Statutory Reporting & Compliance Manager

Overview

This role owns timely, accurate, audit-ready statutory reporting for every legal entity across all portfolios of the group. The position sits outside the portfolio reporting lines, ensuring statutory deadlines and accounting judgements have a dedicated owner.

The role covers statutory compliance under local GAAP per jurisdiction and IFRS for group purposes, including ownership of the group’s compliance calendar.

Responsibilities

Statutory accounts

• Prepare, or oversee preparation of, statutory financial statements for all legal entities under local GAAP.
• Own the group statutory and filing calendar and ensure every filing deadline is met.
• Manage local accounting and filing providers where entities are serviced externally.

Statutory and group audits

• Plan and lead statutory audits end to end, including timetable, PBC lists, audit files, and closing meetings.
• Act as primary contact for statutory auditors and coordinate support to the group auditor.
• Resolve audit findings and track management letter points to closure.

IFRS and technical accounting

• Deliver local GAAP to IFRS conversions and respond to IFRS reporting requests.
• Set group accounting policies and position papers, including examples such as:
  • IFRS 15 revenue recognition
  • IFRS 16 leases
  • capitalised development costs
  • intercompany matters in close cooperation with the headquarter
• Support acquisition accounting for new deals, including opening balance sheets, purchase price allocation, and alignment of acquired entities to group policies.

Compliance and controls

• Maintain the legal entity register from a finance perspective, including filing status, auditors, year-ends, and local requirements.
• Define minimum statutory standards that portfolio teams’ month-end must meet, for example balance sheet reconciliations and documentation.
• Coordinate responses to internal audit findings that relate to statutory reporting.
• Support entity rationalization, including mergers and liquidations of dormant entities.

Tax interface

• Work with the Tax Manager on tax provisions, deferred tax, and tax notes in the statutory accounts.
• Provide financial data needed for transfer pricing documentation and local tax filings.

Decision Rights & Key Interfaces

• Portfolio Finance Directors: own portfolio results, priorities, and staffing of entity teams; this role owns the statutory calendar, deliverable requirements, and sign-off of statutory accounts.
• Entity teams: own the monthly close, ledgers, reconciliations, and audit support data; this role owns statutory adjustments, audit files, and auditor communication.
• Finance business partners: own management reporting, forecasts, and KPIs; this role informs them of audit adjustments affecting reported numbers (no overlap).
• Tax Manager: owns tax computations, filings, and transfer pricing policy; this role owns tax notes and balances in the statutory accounts.
• Treasury: owns cash, banking, and financing; this role owns disclosures on cash, debt, and covenants (if applicable).
• External auditors: own the audit opinion; this role owns audit-ready files, the timetable, and resolution of findings.

Qualifications and Experience

Required

• Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CPA, CA or equivalent).
• 7+ years in statutory reporting, including 3+ years in audit at a Big Four or mid-tier firm.
• Strong IFRS knowledge, especially IFRS 15 and IFRS 16.
• Experience with statutory accounts and audits across several jurisdictions, including the US, Europe and APAC.
• Track record of running multiple statutory audits in parallel against fixed deadlines.

Preferred

• Experience in a multi-entity software, SaaS or buy-and-build group.
• Acquisition accounting and post-deal integration of acquired entities.
• NetSuite or a comparable multi-entity ERP.
• Experience managing outsourced accounting and filing providers.

Skills and Personal Attributes

• Calendar discipline with planning months ahead and treating filing deadlines as fixed.
• Independence: holds a technical position under business pressure and escalates early.
• Influence without authority: ensures entity teams deliver on time.
• Hands-on approach: prepares accounts and audit files personally where needed (not a pure oversight role).
• Clear communicator: explains technical accounting to non-accountants, including investment partners and other senior management.
• Builder: creates templates, checklists, and standards to accelerate the next cycle; uses tools to automate tasks.
• Fluent English; additional European languages are a plus.

Success Measures

• First 3 months: Complete statutory and filing calendar for all entities, including owners and current status.
• First 3 months: Identify overdue filings and open audits, with 50% resolved.
• First 6 months: Submit all statutory filings on time with no late-filing penalties.
• First 12 months: Close statutory audits within agreed timetables; resolve prior-year management letter points.
• First 12 months: Reduce portfolio finance teams’ time spent on statutory work by at least 50%.
• First 14 months: Automate at least 40% of the recurring preparation work for statutory audits.
• Ongoing: Align newly acquired entities to group policies and the calendar within 6 months of closing.

Location

United Kingdom

Reporting Line

Reports to the Head of Finance.

Direct Reports

None

External Parties

• Statutory and group auditors
• Local accounting and filing providers
• Company secretarial providers