Director - Transaction Services - Insurance

The Team

Our Transaction Services practice comprises approximately 500 people across the UK, organised to align to KPMG's market orientated structure, and is at the heart of the Firm's agenda to increase its penetration of boardrooms and work with clients across the economic and transaction cycle. 

Within this structure, the Transaction Services Financial Services team (FS) advise clients, both Corporate and Private Equity, on buy side, sell side, IPOs and refinancing projects.

Our team works closely with colleagues across Deal Advisory, including Corporate Finance and Strategy as well as Tax, Audit and other Advisory teams; it is a multi-disciplinary and international environment that sits right at the heart of our One Firm agenda.

We are seeking an outstanding individual with the vision to help grow and deliver our growing client base. The role is for an experienced TS professional and will involve applying a transactions and financial due diligence skill set to client opportunities. We envisage that the successful candidate will:

• Have specific experience of delivering transactions for both corporate and private equity clients across the UK Insurance sector. Large and complex transactions will be highly regarded.
• Within Insurance, have expertise and specific transaction experience across a broad spectrum of sub-sectors (including life insurance, non-life insurance, distribution, MGA, pension advisory and insurance-adjacent business/professional services).
• Ideally, have a strong range of existing business relationships with insurance businesses in the UK and private equity investors, and trusted relationships across the sector and deal community more broadly e.g. Investment Banks and other advisers.
• Need to be a "self-starter", as the role requires a good deal of autonomy.

 The Role

Roles and Responsibilities

Director appointments are made on the basis of a demonstrated track record of leading multi-disciplinary teams, and building, sustaining and building trusted strategic relationships with clients.

As engagement leaders, Directors are expected to play a key role in the development of all aspects of the practice:

• Engagement leadership: leading multiple transactional engagements in ambiguous and rapidly changing environments;
• Business development: building, commercialising and sustaining relationships with senior management teams for the benefit of KPMG.
• Leading Deal Advisory relationships with specific clients and identified key accounts, specifically in the Insurance sector, and focusing on 'must win' opportunities;
• Risk management: managing risks appropriately and ensuring the Firm's risk management frameworks are implemented appropriately and effectively;
• Team development: identifying and bringing on new team members, with particular emphasis on coaching and skills transfer;
• Personal development: participating in the career and skills development of more junior staff and acting as a role model with colleagues and clients by living the values of the Firm;
• Performance management: being responsible for coaching and performance management of a small number of more junior staff.

The Person

 Skills, Qualifications & Experience

To succeed in this varied and demanding role you will need to demonstrate the following skills and experience:

• Strong academic and numerate background (ACA or equivalent highly desirable)
• Extensive experience of winning and delivering engagements with a financial due diligence lead perspective, specifically in insurance, and with a track record of using this to drive one-firm opportunities;
• The ability to talk credibly to, and evidence of working successfully with, senior management at clients, specifically in insurance and with private equity investors, on the key issues facing their respective industries, and their business more generally, and to understand their strategies with a view to identifying relevant transaction opportunities;
• The ability to develop strong client relationships and a proven track record of developing and commercialising new relationships, with particular emphasis on developing new relationships (outright or within clients with existing coverage);
• A commercial mindset, with the ability to maximise revenue opportunities for the whole of KPMG;
• A high degree of resilience and a willingness to work under extreme pressure in rapidly changing situations, as well as sometimes with significant autonomy;
• Strong personal impact, and comfortable dealing with senior and C suite level stakeholders (inside and outside KPMG);
• Excellent written and oral communication and presentation skills.