Lead Group Tax Reporting Analyst at Old Mutual South Africa

Job Description

This Cape Town based role is within Group Tax, in the Old Mutual Group Tax Reporting team, reporting to the Head: Comprehensive Tax Reporting. The Group Tax Reporting team comprises of senior specialized tax professionals dedicated to tax reporting and compliance of the Old Mutual Group of companies.

The role of Lead: Group Tax Reporting Analyst is to co-ordinate and manage the efforts of the Group Tax Reporting team. The Group Tax Reporting team is ultimately responsible for accurate, efficient and timely tax input into the wider Group Finance Reporting team for financial reporting purposes, to ensure that Old Mutual Limited as a listed entity meets its tax reporting requirements in line with tax transparency practices, adequate disclosure and reporting to relevant stakeholders. The Group Tax Reporting team is also responsible for interrogating the tax numbers out of the financial reporting systems, managing, computing, collating and consolidating the tax reporting requirements (including detailed computations and disclosure in the annual financial statements) across all the Old Mutual Segments (eg Long term and Short term insurance, the Asset Management, Wealth and Investment, as well as the Rest of Africa). The Group Tax Reporting team is also responsible for producing the Tax Transparency Report, a supplementary report to the Group Integrated Reporting Suite, guided by the Tax Standard GRI 207 and Principles of Responsible Investment.

The focus of the Group Tax team is to provide expert knowledge and support to businesses in the Old Mutual Group as well as the wider Group Tax team, to ensure that the Group effectively and efficiently integrates tax numbers and transparency into business processes for decision making and reporting.  The team is proud to lead the Old Mutual Limited Group disclosure and communication on the Group’s tax contribution in a realistic, transparent manner.

Role Overview

The role will primarily be responsible for managing the OML Group Tax reporting process, business planning and forecasting process.

• Tax compliance of OML entities, review of tax returns (across tax types), Tax Ruling applications to SARS on behalf of the business, provide adhoc tax advice, responding to SARS correspondence and tracking SARS payments
• Prepare and provide guidance in completing the standardised tax pack sign off to the Group Tax reporting team. This includes IFRS Income statement, Balance sheet, Tax notes, Headline Earnings and Adjusted Headline Earnings (“AHE”) figures with commentary
• Consolidation of Group results, including segmental and line of business submissions, commentary and headline earnings and AHE tax for group sign off
• Prepare detail Group IFRS ETR and tax reconciliation analysis files, consolidate and review BU commentary
• Manage Tax Reporting process stakeholders
• Review tax consolidation journals
• Review the AFS and segmental sign off process for input into the AFS. Review OML statutory tax disclosure notes as per the AFS prepared by Finance AFS team and agree to HFM.
• Monitor IFRS and AHE ETR for the Group on a monthly basis
• Analyse and review Consolidated Tax balances. 
• Preparation of the Tax Transparency Report and consolidate inputs such as Total Tax Contribution.
• Review of the tax accounting processes
• Implementation of tax systems and ensure that all tax accounting requirements are met.
• Review / prepare adhoc tax reporting requirements from time to time
• Implementation of Group Tax Policy across the business
• Review Voluntary Disclosure submissions and penalty remissions letters to SARS
• Assist with audit queries and other stakeholders queries

Key Result Areas

Execution to deadlines, effective processes to ensure timely reporting and accountability by living Old Mutual’s values:

• Demonstrate the ability to make commercial decisions using sound judgement, a strong work ethic and irreproachable integrity
• Demonstrate the ability to engage, collaborate and partner with different stakeholders in order to successfully establish adequate processes for reporting on complex business transactions and circumstances
• Demonstrate the ability to remain resilient and focused in a dynamic, pressured and demanding environment
• Demonstrate the ability to mentor, motivate, develop and lead talented professionals, actively support individual growth aspirations and enable succession planning in accordance with employment equity policies
• Lead by example to cultivate a culture of high performance, commitment to deadlines and solutions-orientated team work and team support that encourages optimal levels of employee confidence and job satisfaction
• Demonstrate innovative thinking, consistent energy, drive, creativity and perseverance in order to deliver high quality results and meaningful narratives/reports
• Manage team resource capacity while ensuring enhanced team productivity, efficiency and effectiveness
• Maintain continuous tax representation in investment origination forums, product and risk committees and financial management meetings - in order to enable strategic tax input in investment assessment, product design and financial decision making processes.
• Work together with and maintain continuous internal stakeholder engagements that strengthen relationships of trust
• Laser focus on integration, alignment and continuous improvement of tax reporting and sign-off processes, within Group Tax (including but not limited to, Tax Attestations to the CFO/Board, Tax Segmental Reporting, Audit Committee Tax Reporting, Stakeholder Reporting (ie Integrated Report and response to Investor Relations/JSE special requests, etc), with Group Finance and Corporate Risk and Governance processes

Tax technical, computations and advisory/commercial competence

Taxation Law & Practice

• Demonstrate strong, breadth and depth of knowledge of tax legislation in general (statutory, regulatory and common-law rules), proposed changes to tax legislation and interpretations or best practice
• Demonstrate the ability to engage with external stakeholders (eg, ASISA, SAICA, SARS and National Treasury etc) including participation on industry bodies/committees on tax legislation, tax practice and national tax strategy, and participate in and influence policy formation
• Communicate tax technical and compliance and reporting updates and provide adequate training and assistance to stakeholders/business segments on changes to ensure quality reporting (eg deferred tax, etc)
• Communicate and explain the application of tax legislation and the difference in accounting treatment, with regards to unusual and complex business transactions
• Implement and monitor continuous process improvement, required controls and governance in response to proposed changes in tax legislation (that is, anticipate impact on business segments and reporting), while identifying potential tax risks and providing strategic direction to the business
• Input into Old Mutual Group strategy on tax de-risking and mitigation or management of tax risk, in order to ensure minimization of negative tax impact on the Old Mutual Group
• Lead input on behalf of Group Tax, in wider OML Group teams involved in changes to reporting systems/formats/structures, to ensure that Group Tax Business Requirement Specifications are included in Group wide projects for product/process improvement and test against parameters to ensure BRS met before project signed off.
• Identify opportunities for tax reporting process improvement, standardization where relevant, data quality and system changes to improve quality, transparency and effectiveness of tax reporting
• Knowledge of IFRS 17 impact and/or other IFRS impact on the OML Group

 Taxation Computations/Tax Reporting Packs

• Demonstrate a strong command of tax reporting in general and ability to lead a team to achieve effective, timely reporting to deadlines (ie, deferred tax rules, principles of deferred tax proof, 5 Funds splits, effective tax rate reconciliations (by line of business, AHE ETR, and IFRS ETR), tax transparency (ie GRI207 criteria, PRI criteria, JSE (Tax) Disclosure requirements), IFRIC 23/IAS 37 provisioning, broad principles of transfer pricing benchmarks and disclosure, etc)
• Demonstrate the ability to take a pragmatic approach and apply tax technical knowledge in preparation and review of tax computations/reporting across tax types - in consultation with Tax Subject Matter Experts in Group Tax – in order to ensure accuracy, completeness and quality compliance and reporting.
• Provide Business Segments and own team with thought leadership, strategic and technical guidance in the completion and review of tax computations/deferred tax proof/disclosures, etc
• Monitor completeness and accuracy of tax information for tax reporting
• Identify and evaluate impact of differences between tax returns submitted and assessments from Revenue Authorities versus tax disclosure in annual financial statements and identify the appropriate action in response to these (ie prior year adjustments, overs-unders provisions, etc)

Tax Accounting

• In addition to the above, strong numeracy and literacy skills and the ability to apply tax technical knowledge in order to ensure correct accounting treatment/provisioning for the tax consequences of transactions/new products in the financial statements of business segments
• In addition to the above, demonstrate a deep understanding of the tax accounting standards in order to resolve unusual and complex tax accounting issues in accordance with applicable accounting standards
• Recommend and advise on process improvements for tax accounting/reporting outcomes
• In addition to the above, compute tax analytics and assess tax contribution trends across all taxes on a regular basis

Tax Advisory

• Demonstrate the ability to analyze transactions and new products from a tax perspective, and to make recommendations for changes in order to comply with tax legislation
• Provide tax technical, pragmatic commercial and transaction implementation advice on, inter alia, financial structured investments/divestments and products (including preference shares/hybrid instruments), derivative transactions, group mergers and acquisitions, fund (regulated and non-regulated) structuring, offshore expansions, tax due diligences and projects undertaken
• Provide targeted tax technical training to business units to ensure tax quality tax compliance and reporting/disclosures, implementation of tax advice, and timely consideration and/or identification of tax implications of new transactions

Qualifications, Skills and Required Experience

• Qualified CA(SA), with H Dip Tax (or Honors / Masters in Tax)
• A minimum of 6 to 10 year’s tax reporting experience in a financial services/ insurance environment (insurers and/or banks) or professional services (Big 4)
• Tax Risk management/oversight experience an advantage
• Some exposure to transformation of tax reporting functions (across people, process, data, technology) would be a distinct advantage
• Deep knowledge of financial services industry and relationships with key stakeholders (e.g. SARS, National Treasury, etc.) in general and life/short term insurance specifically, would be advantageous

Personal attributes

• Strong numeracy and literacy skills, in particular, excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to lead, develop, interact, work with and manage diverse teams
• Strong forward-thinking and analytical skills
• Pragmatic and assertive
• Logical thought processes and critical thinking skills resulting in sound judgment and effective decision-making/recommendations
• Accountable for high quality service delivery through individual effort and lead Tax Reporting team to meet reporting deadlines, under pressure
• Able to collaborate with management and teams effectively across functional disciplines and segments of the business
• Adaptable and ability to cope with a dynamic environment
• Demonstrate reliability, integrity and professionalism
• Demonstrative ability to be a self-starter and able to execute effectively
• Must be prepared to commute to JHB as required