PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
•    Due to the continued growth of the Firm, we are looking to recruit an Operational Team Leader, to leverage their Accounts Payable and firm disbursements expertise to drive success and efficiencies in our Group Finance function
•    You'll lead the Firm Disbursements Support team, ensuring efficient disbursement processing and payment while guiding the transition from the Cashiering team to Accounts Payable.
•    Your role will involve collaborating with various teams to guarantee timely and accurate disbursements and partnering with the wider business to resolve issues effectively. A key project will be refining the supplier onboarding process, collaborating with Procurement to establish SLAs and best practices.
•    Upon implementing this new process, you'll also spearhead training for the Group Finance team and the wider business, ensuring a smooth transition and clear understanding of the procedures.

THE TEAM
The Group Finance team supports and drives the financial success of Addleshaw Goddard. We strive to deliver a first-class service to our stakeholders and to be a great team to work with and be part of. The Group Finance team comprises business professionals across a range of disciplines including Financial Control, Tax, Procurement, Business Partnering, Financial Planning & Analysis, Credit Control, Accounts Payable, Legal Billing and Legal Cashiering.

WHAT TO EXPECT IN THIS ROLE
•    Team Management: Oversee and manage the output of the Firm Disbursements team, which includes two direct reports, demonstrating best practice and being the go-to individual for all things disbursement related.
•    Disbursement Process Implementation: Design and implement a new disbursements process, with the support of the Procurement team, handling the transition of responsibility from Cashiering to Accounts Payable.
•    Disbursement Processing and Payments: Manage the overall output of disbursement processing and payment, overseeing two direct reports who will be responsible for the processing and payment on a day-to-day basis.
•    Business Partnering: Business partner with the Cashiering, Billing and Working Capital teams to ensure Firm Disbursements are processed and paid in a timely and accurate manner, and that any issues are resolved promptly, escalating where relevant.

•    Client Shaped Support: Business partner with the Senior Secretarial Management Team and wider business to understand the day-to-day challenges faced and support with improvements where relevant.

•    Creditor Reviews: Review creditors, and in particular aged disbursements, to ensure balances are kept under control and issues escalated appropriately.
•    Audit Requests: Be the point of contact for any audit requests in relation to Firm disbursements and ensure that audit-ready processing is part-and-parcel of the team's work.
•    Training: Provide training to both the Group Finance team and the wider business on the processing of disbursements and best practice.
•    Manual Vouchers / Uploads: Be the primary approver of any manual vouchers / uploads which fall outside of the regular processing framework and workflows.
•    Credit Cards and Petty Cash: Review credit card and petty cash statements / balances, ensuring that reconciliations are carried out in a timely and accurate manner and that any issues are identified and rectified promptly.
•    VAT / Withholding Tax Reviews: Review VAT and withholding tax positions to ensure items are processed and paid according to rules and legislation.
•    New Vendor Approval: Review and approve the set-up of new vendors on the Purchase to Pay (P2P) system, liaising with Procurement and the wider business as necessary.
•    Bank Details Amendments: Review and approve the changing of bank details to ensure accuracy and legitimacy prior to any future payments.
•    Payment Approvals: Review and approve payment releases where relevant, including across international jurisdictions and urgent / ad-hoc items.

YOUR AREAS OF KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE
•    Experience of disbursement processing and payments, gained within a comparable professional services environment. Whilst experience withing a legal setting would be advantageous this is not essential.
•    An evidenced track record of managing a team and its output, as well as coaching and developing colleagues, both within and outside immediate team.
•    Strong understanding of the Solicitor Accounts Rules.
•    Demonstrable understanding of accounts payable processes and procedures.
•    Experience of driving financial process improvement within an accounts payable environment.
•    Be a confident stakeholder manager, with evidenced experience of engaging and influencing stakeholders of all levels.
•    Possess excellent organisational skills and attention to detail with an ability to work under pressure whilst managing competing deadlines as well as delegating work to other team members
•    Good understanding of financial controls and procedures.

OUR FIRM
Addleshaw Goddard is a place where you are valued, encouraged, and challenged to fulfil your potential in a supportive and collegiate environment. Our culture of improvement, growth and collaboration delivers results, drives innovation, and rewards ambition.

We not only provide technical excellence and experience but, crucially, demonstrate real insight into our clients and what really matters to them and as such we are natural choice for FTSE100 clients and their equivalents in other markets.

Our success has been built by people from the widest range of backgrounds, locations, and perspectives. We have a number of employee networks that provide space to discuss the differences that make us who we are and celebrate this at AG.

OUR APPROACH: IMAGINE THE BEST YOU CAN BE
Everything we've accomplished can be traced back to our people and the way we work. Our reputation is something we are proud of, and constantly invest in. 

Here, you'll do high calibre work, with high-character colleagues who care for one another and our clients.

Are you up for the challenge?