Financial Controls Assurance Lead - UK

Please Note: The deadline for applying is 23.59 the day before the job posting end date.

Job Title: Financial Controls Assurance Lead - UK

Location: 100VE

Work-Level: 2C

Business Context:

Unilever is a business founded in 1890s with a strong belief in social purpose, and our unique heritage still shapes the way we do business today.

We are one of the world's leading consumer goods companies, making and selling around 400 brands in more than 190 countries. Unilever is in 2020 a €51 billion euro revenue company with a global presence across Europe, Americas and Asia/AMET/RUB. Over 2.5 billion people use our products to feel good, stay healthy and make their lives easier. That's about a third of the global population choosing from household names such as Lipton, Knorr, Dove and Hellmann's, and local brands like Bango in Indonesia and Suave in the US.

Unilever’s Purpose is to make sustainable living commonplace, and this is underpinned by The Unilever Compass: Purpose-Led, Future-Fit is our new, single growth strategy based on three beliefs; Brands with purpose grow, Companies with purpose last, People with purpose thrive. Our vision is to be the global leader in sustainable business. We will demonstrate how our purpose-led, future-fit business model drives superior performance, consistently delivering financial results in the top third of our industry.

GCAD is the Group Chief Accountant’s Department, responsible for accounting and controls activities for the group and acts as a centre of accounting expertise and excellence. This role reports to the GCAD Global Risk & Controls Director.

JOB PURPOSE

The purpose of the role is to support the GCAD Risk and Controls team in the delivery of the risk management and controls assurance processes, strengthening the financial controls environment and driving operating efficiency and effectiveness.

The candidate will be responsible for leading the Financial Control Assessment (FCA) as part of our management assurance over compliance with Sarbanes Oxley regulations. They will manage and develop a team of 4 based out of Bangalore and a third-party testing team to coordinate with the countries, Operating Centres, and Third-Party Service Providers to ensure the FCAs are completed to a high quality and within the expected timelines.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Provides leadership and oversight for the following:

• Lead the SOX Compliance program ensuring adherence to all relevant control requirements per the Sarbanes Oxley Act (Section 404) for financial reporting and internal controls.
• Management of a team of 4 and a third-party testing provider to deliver the annual SOX compliance requirements. Continuously optimising efficiency, engagement and ensuring quality deliverables for the SOX programme.
• Define and perform risk assessment and scoping for group wide controls assurance activities by collaborating with cross-functional teams to stay up to date on significant changes that may have an impact on the design and/or operating effectiveness of controls.
• Define the testing strategy and implement across markets, perform management testing and analysis of financial controls.
• Develop and execute the annual SOX compliance plan ensuring timely execution of assessment and reporting.
• Serve as the primary point of contact with external auditors on SOX-related matters. Coordinate the annual SOX audit, ensuring that all documentation, testing and remediation efforts are completed on time and meet audit requirements.
• Maintain on-going communication with external auditors and internal auditors including alignment on controls assurance planning, walkthroughs/testing, audit requests, and deficiency evaluation.
• Monitor and report progress and all aspects of FCA to Senior Management and the Audit Committee.
• Deliver timely and concise communication, including developing and producing management reporting, illustrating compliance status, trends, and remediation of deficiencies.
• Prepare executive management and Audit Committee materials highlighting overall FCA SOX progress and results in order to meet all regulatory requirements, including providing guidance to assist with CEO and CFO certification.
• Identify critical control issues/trends/themes and partner with process owners and internal stakeholders to identify solutions.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with stakeholders and other business partners in a way that fosters an open environment of continuous dialogue and information exchange and yet challenges the status quo to continuously improve the controls culture and overall control operating effectiveness across Unilever.
• Lead, coach a high performing team and facilitate career progression / talent rotation.

ALL ABOUT YOU

Experience

• Qualified Chartered Accountant or other relevant professional qualification with relevant years PQE
• SOX audit experience or previous controls experience in a SOX scope company
• Experience in advisory or audit for a major accounting firm
• Strong knowledge of US GAAP, COSO, PCAOB Auditing Standards, Sarbanes-Oxley, risk and controls standards and business process best practices
• Strong knowledge of internal controls, SAP and core business and financial processes
• Experience in managing third party outsourced vendors
• Ability to work in a dynamic organization and manage / balance multiple priorities and diverse projects concurrently
• Ability to analyse the root cause of the deficiencies and propose corrective action and ensure quality deliverables
• High proficiency in stakeholder management, good at finding a common ground and pragmatic solutions to problems
• Deals easily with ambiguity and can effectively cope with change
• High proficiency in stakeholder management, partnership, building trust and influence
• Experience of managing complex, multi-stakeholder change projects
• Strong communication and influencing skills, bringing the ability to explain technical concepts to a wider business audience
• Experience and awareness of working in multicultural and multilocation teams
• Possesses a high energy level, intellectual curiosity and strong work ethic with a commitment to continuous improvement in a dynamic and changing environment.

Key Stakeholders

• Group Financial Controller
• Group Chief Accountant and GCAD Leadership Team
• External auditors
• Corporate audit team
• Controls Service Centre (managing day to day operation of controls)
• Business Process Owners
• Control Owners
• Third Party Service Providers
• Operating Centres
• Finance Expertise Teams (Tax, Pensions etc)
• Consulting/expertise partners

NOTES

Please apply via this portal as e-mail applications may not be processed and include your Future Fit Plan if possible.

By applying for this vacancy, you are confirming that you have made your Line Manager aware of your application and that you are at a point in your career with Unilever where it is appropriate for you to be applying for other positions.   

Should you require additional information or reasonable adjustments to allow you to present your best self during this process, please contact your Talent Partner Sophie Whall on Sophie.Whall@unilever.com

What we offer

Whilst the role is advertised on a full-time basis, we would be happy to discuss possible flexible working options and what this may look like for you. We strive to achieve a family-friendly and inclusive workplace and to, above all, create possibilities for all. 

Diversity at Unilever is about inclusion, embracing differences, creating possibilities and growing together for better business performance. We embrace diversity in our workforce. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants and continuing development of all employees regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity. We are also more than happy to provide reasonable adjustments during our application and interview process to enable you to be present your best self. To find out more, including about our Employee Resource Groups, please click here Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (unilever.com).

Location

In June 2020 we announced our plan to consolidate a number of Unilever’s offices across the South East of England into a new Unilever campus in Kingston-upon-Thames in or around early 2025. However, on the 08 August 2024 we announced to our existing staff our proposal to retain our central Head Office in London, 100 Victoria Embankment (“100VE”) until our lease expires in 2027. As a result of this new proposal, we will be consulting with our existing staff, and new joiners who join during this period of consultation at 100VE, on the proposal made in August 2024. During consultation we will clarify the future location of each team and function. This means your role will either be based in 100VE until 2027 or in Kingston-Upon-Thames from early 2025. As we are yet to commence consultation on the proposal you agree, until such a time when consultation has concluded, your normal place of work as set out in the enclosed Statement of Terms & Conditions will be 100VE. You agree that on the conclusion of the consultation your place of work will be 100VE or 100VE until early 2025 and then Kingston-upon-Thames ("the locations") and you will be notified of which of the locations will be your place of work after that consultation ends.

Relocation to the UK

Please be aware if you are applying for this role from outside the UK, if successful, your application will be treated as a self-initiated Change Location Outside of Country (CLOC) transfer. This means any relocation costs must be self-funded with the potential to reclaim some specific pre-approved expenses up to £5,000. Please speak to your Talent Partner if you have any questions.