Senior Specialist Accountant

12 Month Fixed Term Contract

Location: Potters Bar, London, Bristol or Isle of Man (Hybrid working options available)

The Senior Specialist Accountant is responsible for providing technical accounting, reporting, regulatory or Finance Change expertise to BAU and Change activities, providing subject-matter expertise to the function, wider business and Senior Management.

The role will ensure the maintenance of a professional quality service in line with internal policies and external regulations that meet client expectations and industry view of best practice. This will be evidenced by the results of both external and internal audit reviews and regulatory scrutiny as well as contributions to continuous process improvement and change initiatives.

What you'll be accountable for

Ensure high quality, compliant professional services are provided to all Finance Shared Service clients.

Make significant contribution to, and assist Finance Shared Service SLT and respective Finance Managers in, the delivery of compliant accounting and reporting services in a controlled and timely manner.For example, responsible for -

• providing technical expertise in interpreting, applying and resolving subjective and complex issues for example in respect to IFRS17 Insurance Contracts or IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, group acquisitions and restructuring or Solvency II requirements;
• providing support on complex pricing queries, pricing errors and fund pricing, fund accounting and taxation;
• monitoring of regulatory/legislative/accounting changes;
• ensuring accounting changes are reviewed and approved by the relevant CLL/CLAM/CLI/CLII/CLIS CLIAI internal governance including Asset Valuation Working Group, Finance Committee and Board Audit Committee;
• providing input and drafting for first time through requirements re accounting standard and regulatory reporting changes;
• providing technical review and challenge of consolidated IFRS and entity statutory accounts, and consolidated and entity regulatory reporting deliverables including QRTs, SFCR and RSRs.

Provide briefing notes to share across Finance keeping both up to date with regulatory, industry and internal requirements as appropriate.Provide technical expertise, direction and guidance to across the finance function through on-the-job and formal training; sharing your knowledge and expertise with less experienced colleagues within and outside of the function; enabling the department to grow in ability and technical depth that creates a culture of continuous improvement ensuring the control environment remains fit for purpose.

Support effective risk management, creating a strong risk culture and operating in line with Canada Life's risk strategy, preferences, policies and processes to improve the certainty around achieving our business and customer objectives. Responsible for delivering consistent, high quality operational standards that meet client expectations and are in line with internal policies and regulatory requirements / guidelines.

What you'll bring to the role

Technical Expertise

• Recognised as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) in Accounting, Reporting, Regulatory or Finance Change applicable to the Insurance, Wealth or Asset Management Industry.
• Strong commercial awareness and understanding of the needs of the business. Will be able to apply technical accounting techniques and understand business/commercial implications
• Understand complex data and information with the ability to interpret and recommend commercially astute courses of action; constructively challenging and helping develop others' thinking and understanding.
• Significant experience in the life insurance industry and is a subject matter expert in a number of disciplines within the function
• Proven ability to lead on high-profile projects, utilising experience in project management techniques to deliver complex projects on-time, in-full.
• Willing and capable of taking difficult and complex decisions independently in order to progress issues, and able to exercise sound judgement and commercial sense to understand the importance of different issues and assess when matters need to be escalated.

Communication

• Strong communication skills, demonstrating a clear and articulate standard of written and verbal communication in a complex environment, tailored for all levels of management, including Board level.
• Strong ability to adapt messages to the audience, without prompting or significant coaching, in a format that is easily understood by non-technical colleagues
• Strong influencing skills, with experience of engaging with Boards and senior management in order to get desired outcome

Relationship Building

• The ability to develop and maintain strong relationships across the finance function and the wider business, acting with integrity and role modelling the company values at all times.
• Strong interpersonal/networking skills, with the ability to maintain a variety of relationships with multiple stakeholders,
• Ability to flex their style and delivery, in the moment, depending on the individual and/or audience.
• Taking Initiative
• Exceptional problem-solving skills and attention to detail with demonstrable ability in spotting issues, interdependencies and challenges to ensure work is produced to an accurate, commercial and informed standard.
• Self-motivated, well-organised, pragmatic and able to perform tasks independently.
• developing Self and Others
• Strong coaching and mentoring ability in technical skills in order to support the development of others.
• An interested and inquisitive individual who is committed to their own ongoing professional and personal development
• Provide support and training across Finance and to Senior Management/ Board members in respect to relevant area of expertise re complex, subjective and technical matters