UK Controller

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Role Purpose

The UK Controller is a senior finance leader accountable for the accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of the UK's internal and external financial reporting and compliance across all JLL business lines in the country.

The role owns the UK statutory and US GAAP reporting control environment, leads a Controllership team based in London, and acts as a primary finance point of contact for UK business leadership, shared services, and global / regional Controllership. This is one of the most significant Controller roles in the EMEA region given the scale and complexity of the UK market.

Key Responsibilities

Month-End Close & General Ledger Integrity

Own the UK close calendar and delivery, coordinating with the Shared Services Centre to ensure accuracy and timeliness across all UK entities

Review and approve judgmental and complex journal entries, topside adjustments, accruals, and payroll and bonus entries

Perform review controls over the balance sheet and P&L (month-over-month actuals) with variance commentary

Act as control owner for payroll and bonus reporting

Balance Sheet Quality & Reconciliations

Prepare and approve high-risk reconciliations; monitor reconciliation dashboards and drive resolution of aged items in line with global reconciliation policy

Monitor balance sheet risks and opportunities, escalating proactively to UK and regional leadership

Resolve intercompany disputes and approve fixed asset transactions, including additions, retirements, disposals, and transfers

Statutory Reporting & External Audit

Own review and sign-off of UK statutory financial statements (FRS 102) across the UK entity portfolio (currently fewer than 40 entities), prepared in coordination with the Statutory Audit Centre of Excellence

Serve as primary contact for the external auditor, including PBC lists, planning meetings, cadence calls, and resolution of audit findings

Own preparation and filing of Companies House annual accounts and confirmation statements

Supervise FCA regulatory returns for UK regulated entities

Own review and sign-off of all other statutory filings and reporting, examples being payment practices, office of national statistics reporting, government contract reporting

Run risk assessments, execute and document SOX control testing, and remediate control weaknesses and audit findings

US GAAP Reporting

Deliver monthly, quarterly, and annual US GAAP reporting within JLL's global reporting matrix

Act as primary UK point of contact for global and regional Controllership on reporting matters

Develop and continuously improve month-end close processes to support both US GAAP and UK statutory timetables

Apply and interpret global accounting policy locally, with particular focus on revenue recognition, leases, and non-standard transactions

Tax & VAT Coordination

Coordinate with the Tax function on UK tax compliance matters, including group VAT filings across a complex multi-entity VAT position, corporation tax, PAYE settlement agreement submission and other statutory tax obligations

Support Tax with information requests, documentation, and process input from a controllership and controls perspective, without assuming ownership of tax technical positions

Team Leadership & Development

Manage and develop a UK Controllership team of qualified accountants and trainees, including workload prioritisation, performance management, and career development

Deliver technical training and updates to the team on accounting policy, process, and control changes

Business Partnering & Shared Services Oversight

Serve as the bridge between Controllership and Finance Business Partnering, ensuring controls and processes run smoothly across the wider UK Finance function

Monitor and help develop the performance of the Shared Services Centre supporting the UK

Partner with HR, Legal & Compliance, Procurement, and Tax on cross-functional finance matters

Represent Controllership in UK leadership discussions on financial and compliance matters

Ad Hoc / Projects

Lead or support projects as they arise, including entity rationalization, acquisitions, and integration activity

Provide decision support and financial modelling for UK executive leadership

Coordinate with other UK finance teams on cross-functional initiatives

Identify opportunities to standardize and improve UK accounting and reporting processes

Qualifications

ACA or ACCA qualified required; US CPA or other international equivalent will be considered, particularly combined with UK statutory and Companies House experience

6-8 years of post-qualification experience, including a background in external audit

Experience reporting within a large, listed or multinational group; working knowledge of both UK GAAP/FRS 102 and US GAAP strongly preferred

Proven experience managing and developing a team

Experience working with shared service centres, with the ability to hold providers accountable to quality and service standards

Strong stakeholder relationship management skills, with the credibility to operate as a peer to UK business leadership and global/regional Controllership

Proactive communicator, with a track record of surfacing risks and challenges to leadership before they escalate

Experience with Oracle/PeopleSoft, OneStream, and Tableau or comparable financial systems

Excellent Excel skills and strong organizational discipline to manage competing deadlines

Fluent in English

Location:

On-site –London, GBR

If this job description resonates with you, we encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet all of the requirements. We’re interested in getting to know you and what you bring to the table!

At JLL, we harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to efficiently accelerate meaningful connections between candidates and opportunities. Using AI capabilities, we analyze your application for relevant skills, experiences, and qualifications to generate valuable insights about how your unique profile aligns with the specific requirements of the role you're pursuing.

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