Assistant Company Secretary

Department: Legal

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Company: Canary Wharf Limited

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Reporting to: Deputy Company Secretary

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JOB SUMMARY

This post is to provide company secretarial, meeting management and corporate governance services at a senior qualified level to the Canary Wharf Group (including subsidiary companies and joint ventures). This will include leading for the Company Secretariat function on routine corporate transactions (including incorporations; director changes; etc) and assisting on complex transactions (including corporate, property and Joint Venture (JV) restructuring, financings, JV draw downs and capitalisations).

Monday to Friday 9am to 5.30pm, 4 days in the office, 1 day working from home.

12 month FTC - salary up to £85,000 p.a. dependent on experience.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

Company Secretarial duties

• Act as a senior point of contact for stakeholders and provide technically and situationally appropriate company secretarial and corporate governance guidance and assistance.

• Regular liaison with subsidiary and JV board and senior management, including: arrangement of board/committee meetings; preparation and review of papers; collation and circulation of packs; completion of pre-meeting actions; attendance at meetings to minute as required; and completion of post-meeting actions.

• Draft board minutes/director resolutions and shareholder resolutions to approve corporate transactions outside of scheduled meetings; maintain minute books.

• Arrange and prepare documents for annual general meetings.

• Review and interpret joint venture documentation, including shareholder agreements, partnership agreements etc. to determine and implement appropriate governance arrangements. 

• Deal with all company secretarial aspects contained in administrative service agreements with joint venture partners.

• Liaise with external Company Secretarial agents and advisers in respect of Scottish and Jersey registered entities.

• Lead on routine corporate transactions (including incorporations; director changes; etc.) and assist on complex transactions (including corporate, property and JV restructuring, financings, JV draw downs and capitalisations).

• Maintain the statutory records via Diligent Entities of the Canary Wharf Group, Subsidiary and JV entities (approx. 425 UK entities, 25 Jersey incorporated and UK tax resident and mirror registers for approx. 30 Jersey entities).

• Prepare and file confirmation statements and other statutory returns for the UK incorporated entities and facilitate the filing of the annual and other statutory returns for the Jersey entities in Jersey and for their branches in the UK as applicable to ensure compliance with all filing deadlines.

• Facilitate the year end accounts process by completing the initial review of the Canary Wharf Group, Subsidiary and JV statutory accounts (both dormant and audited), drafting minutes and arranging the approval of the accounts, their signature on behalf of the entity, and by the auditor as needed, and their filing at Companies House within the applicable filing deadlines.

• Assist the auditors with company secretarial and governance queries and year end director information requests including conflicts of interest declarations and legal letters.

• Facilitate the maintenance of group structure charts and prepare ad hoc structure charts using Visio.

• Maintain and review corporate policies and procedures, such as AML, Modern Slavery and Sanctions, to facilitate the enhancement of the corporate governance and compliance framework. 

• Work closely with the Deputy Company Secretary and Group Company Secretary to ensure compliance with the London and Jersey Stock Exchange filing requirements, including facilitating the submission of occasional announcements to London Stock Exchange and The International Stock Exchange in Jersey.

• Lead on complex and transaction-related AML/KYC requests.

• Respond to queries from internal customers (principally Tax, Legal, Finance and Treasury departments) and external stakeholders (including dissentient shareholder queries).

• Be vigilant to upcoming changes in corporate legislation, governance codes and guidance, understand their impact on Canary Wharf Group and work to ensure ongoing compliance with these as applicable.

• Facilitate the professional development of the Company Secretarial Assistants through mentoring and task oversight to enhance the overall technical capability, knowledge and reputation of the function.

• Provide cover for other team members (including the Deputy Company Secretary) during absences.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

• UK Corporate Governance Institute qualified or equivalent qualification (min. 5 years’ post-qualified experience).

• Good technical knowledge and ability to interpret, apply and communicate corporate law and governance good practice.

• Operates to a high professional standard with integrity, accuracy, attention to detail and the ability to work to tight and competing deadlines.

• Polite, courteous, well presented, calm manner and acts with tact, diplomacy utmost discretion due to the level of confidentiality of the work.

• Flexible and enthusiastic attitude with willingness to develop their professional knowledge and experience.

• Good interpersonal skills to interact confidently in writing and face to face with colleagues, board members and senior management in stakeholder functions and external agents and advisers.

• Experience essential of Diligent Entities and Diligent Boards (or similar platforms) and Companies House web/online filing.

• Confident user of Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, Docusign and SharePoint essential.

• Willingness to embrace latest technology and AI capabilities of the business and explore how these may be used to enhance efficiency.

• Experience desirable of the real estate sector, UK and Jersey listed environment, JV’s and limited partnerships as well as a solid company secretarial/ corporate governance background. 

• Willingness to assume responsibility for key tasks and work autonomously to tight deadlines as a senior team member within a small close knit team.

• Act with integrity and deliver high performance
• Put our customers at the heart of what we do
• Resolve issues by providing high quality solutions

Foster Collaboration

• Find opportunities to collaborate with others across the business to achieve shared goals
• Encourage inclusive networks and treat others with respect and fairness
• Use knowledge to work effectively with suppliers / contractors to meet shared goals

Encourage Engagement

• Confident in making decisions appropriate to the role
• Learn from mistakes and listen to constructive feedback to improve performance
• Prioritise safety and actively support community, wellbeing and sustainability programmes

Take Ownership

• Take pride in delivering high quality service which exceeds expectations
• Committed to opportunities for self-development
• Take responsibility for my own performance and look for ways to improve

Embrace Innovation

• Embrace change and innovation
• Proactively suggest ways to improve our business and encourage others to share ideas
• See new challenges as opportunities to deliver effective change

WHAT WE OFFER

Diversity and Inclusion

We recognise the importance of embracing diverse experience, skills and perspectives at all levels and operating in an inclusive working environment, in order for everyone to reach their full potential. We also recognise that it makes business sense, since being an inclusive employer leads to better business performance and higher levels of employee engagement and satisfaction. We welcome applicants with diverse backgrounds, perspectives and skills and are committed to fostering a culture whereby everyone can reach their full potential.

Flexible Working

As an inclusive employer, we recognise the positive impact flexible working can have on an individual, their wellbeing, engagement and productivity. Therefore, we are open to consider flexible working arrangements, both temporary or permanent.

Learning and Development

At Canary Wharf Group, our employees receive a wide range of support to help improve their skills and achieve their career goals. We offer development opportunities through classroom and e-learning training, mentoring, cross department experience and on the job learning. We heavily invest in our staff attaining accreditations to develop existing and new skills, support chartered status, sponsorships and provide further educational opportunities which are job and business related. We never stand still and continually invest in developing skills and knowledge to ensure individual and company growth.

Other Benefits

We are committed to building a safe, happy and healthy community for our employees and we offer a comprehensive range of benefits, all designed with our employees and their wellbeing in mind. From generous pension and insurance plans, to health benefits, subsidised gym membership, store discounts and family leave, our benefits package allows our employees to choose the benefits that suit them and their individual needs.

If you are interested in joining our highly professional and skilled team for our next exciting phase of development, please complete the form on this page to apply online.

Early applications are encouraged as we reserve the right to appoint at any point.