Job Introduction
Senior Assistant Company Secretary
Salary £85,000 to £110,000 depending on experience
Permanent
Hybrid Home & Folkestone / London
Here at Saga, we have rare opportunity for a Senior Assistant Company Secretary. You’ll be joining a high functioning Company Secretarial Team. Working as a Senior Assistant Company Secretary, you will support the Company Secretarial Team professionally and administratively, dealing with all levels across a diversified Group.
It’s truly an exciting and varied role, you will act as named Company Secretary for the Insurance and Saga Money business units, and act as secretary to the plc Audit and Risk Committee, ensuring that all matters relating to internal controls and risk throughout the Group are reported and escalated, as necessary.
This is a pivotal role in Saga, you will hold responsibility for the regulated entities while also assisting our Group Company Secretary on other Group related matters and projects across our exciting and varied organisation.
We need you to be credible and knowledgeable with supporting at c-suite level within heavily regulated environments. You will be able to commit to working collaboratively as a team, deliver high quality work and have a pragmatic and commercial approach. Working closely with the Board, you can certainly have a positive impact to the overall strategy at Saga.
We work in a hybrid way at Saga both at home and in the office. Our main locations for this role would be Folkestone, Kent and Kings Cross, London.
Role Responsibility
As the appointed Company Secretary to our Insurance and Financial Services FCA regulated entities within the Saga Group. (Saga Insurance and Saga Money.) Your key areas of responsibilities will cover;
• Maintaining an effective working relationship with the Insurance and Personal finance entity Chairs and CEOs to ensure that governance supports delivery of the strategy.
• Drafting and controlling annual corporate calendars. Preparing agendas, governance reports, collating and circulating papers, and drafting minutes for boards and committees where appropriate.
• Working collaboratively with business areas to ensure supporting board and committee papers and actions are high quality, providing a ‘check and challenge’ to initial drafts and ensuring that executive summaries are used effectively.
• Attending and minuting Board, Remuneration/Nomination Committee and Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee meetings (Insurance) and plc Audit and Risk Committee.
• Maintaining and updating governance documents, including Terms of Reference, delegated authority matrices, and division of responsibilities.
• Ensuring that the flow of reporting between subsidiaries and Saga plc is effective - with a focus on audit, risk and internal controls.
• Providing advice on current best corporate governance practice.
• Liaising with the Conduct Risk Team on regulatory matters (i.e. FCA) and ensuring that corporate governance processes and procedures adhere with regulatory rules and expectations.
• Carrying out Non-Executive and Executive Director inductions within insurance and Saga Money, and ongoing development/ evaluation.
Group:
• Supporting during the AGM preparation and the production of the Annual Report and Accounts (with specific responsibility for the Audit and Risk Committee report).
• Assisting with project work, as required e.g. group strategic projects, due diligence requests, Group Policies, ad hoc requests.
• Acting as a trusted adviser to senior stakeholders, providing guidance on governance issues, statutory duties, and company policies.
• Drafting resolutions and associated documentation for all governance matters e.g. projects, transactions, change of name, director or secretary changes, etc.
Statutory and Regulatory Compliance:
• Monitoring developments in company law, corporate governance, and regulatory requirements. Ensuring full compliance with statutory and regulatory obligations, including Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, Market Abuse Regulation, Listing Rules, UK Corporate Governance Code and other relevant frameworks.
Project and Change Support:
• Contributing to significant corporate projects such as mergers, acquisitions, restructures, and new business ventures. Obtaining approvals by relevant Group companies and ensuring Board directors understand their responsibilities and fulfil their duties.
• Carrying out due diligence and supporting transactional governance requirements, working closely with internal and external advisers.
• Working with cross-functional teams including Legal, Tax, Treasury, Legal and external advisers to deliver projects.
The Ideal Candidate
You will have previously line managed in a Company Secretary function and be keen to join an organisation that is on a journey of transition and growth. You will have already worked in a Plc and/or regulated business.
You will also be able to demonstrate the following skills and capabilities;
• Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with directors, senior executive and control functions
• High-level organisational skills, with the highest standards of professionalism and integrity
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills (written and verbal) plus minuting experience
• Attentive to detail with a pragmatic, commercial and collaborative approach
• Excellent project management skills – ability to respond quickly to ad hoc queries and manage conflicting priorities
• Come from a legal background, ideally with a law or business degree
• CGI qualified – Chartered Governance Qualifying Programme
• Good knowledge of UK Companies Act 2006, FCA Disclosure and Transparency Rules and other relevant legislation
• Excellent working knowledge in the use of the latest company secretarial software, including board portal and entity management software.
Saga Values: Make it Happen, Do the Right Thing, Customer First, Excellence Every Day, Our People Make Us Special
Package Description
At Saga, we recognise that our people make us special. We believe our colleagues deserve rewards for the excellence they demonstrate every single day, that's why we have put together an amazing benefits package for all colleagues.
BENEFITS AVAILABLE FOR THIS ROLE:
1. 25 days holiday + bank holidays
2. Option to purchase additional leave - 5 extra days
3. Pension scheme matched up to 10%
4. Company performance related annual bonus - Up to 15%
5. Car allowance £4,800 per annum
6. Private medical insurance after 1 years’ service
7. Life assurance policy on joining us, 4 x salary
8. Wellbeing programme
9. Colleague discounts including family discounts on cruises, holidays and insurance
10. Range of reductions and offers from leading retailers, travel groups and entertainment companies
11. Enhanced maternity and paternity leave
12. Grandparents leave
13. Income protection
14. Access to Saga Academy, our bespoke learning platform