Senior Accounting Manager - Business Services & Tax Advisory
Sydney | Business Services & Tax Advisory
Attractive senior package, negotiable on experience
Technically strong. Excellent with clients. A natural leader of people.
If that sounds like you, read on.
We are looking for an experienced Senior Manager to take real ownership across three areas:
our clients, our people and the quality of work delivered.
You will manage relationships with high-net-worth individuals, family groups and privately owned businesses. You will oversee and develop a team of accountants across Australia and offshore. And you will be one of the senior technical people others turn to when something is complex or doesn't look right.
This isn't a role where you wait for work to land on your desk.
We want someone who sees what needs to happen and makes it happen.
The role
You will have significant autonomy and work directly with the Partner.
Own the client relationship
You will manage a portfolio of premium clients and become the person they know, trust and call.
You will:
Be the senior point of contact for high-net-worth individuals, family groups, companies and trusts
Understand the client's broader affairs, not just their annual compliance work
Build genuine relationships and communicate regularly with clients
Run client meetings and explain complex issues clearly and confidently
Identify tax, structuring and commercial issues before the client has to ask
Raise difficult issues when necessary and provide practical solutions
Work directly with the Partner on complex tax, structuring and advisory matters
Coordinate with lawyers, advisers and other external professionals where required
Manage client expectations, deadlines and communication
We need someone who is
just as comfortable across the table from a sophisticated client as they are working through a complex technical issue
.
Communication skills are not a nice-to-have in this role.
They are essential.
Lead the team
This is a genuine management role, not just a senior reviewer position.
You will have responsibility for helping lead the broader accounting team across
local and offshore staff, from junior accountants through to experienced senior staff
.
You will:
Oversee workflow and job allocation across the team
Keep jobs moving and ensure deadlines are being managed
Know where the bottlenecks are and deal with them
Provide clear direction and support when staff get stuck
Review work and give practical, constructive feedback
Train, mentor and develop junior and intermediate accountants
Support senior accountants on more difficult technical matters
Help staff develop their technical, organisational and client-management skills
Ensure local and offshore team members work together effectively




Identify gaps in knowledge, processes or workflow and take the initiative to fix them
Set high standards and hold people accountable to them
We don't want a manager who simply allocates a job, waits for it to come back and reviews it.
We want someone who knows what is happening across the team and steps in before a small issue becomes a big one.
Own the quality
You will also be one of the senior technical review points within the firm.
You will:
Review and finalise complex financial statements and tax returns
Review work prepared by junior, intermediate and senior accountants
Catch what others miss
Work across complex company, trust, individual and family group structures
Handle matters involving Division 7A, trust distributions, CGT concessions, restructures and group tax planning
Research unfamiliar or difficult matters and get to an answer
Identify risks and issues that need to be addressed
Maintain a consistently high standard of work across the team
You won't be expected to know the answer to everything.
You
will
be expected to recognise when something doesn't look right, know how to investigate it and take responsibility for getting it resolved.
The person we are looking for
You are probably already a Manager or Senior Manager in Australian public practice.
You are technically strong, but that's only part of what has made you successful.
People trust you.
Clients enjoy dealing with you. Junior staff feel comfortable asking you questions. Senior staff respect your technical judgement. When something goes wrong, your instinct is to work out how to fix it rather than explain why it happened.
You will ideally have:
8+ years' Australian public practice experience, including several years at Manager level
CA or CPA qualification
Deep Australian tax and accounting knowledge
Experience dealing with high-net-worth individuals, family groups, companies and trusts
Strong experience reviewing work prepared by intermediate and senior accountants
Demonstrated experience managing and developing accounting staff
Experience managing workflow and deadlines across a team
Exceptional verbal and written communication skills
The confidence to lead client meetings and have difficult conversations
Strong judgement and commercial awareness
High attention to detail
Strong organisational skills and follow-through




A genuine sense of urgency when something needs attention
Above all, you will have
initiative
.
If you identify a problem, you don't just point it out.
You own it, work out what needs to happen and get it resolved.
The qualities that matter
Proactive
You don't need a list from the Partner each morning to know what needs attention. You look ahead, anticipate issues and act.
Energetic
You bring pace and enthusiasm to the role. When things get busy, you organise, prioritise and keep people moving.
A communicator
You pick up the phone. You talk to people. You listen. You can turn a complicated tax issue into something a client can understand and make a decision on.
A problem solver
You're naturally curious. If something looks wrong, you dig into it. If a process isn't working, you improve it. If a team member is stuck, you help find the answer.
A leader
You don't just check people's work.
You make the people around you better.
You set expectations, give feedback, teach, follow up and provide support. You understand that different staff need different levels of direction and you adjust accordingly.
This role would suit someone who
Enjoys being responsible for clients, not hidden behind another manager
Likes leading and developing a team
Wants genuine autonomy
Enjoys complex technical work
Has high standards and notices when something isn't right
Likes solving problems rather than passing them upwards
Wants to have an impact on how a firm operates
Is looking for a long-term senior role with room to grow
This role would not suit someone who
Is technically strong but would rather avoid client conversations
Enjoys clients but relies on others for the difficult technical answers
Wants to review work but doesn't want responsibility for developing the people preparing it
Waits to be told what needs to be done
Identifies problems and passes them on rather than solving them
Avoids difficult conversations
Wants work handed to them rather than taking ownership of it
What is on offer
A package reflecting the seniority and responsibility of the role, negotiable based on experience
Direct working relationship with the Partner
Genuine ownership of sophisticated private client relationships
Leadership responsibility across the accounting team
Interesting and complex technical work
Exposure to high-level tax, structuring and advisory matters
Autonomy to make decisions and solve problems
The opportunity to influence systems, workflow and how work is delivered
Regular skilled training and development
Flexibility for the right person
A professional environment where people work hard, do things properly and go home at a reasonable time
Free onsite parking and convenient public transport
#J-*****-Ljbffr

📌 Senior Client Manager - Pathway To Associate Director (Sydney)
🏢 seek.com.au
📍 Sydney