Branch Accountant

abrdn plc; City of Edinburgh; Hybrid; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading investment firm in Edinburgh is seeking an experienced accountant for an EMEA Financial Reporting role. You will manage accounting and reporting for non-UK branches, ensuring compliance and strong controls. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record, strong influencing skills, and the ability to engage with stakeholders at all levels. Exceptional benefits are offered, including 40 days' annual leave and a generous pension plan.

Benefits

40 days' annual leave

16% employer pension contribution

Private healthcare

Flexible benefits including gym discounts

Qualifications

• Proven track record of delivery in accounting roles.
• Experience in fund management industry preferred.
• Ability to challenge at senior levels constructively.

Responsibilities

• Manage and control all accounting and financial reporting.
• Maintain strong controls over financial data.
• Develop trusted relationships across the business.

Skills

Influencing skills

Team working

Time management

Education

Professionally qualified Accountant

Job description

Overview

At Aberdeen, our ambition is to be the UK's leading Wealth & Investments group. Strengthening talent and culture is one of our strategic priorities. We strive to make Aberdeen a great place to work so that we can attract and retain the industry's best talent. Our people put our stakeholders at the heart of everything they do by helping us to make a positive difference to the lives of our clients, customers, colleagues, shareholders, and society. We are focused on growing our direct and advised wealth platforms and repositioning our specialist asset management business to meet client demand. We are committed to providing excellent client service, supported by leading technology and talent.

About The Role

Reporting to the EMEA Financial Reporting and Control Manager, this role will have responsibility for legal entity and branch financial control and reporting for specified countries within the EMEA region. This role requires excellent end to end accounting control and financial process skills and experience, as well as good influencing / relationship building skills in relation to the many internal and external stakeholders to the process.

In this position you will manage and control all book-keeping, accounting, statutory, regulatory, internal reporting, corporate tax and VAT for the EMEA non-UK branches and subsidiaries allocated to this role.

Key Responsibilities

• Maintain strong controls and reconciliations over all general ledger and accounting data
• Work with billing, purchasing and banking teams, appropriate management within the relevant country offices and offshore colleagues to ensure all relevant transactions properly recorded, controlled and approved. Ensure all accruals and prepayments accurately reflected on a monthly basis
• Manage relationships and service standards with external service providers
• Work with offshore colleagues to prepare for and present at monthly review and challenge meetings with management, ensuring all material variances are fully explained and understood. Present at Board meetings as required.
• Working along with other regional Finance teams, ensure that processes for internal recharges under Transfer Pricing are managed in a compliant and efficient way
• Work collegiately with others within the EMEA Financial Control and Reporting team and across the wider Finance division to ensure common goals and objectives are met
• Develop and maintain trusted relationships across the wider business, providing financial leadership and guidance
• Proactively develop and maintain a wide-range of internal & external contacts in order to obtain/exchange information, establish best practices subsequently taking appropriate actions to maintain/enhance competitive advantage
• Contribute to strategic projects as required by line management
• Work closely with the Planning team and ensure timely / accurate planning information is provided to the regional management teams and Finance business partners
• Develop existing disciplines of performance review within finance and the wider business, analysing and interpreting financial and non-financial information, and advising/challenging and supporting on overall business and financial performance
• Build trusted advisor relationships with all relevant Boards, functions and countries to further enhance the commercial management of the business

About The Candidate

A professionally qualified Accountant, you will have a proven track record of delivery, being proactive and successfully taking ownership for areas of responsibility. Evidence of having operated with senior internal and external stakeholders will be essential. You will have good team working skills and be able to demonstrate a high level of professional technical competence.

• Experience in and detailed understanding of the fund management industry preferable
• Detailed technical knowledge of financial and regulatory reporting requirements
• Ability to influence and communicate across all areas of the business
• Ability to challenge at a senior level in a constructive and positive manner
• Experience of working with external auditors
• Good understanding of operational and accounting processes
• Ability to influence at all levels and drive through projects / work
• Proven experience of delivering results in a challenging environment
• Ability to manage time and effectively prioritise multiple tasks to meet tight deadlines

We are proud to be a Disability Confident Committed employer. If you have a disability and would like to apply to one of our UK roles under the Disability Confident Scheme, please notify us by completing the relevant section in our candidate questionnaire. One of our team will reach out to support you through your application process.

Our Benefits

There\'s more to working life than coming home with a good salary. We have an environment where you can learn, get involved and be supported.

When you join us, your reward will be one of the best around. This includes 40 days\' annual leave, a 16% employer pension contribution, a discretionary performance-based bonus (where applicable), private healthcare and a range of flexible benefits - including gym discounts, season ticket loans and access to an employee discount portal. You can read more about our benefits here.

Our Business

Enabling our clients to be better investors drives everything we do. Our business is structured around three distinct areas - our vectors of growth - focused on our clients\' changing needs. You can find out more about what we do here.

An inclusive way of working

Whatever way you like to work, if you have the talent and commitment to join our team, we\'d like to hear from you.

At Aberdeen we\'ve adopted a \'blended working\' approach. This approach combines the benefits of face-to-face collaboration, coaching and connecting in our offices with the flexibility of working from home. It enables colleagues to find a balance that works for their roles, their teams, our clients and our business.

An inclusive culture, where diverse perspectives drive our actions, is at the core of who we are and what we do. If you need assistance with your application, or a reasonable adjustment to your interview arrangements - for example, because you are neurodivergent, or have a physical, sensory, cognitive, mental, visible or invisible disability - please let us know and we\'ll be happy to help.

We\'re committed to providing an inclusive workplace where all forms of difference are valued and which is free from any form of unfair or unlawful treatment. We define diversity in its broadest sense - this includes but is not limited to our diversity of educational and professional backgrounds, experience, cognitive and neurodiversity, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, religion or belief and ethnicity and geographical provenance. We support a culture that values meritocracy, fairness and transparency and welcomes enquiries from everyone.

If you need assistance or an adjustment due to a disability please let us know as part of your application and we will assist.