Lead Reporting Accountant

This key position in the finance team at BenevolentAI has the main responsibility of leading and compiling the external financial reporting required of the Group (including the subsidiaries), listed on Euronext Amsterdam, and standalone Luxembourg parent company. This key aspect of the role will require significant collaboration with, and support from, senior members of the Finance, Investor Relations and Communications teams. The profile of the deliverables will require the provision of key information to the Audit Committee and Board, and liaison with the auditors.

The role may also include contribution to the monthly close and project/ad hoc support to the broader Finance function to deliver high quality output in an operational efficient manner, with particular emphasis on supporting system and process improvements.

Responsibilities

• External reporting of annual and interim financial statements in a public company environment, currently across UK IFRS (subsidiaries), EU IFRS (Group) and Luxembourg GAAP (Group parent).
• Planning and managing the annual audit workflow to ensure timely audit completion and clean audit opinion.
• Leading the technical accounting for the Group and subsidiaries, including consolidation; share warrants and options; and any new areas as they arise (e.g. new revenue streams).
• Liaising, as required, with external experts in order to fulfil compliance and reporting obligations (e.g. share warrant valuations, climate-related disclosures)
• Supporting any financial information to be shared with the following audience:
• External reporting;
• Board and sub committees, including Audit Committee;
• Analyst and investor briefings;
• Executive Leadership Team. 
• Liaising with regulators (e.g. CSSF) on technical accounting/reporting matters.
• Leading the preparation of internal quarterly financial statements which more closely resemble the presentation used in external financial reporting. 
• Supporting the team, as needed, on monthly management accounts, especially where these require technical accounting input.

Additional responsibilities:

• Liaising with the Legal and Company Secretarial team, especially in relation to publishing of financial information.
• Leading or supporting the accounting and forecasting on restricted stock units (RSUs), share options and exercise of options, in conjunction with the FP&A and People teams and the mandatory reporting to HMRC.
• Identifyingand supporting the Finance team on other ad hoc projects.
• Supporting the corporation tax compliance and research and development tax credits across the Group (UK and US).
• Supporting and cross-training in tasks  that transition to other Finance team members over time.

We are looking for:

• A highly motivated individual, with the highest integrity, who can communicate well at all levels with finance and non-finance individuals.
• Good planning and documentation skills to help quickly reference key information and meet deadlines.
• An ability to think ahead and create functional strategies to set objectives and meet deliverables.
• Communicates clearly on relevant finance-related matters and is proactive in keeping people informed on the identification, progress and resolution of issues.
• Can adapt and embrace change in a fast-growing company and proactively look for improvements to processes and controls to support increased transaction volumes.
• A team-oriented approach to working.
• A change agent comfortable with a fast pace.
• Can navigate ambiguity and drive results.

• An eye for detail and accuracy.

Qualifications and Experience

Essential:

• Fluent in written and verbal English language skills.
• Fully qualified chartered accountant.
• Strong financial technical understanding of IFRS.
• Experience of leading/managing external audit processes (internally or externally).
• Experience of compiling/auditing public listed annual and interim accounts.
• Advanced Excel skills working with large data sets (e.g. pivot tables; Power Query; INDEX MATCH or XLOOKUP; SUMPRODUCT).

Familiarity with the following is preferred but not essential:

• Euronext compliance obligations.
• Financial reporting and compliance for Luxembourg entities.
• Share-based payments.
• Process and control governance underpinning external financial reporting and compliance.
• Life Sciences industry.