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 are looking for a Senior Finance Manager to join our Group Accounting team. This is a new role that will support increased demands arising from US GAAP and SOX implementation. The role would suit a person who would enjoy solving complex accounting questions in collaboration with other teams (e.g. local and divisional finance, legal, Tax IT, operations) both in the UK and internationally to find scalable solutions.
This is ideal for someone who understands what “good” looks like but can also find pragmatic, scalable solutions where feasible and think creatively while understanding, respecting, and clearly explaining constraints. You will be comfortable navigating complexity to bring clarity and invest effort to suggest and implement simplifications where possible. This is a great opportunity for someone who wants to participate in developing a finance function in a growing company as it matures, while retaining its entrepreneurial spirit.
Please note that this role is initially structured as a 12-month FTC. Based in our Central London office, you will follow a hybrid-work pattern where the expectation is for you to be onsite 3 days per week on average.
What will you be doing?
1. Accounting papers, research, guidance and advice (IFRS and US GAAP):
Project manage, prepare and/or review accounting papers and advice for complex transactions or topics such as...
More important areas:
Leases accounting for non-standard/complex leases (critical).
Business combinations (sometimes including reorganisations) – Howden Group is acquisitive, completing multiple transactions every quarter.
Impairment assessments (e.g. Goodwill, Intangible assets, investments in subsidiaries).
Intangible assets capitalisation (software implementation costs).
Involvement in various valuation elements like discount rates (helping with debt, equity and lease discount rates) and adjusting for local circumstances when needed; review of valuation prepared internally or by external experts; and valuation of minority equity interests and other FV instruments.
Less important areas:
Revenue recognition, Financial instruments, Share based payments - Potential involvement in policies and transactions related to financing, hedging share-based payments, revenue recognition etc.
Review work prepared by other finance teams or junior colleagues.
2 Accounting policies, GAAP, Chart of accounts:
US GAAP – participate in understanding, documenting, tracking and quantifying differences between IFRS and US GAAP.
Help with updating and enhancing accounting policies and keep track of differences between IFRS, US GAAP and FRS 102 in selected areas.
Build FAQs and track frequent questions which need to be corrected within the reporting process or answered / clarified within policies.
CoA - Help maintain the Group chart of accounts (definitions, interaction with accounting policies and Key performance indicators KPIs).
FRS 102 – you may be involved in supporting local teams with guidance and pragmatic solutions for adopting changes to FRS 102 (mainly impacting leases and revenues) and aligning these to group accounting polices where possible.
What are we looking for?
Good knowledge of IFRS and UK GAAP (and relevant UK Law to a lesser extent).
Experience with US GAAP and SOX would be highly desirable.
Experience with large group consolidation in multi-currency environment.
Previous exposure to preparation or audit of consolidated accounts - understanding differences and connections between local (statutory) and group reporting.
Experience working with general ledger or consolidation systems would be very beneficial.
Plus significant working experience with most of following topics:
Leases IFRS 16 (and differences with IAS 17) (critical)
Business combinations (IFRS 3 - determining consideration, review opening balance sheet, understanding fair value adjustments, determining goodwill) (highly desirable)
Intangibles assets (IAS 38 internally developed assets, software implementation costs) (highly desirable)
Equity investments and assessing different level of control / influence
Valuations (concepts and interaction with different standards)
Share based payments (IFRS 2)
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.
Fixed Term Contract (Fixed Term)
