior experience of regulation is not essential but would be an advantage.
• An interest or academic background in behavioural science.
• Knowledge and/or experience of some or all of:
• How corporate or professional services firms consider cultural and behavioural matters;
• The UK regulatory environment;
• Internal or external audit; and
• Application of International Standard on Quality Management 1 (ISQM 1)
• Strong written and oral communication skills, including drafting action plans and public reports.
• Strong project and time management skills to complete work within the timetable set.
• The ability to work effectively as part of a team.
• Excellent analytical skills.
• Excellent IT skills.
• Experience of client/external stakeholder relationship coordination.