Head of Audit, IT & Central Functions

Job Description

At Aberdeen, our ambition is to be the UK’s leading Wealth & Investments group.

Strengthening talent and culture is one of our strategic priorities. We strive to make Aberdeen a great place to work so that we can attract and retain the industry’s best talent.

Our people put our stakeholders at the heart of everything they do by helping us to make a positive difference to the lives of our clients, customers, colleagues, shareholders, and society.

We are focused on growing our direct and advised wealth platforms and repositioning our specialist asset management business to meet client demand. We are committed to providing excellent client service, supported by leading technology and talent.

Aberdeen comprises three businesses, interactive investor (ii), Investments, and Adviser, each of which focuses on meeting and adapting to our clients’ evolving needs:

• interactive investor, the UK’s second largest direct-to-consumer investment platform, enables individuals in the UK to plan, save, and invest in the way that works for them.
• Our Adviser business provides financial planning solutions and technology for UK financial advisers, enabling them to create value for their customers.
• Our Investments business is a specialist asset manager that focuses on areas where we have both strength and scale to capitalise on the key themes shaping the market, through either public markets or alternative asset classes.

About the Department

We are a key function in one of the world’s largest investment companies, our mission is to support Aberdeen in maximising sustainable, high-quality returns for our clients, customers and shareholders whilst effectively managing the risks faced by the business.

We’re currently looking for a talented Head of Audit for IT & Central Functions to help support Aberdeen in delivering against its strategic ambitions in the Internal Audit team whilst supporting effective management of the risks faced by the business in that pursuit.

We are highly ambitious function who seek to innovate. We’ll help you grow by recognising and leveraging your strengths and potential, supporting your personal development. In return, we will ask you for your energy, enthusiasm and the drive to deliver the results we aim to achieve.  We can’t wait for you to join us!

Key Responsibilities

The Head of Audit for IT & Central Functions is responsible for ensuring robust governance, risk management, and internal control frameworks are in place and operating effectively for all central functions (IT, Compliance, Finance, Human Resources, Legal, Corporate Secretariat, Change, etc.) at Aberdeen Group. This role provides strategic oversight of audit planning and execution, delivering objective insights to Senior Leadership and the Audit & Risk Committee.

The Head of Audit will work closely with key stakeholders to identify emerging risks, assess operational resilience, and drive continuous improvement across central functions. A strong understanding of financial services regulations, digital platforms, and investment operations is essential to ensure alignment with both regulatory expectations and business objectives. Responsibilities include:

• Understanding Group Strategy & Functional Objectives to focus IA's work on the areas of highest risk - feeding this information into the audit plan.

• Accountable for delivery of the IT & Central Functions audit plan and performance as a portfolio, accountable to Chief Internal Auditor.

• Ensure consistent high-quality audits by reviewing key deliverables and providing constructive feedback to enhance the clarity, relevance and impact of audit outputs.

• Lead on agile development and innovation across the teams, ensuring everyone is empowered to drive continuous improvement.

• Work collaboratively with the business audit teams (Investments, Adviser and interactive investor) and the Data Analytics team, including the sharing of knowledge and resources.

• Investigate complex situations and propose practical, innovative, and value-add solutions to issues identified.

• Actively contribute towards the creation of a High Performing Team culture by role modelling a relentless focus on quality to meet (or exceed) the expectations set by the Chief Internal Auditor.

• Lead through periods of change while maintaining trust and support of the team.

• Manage relationships with external regulators to build external presence and the reputation of Aberdeen and IA.

• Represent IA at external forums and build relationships with external peers to benchmark practices, gain insights and ensure Aberdeen remains aligned with industry trends and standards.

• Build relationships with and influence senior managers and executive directors across all central functions.

• Build, foster and maintain positive relationships with clients including strong engagement with relevant Non-Executive Directors (NEDs) and Board members.

• Attend Entity Boards and senior governance committees attended by the Executive Leadership Team and / or NEDs.  Represent the function and provide management with the insights they need to manage risks faced, including presenting the results of audits outside aligned portfolio.

• Effectively communicate complex information to a wide group of senior stakeholders, against a background of continuous regulatory change.

• Provide Line Management for colleagues including Senior Manager, Managers and Specialists.  Identify the strengths of the team to use for the benefit of the business and identify development areas for further coaching.

• Support peers in the IA Leadership Team in a collegiate and positive manner to support our ambition to develop as a High Performing team.

• Identify the most effective use of co-source expertise for your portfolio and manage engagements in an efficient and effective way which identifies the needs of the team and the strengths of the provider.

About the Candidate

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• Education to degree level with a relevant professional qualification (e.g. CISA, CISM, CRISC) or extensive experience of 7-10 years minimum in financial services industry (recent experience preferred).

• Strong understanding of an investment platform and/or wealth management business.

• Leadership exposure to a diverse range of audits spanning Technology, Operational Resilience, Finance and HR disciplines. 

• Internal or external audit experience.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident Committed employer. If you have a disability and would like to apply to one of our UK roles under the Disability Confident Scheme, please notify us by completing the relevant section in our candidate questionnaire. One of our team will reach out to support you through your application process.

Our benefits

There's more to working life than coming home with a good salary. We have an environment where you can learn, get involved and be supported.

When you join us, your reward will be one of the best around. This includes 40 days’ annual leave, a 16% employer pension contribution, a discretionary performance-based bonus (where applicable), private healthcare and a range of flexible benefits – including gym discounts, season ticket loans and access to an employee discount portal. You can read more about our benefits here.

Our business

Enabling our clients to be better investors drives everything we do. Our business is structured around three distinct areas – our vectors of growth – focused on our clients’ changing needs. You can find out more about what we do here.

An inclusive way of working

Whatever way you like to work, if you have the talent and commitment to join our team, we’d like to hear from you.

At Aberdeen we’ve adopted a ‘blended working’ approach. This approach combines the benefits of face-to-face collaboration, coaching and connecting in our offices with the flexibility of working from home. It enables colleagues to find a balance that works for their roles, their teams, our clients and our business.

An inclusive culture, where diverse perspectives drive our actions, is at the core of who we are and what we do. If you need assistance with your application, or a reasonable adjustment to your interview arrangements – for example, because you are neurodivergent, or have a physical, sensory, cognitive, mental, visible or invisible disability – please let us know and we’ll be happy to help.