Head of Acquisition and Portfolio Monitoring – M&A

Howden Group Holdings; London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a senior finance practitioner to manage and monitor investments and growth initiatives. In this high-profile role, you will engage with senior stakeholders, ensuring accurate reporting and effective communication of investment cases. The ideal candidate will possess a strategic mindset, strong business partnering skills, and the ability to present financial narratives clearly. This full-time position offers a hybrid work pattern, allowing you to balance on-site and remote work effectively while driving efficiencies and enhancing processes.

Qualifications

• 4-5 years of experience in deal advisory or finance business partnering.
• Strong skills in financial storytelling and data analysis.

Responsibilities

• Manage quarterly and annual reporting processes for investments.
• Collaborate with divisions to review and approve funding requests.

Skills

Business Partnering

Financial Reporting

M&A-related Roles

Stakeholder Management

Data Analysis

Education

Chartered Accountant

Job description

Who are we?

Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mindset, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 18,000 employees spanning over 100 countries.

People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down headhunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work / life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.

What is the role?

We’re looking for a senior finance practitioner to join Howden in this high-profile role focused on managing and monitoring our portfolio of investments and growth initiatives. This is a key part of the Howden strategy, offering significant exposure to senior stakeholders across the business—including directors, CFOs, corporate finance teams—and investors.

The ideal candidate will play a crucial role in owning the quarterly and annual reporting process, ensuring that investment cases are thoroughly analysed, tracked, and communicated effectively. They will act as the first line of defence for approval processes, ensuring accurate reporting before presentations to the Group CFO and committees.

Please note that this is a full-time, permanent role based in our Central London office. Following a hybrid work pattern, you are expected to be onsite 3-4 days per week on average.

What will you be doing?

• Responding to queries from investors and internal management.

• Managing and delivering high-quality reporting outputs, including quarterly updates on investment cases and overall performance.

• Acting as the owner of data books and ensuring integrity throughout.

• Collaborating with divisions to review and approve funding requests using established templates.

• Supporting and managing the approval process for new initiatives.

• Reviewing and reporting quarterly pipeline tracking and presenting findings as required.

• Running due diligence responses and reports as needed.

• Leading one-off improvement projects to drive efficiencies and enhance processes.

What are we looking for?

• A chartered accountant with 4-5 years of experience in either: (1) deal advisory or transaction services functions, or (2) industry experience performing finance business partnering, reporting, or M&A-related roles.

• Strong business partnering skills with the ability to communicate and tell the story behind financial performance, contributing to Howden’s equity narrative and capital strategy.

• A strategic mindset and the ability to work independently while collaborating with international stakeholders.

• Proficiency in analysing long-term transformation deals and investment cases, as well as presenting findings clearly and concisely.

• Comfortable interacting with senior stakeholders, including c-suite and investors.

What do we offer in return?

A career that you define. At Howden, we value diversity – there is no one Howden type. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:

• Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new

• We support each other in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges

• We are determined to make a positive difference at work and beyond

Reasonable adjustments

We're committed to providing reasonable accommodations at Howden to ensure that our positions align well with your needs. Besides the usual adjustments such as software, IT, and office setups, we can also accommodate other changes such as flexible hours* or hybrid working*.

If you're excited by this role but have some doubts about whether it’s the right fit for you, send us your application – if your profile fits the role’s criteria, we will be in touch to assist in helping to get you set up with any reasonable adjustments you may require.

*Not all positions can accommodate changes to working hours or locations. Reach out to your Recruitment Partner if you want to know more.

Permanent