Director, Finance - Affinity

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (AJG); Rolling Meadows (IL); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical/dental/vision plans

Life and accident insurance

401(K) and Roth options

Tax-advantaged accounts (HSA, FSA)

Educational expense reimbursement

Paid parental leave

Digital mental health services (Talk‑2

Flexible work hours

Training programs

Gallagher Thrive program

Charitable matching gift program

Job summary

Gallagher is seeking a Director of Finance, Affinity in Illinois to lead financial management for the Affinity division, reporting to the CFO and Head of Affinity. The role focuses on developing and executing strategic growth plans, regulatory adherence, and clear communication with key stakeholders at division and corporate levels.

The successful candidate will build relationships, lead with forward‑looking insights, use data to drive decisions, and guide the finance team toward sustainable

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 8+ years of relevant experience.
• 5+ years of management experience.
• FP&A, Investment Banking or Accounting background.
• Strong analytical skills, business acumen, and written and verbal communication skills.
• Advanced degree in finance or accounting preferred.
• Insurance carrier experience preferred (5+ years).
• Excellent proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

Responsibilities

• Build finance business partnering capabilities and deliver financial analytics to drive strategic and sound business decisions.
• Identify opportunities for revenue expansion, margin enhancement, and expense reduction opportunities.
• Provide insightful data, analytics and KPI measures to optimize financial performance.
• Lead and manage a team of finance professionals responsible for budgets, forecasts and long‑range planning.
• Ensure regulatory and SOX compliance and adherence to GAAP.
• Partner with senior management to understand strategic initiatives and manage performance goals.

Skills

FP&A

Strategic thinking

Analytical skills

Stakeholder management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Advanced degree in finance/accounting

Tools

Excel

Office ERP/GAAP systems

Job description

Introduction

At Gallagher, we help clients face risk with confidence because we believe that when businesses are protected, they’re free to grow, lead, and innovate. You’ll be backed by our digital ecosystem: a client‑centric suite of consulting tools making it easier for you to meet your clients where they want to be met. Advanced data and analytics providing a comprehensive overview of the risk landscape is at your fingertips. Here, you’re not just improving clients’ risk profiles, you’re building trust. You’ll find a culture grounded in teamwork, guided by integrity, and fueled by a shared commitment to do the right thing. We value curiosity, celebrate new ideas, and empower you to take ownership of your career while making a meaningful impact for the businesses we serve. If you’re ready to bring your unique perspective to a place where your work truly matters; think of Gallagher.

Overview

The Director of Finance, Affinity is a key member of the Specialty finance team and is accountable to the CFO and Head of Affinity. The Director of Finance, Affinity is responsible for all aspects of financial management for the Affinity division. The position supports the development and execution of strategic growth plans, with an eye toward future, sustainable growth. S/he holds responsibility for the adherence to regulatory requirements and reporting of business performance to key stakeholders at the division and corporate level.

The successful candidate for this position will be adept at building relationships with key stakeholders and internal finance partners. The ability to lead with a forward‑looking view, confidence, and maintain independence and objectivity will be critical. Having the ability to communicate clearly, accurately, and decisively will be paramount to this individual’s success. Creativity is welcome, particularly with respect to achieving the broader growth goals of the division. The ability to use data and analytics to drive business decisions and illustrate financial planning scenarios is imperative.

How you’ll make an impact

Driving Business Decisions

• Build finance business partnering capabilities and deliver financial analytics to drive strategic and sound business decisions.
• Identify opportunities for revenue expansion, margin enhancement, and expense reduction opportunities.
• Provide insightful data, analytics and KPI measures to optimize financial performance.
• Identify business risks, challenges and opportunities, and provide independent challenge to management views, when necessary, on proposed investments and expense policy.
• Responsible to prepare ad‑hoc reports and analytics for management and stakeholders, providing information concerning issues through resolution.
• Partner with senior management to understand strategic initiatives and manage monthly, quarterly, and annual performance goals.

Leadership

• Manage, develop and recruit, where necessary supporting finance professionals.
• Deliver reviews and projects on time, within agreed budget, and in accordance with the expectations of the Global Specialty finance team.
• Forward‑looking thinker who provides insights into current, emerging and potential opportunities and issues.

Financial Controls

• Accountable for ensuring strong accounting and financial governance controls are in place, in keeping with broader AJG Finance requirements.
• Lead and manage a team of finance professionals responsible for implementation of financial controls, including managing budgets, forecasts and long‑range planning.
• Monitoring program spending against approved budgets, identifying variances, and implementing corrective actions.
• Ensure regulatory and SOX compliance and adherence to internal Gallagher GAAP accounting and other reporting requirements.
• Responsible for the health and accuracy of Affinity financials including the Profit and Loss statement, Balance Sheet, trade accounting, and ASC 606 revenue recognition accounting.

Critical Competencies for Success

Technical Skills

• Strong technical skills and broad‑based knowledge of accounting principles, and in‑depth understanding of operations, internal controls and the workings of an insurance carrier including loss ratio assessment to properly record commission economics.
• An engaged partner who works with division executives in a collaborative manner, with constructive tension that can identify and illustrate emerging areas of risk or opportunity.
• Thorough knowledge of best practice financial procedures, processes and systems, and GAAP.
• Superior organization and planning skills to ensure the division meets strategic objectives and regulatory requirements.
• Rigorous, analytical thinker who drives insights and seeks problem‑solving opportunities, and helps set a broad‑based vision for the finance function that further enhances the division’s ability to achieve its business goals.

Strategic Partner

• Strong interpersonal skills to interact effectively with division, finance, and corporate leaders.
• Superior written, verbal and presentation skills to successfully guide outcomes on key issues and present financial facts with authority.
• Open‑minded and perceptive to see underlying or hidden problems and patterns.
• Unquestioned integrity and strength of character to maintain objectivity and knowing when to elevate key issues to senior management.
• Open communicator who is comfortable working with people in large groups and one‑on‑one settings, and interacting with senior executives at the highest levels in a diplomatic, yet commanding manner.

Interpersonal and Leadership Skills

• Serve as a role model who is engaged and speaks with authority; is open, honest and candid. Inspires confidence, drives results, takes control, assumes accountability and owns all aspects of the financial status of Affinity.
• Good organizational, planning and project management skills, with the ability to drive multiple projects concurrently and bring simplicity to processes in order to increase efficiency and productivity.
• Strong sense of urgency, with an ability to maintain close attention to detail without losing sight of the bigger picture.
• Creates a culture that fosters teamwork, collaboration, and an environment that encourages career development and continuous learning.
• Ability to assess, upgrade, attract, retain, mentor, coach, train and develop top talent.
• Champion Gallagher’s values and culture by exemplifying the tenets of The Gallagher Way.

About You

Required:

• Bachelor's degree and 8+ years of relevant experience.
• 5+ years of management experience.
• FP&A, Investment Banking or Accounting background.
• Strong analytical skills, business acumen, and written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred:

• Advanced degree preferably in finance, accounting or related field.
• Minimum 5 years of work experience at an insurance carrier.
• Expertise in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Compensation and benefits

We offer a competitive and comprehensive compensation package. The base salary range represents the anticipated low end and high end of the range for this position. The actual compensation will be influenced by a wide range of factors including, but not limited to previous experience, education, pay market/geography, complexity or scope, specialized skill set, lines of business/practice area, supply/demand, and scheduled hours. On top of a competitive salary, great teams and exciting career opportunities, we also offer a wide range of benefits.

Below are the minimum core benefits you’ll get, depending on your job level these benefits may improve:

• Medical/dental/vision plans, which start from day one!
• Life and accident insurance
• 401(K) and Roth options
• Tax‑advantaged accounts (HSA, FSA)
• Educational expense reimbursement
• Paid parental leave

Other benefits include

• Digital mental health services (Talkspace)
• Flexible work hours (availability varies by office and job function)
• Training programs
• Gallagher Thrive program – elevating your health through challenges, workshops and digital fitness programs for your overall wellbeing
• Charitable matching gift program
• And more...

**The benefits summary above applies to fulltime positions. If you are not applying for a fulltime position, details about benefits will be provided during the selection process.**

We value inclusion and diversity

Click Here to review our U.S. Eligibility Requirements

Inclusion and diversity (I&D) is a core part of our business, and it’s embedded into the fabric of our organization. For more than 95 years, Gallagher has led with a commitment to sustainability and to support the communities where we live and work.

Gallagher embraces our employees’ diverse identities, experiences and talents, allowing us to better serve our clients and communities. We see inclusion as a conscious commitment and diversity as a vital strength. By embracing diversity in all its forms, we live out The Gallagher Way to its fullest.

Gallagher believes that all persons are entitled to equal employment opportunity and prohibits any form of discrimination by its managers, employees, vendors or customers based on race, color, religion, creed, gender (including pregnancy status), sexual orientation, gender identity (which includes transgender and other gender non‑conforming individuals), gender expression, hair expression, marital status, parental status, age, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, genetic information, veteran or military status, citizenship status, or any other characteristic protected (herein referred to as "protected characteristics") by applicable federal, state, or local laws.

Equal employment opportunity will be extended in all aspects of the employer-employee relationship, including, but not limited to, recruitment, hiring, training, promotion, transfer, demotion, compensation, benefits, layoff, and termination. In addition, Gallagher will make reasonable accommodations to known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified person with a disability, unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business.