Financial Accountant

Company Description

At Octopus, we’re entrepreneurs and we’re investors, on a mission to back the people, ideas and industries that will change the world. 

We think working here is great, but we’re understandably bias. Click here to explore Life at Octopus.

Job Description

The OITS finance team manages four groups, the largest of these being the Fern group, with over 300 companies across 5 countries, managed by a combination of internal and external finance teams. The groups own and operate companies across the energy, fibre, housebuilding and lending sectors, with over £3bn Assets under Management (AuM). 

Essential Job Functions

• Complete understanding of the Octopus Inheritance Tax Products (“OITS”), the companies within their portfolios and the commercial operations of those entities.
• Full ownership of certain parts the OITS portfolio, including completing management accounts for the respective entities.
• Ownership of sub-consolidations in the Fern group as needed, covering energy, housebuilding, fibre, lending or corporate entities.
• Working with the newly implemented consolidation software to prepare accurate consolidated results.
• Work closely with internal and external finance teams to prepare, review and deliver the monthly, quarterly and annual management reporting.
• Review subsidiary budgets prepared by internal and external finance teams, and challenge assumptions to ensure consistency divisions. Analyse performance against budget for board reporting.
• Work with Company Secretarial to ensure investments, distributions and other equity transactions are calculated and recorded correctly.
• Work closely with the auditors, accounts preparation team, tax team and other parties to deliver the audit and statutory financial statements of entities owned. Take ownership of certain areas of the group audit.
• Research new technical areas and provide recommendations on accounting policy. Draft accounting papers on new transactions or changes to accounting policy.
• Support the Financial Controller & Finance Managers to improve reporting processes.
• Provide prompt and accurate financial information to investment teams on queries.
• Other ad-hoc projects as required.

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant (ACA or ACCA)
• Ideally from an audit background or financial services background
• Group consolidation experience essential
• Able to adapt to changing priorities and support the team in a fast-paced environment.
• Works well with others, building positive relationships across teams and welcoming feedback.
• Organised and reliable, with good time management skills and the ability to meet deadlines.
• Communicates clearly and professionally, raising questions or issues when needed.
• Takes ownership of their work and approaches tasks with openness and a positive attitude.
• Looks for ways to improve processes and contribute ideas that help the team work more effectively.

Additional Information

What we offer

💰  A competitive salary, bonus, pension and share incentive plan
✈️ Take what you need holiday
🏡 Flexible working 
⚓ Anchor (our wellness hub) which includes Headspace, one to one coaching through Sanctus, Parent Cloud, Digital GP, Shout & more
👪 Enhanced family leave policies
❤️ Life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection
🏥 Private medical insurance for you and your family
🚗 Electric vehicle leasing
🌍 The option to work overseas up to a month per year

Our Values 
At our core, we believe that how a company behaves is just as important as what it does. That’s why we chose to become an accredited B Corp (the equivalent of a Fairtrade coffee stamp but for companies) and to change our Articles of Association so that the interests all our stakeholders – employees, customers, communities, environment and shareholders – are considered in every decision we make.   

We are committed to building a workplace where diversity is valued, and inclusion is a priority. By providing equal opportunities for growth and development, we embrace and celebrate all races, genders, religions, sexual orientations, ages, disabilities, and socio-economic backgrounds. We believe teams achieve their best when every member feels safe, respected and empowered to be their authentic selves.

We're proud to be disability confident and are committed to supporting candidates with a disability, including neurodiversity and mental health conditions, throughout the recruitment process. Applicants are welcome to opt-in to the disability confident scheme as part of our application process. If you require any adjustments to the interview process, we’ll be happy to accommodate where possible.