SVP – Insurance & Group Controller

The SVP, Insurance & Group Controller is responsible for leading the financial, corporate and insurance accounting operations across multiple entities or business units within the organization. This strategic leadership role ensures the accuracy, integrity, and timeliness of financial reporting while ensuring compliance, and driving operational efficiencies. Reporting directly to the Chief Accounting Officer, the SVP, Insurance & Group Controller will oversee a team of finance professionals, including controllers and accountants, fostering a culture of excellence and continuous improvement.  The SVP, Insurance & Group Controller influences others across the organization regarding policies, practices, and procedures and communicates with key external stakeholders. This role is instrumental in strengthening the organization’s financial management system, ensuring accurate financial reporting, and driving process efficiencies through ownership of financial systems, general ledger management, reinsurance accounting, accounts payable, expense accounting and overall corporate accounting operational processes. This role will be aligned to our Nashville, TN office on a hybrid basis.

What You Will Do:

Leadership:

• Build and lead a high-performing team of accounting professionals and managers, providing mentorship and guidance to develop skills aligned with team priorities

• Manage team priorities and workloads to ensure that work is well-balanced across the department without key person dependencies

• Model excellent leadership behaviors

• Cultivate a culture of continuous learning, identify and facilitate training, coach and develop the team to enhance capabilities and enable career growth.

• Foster a continuous improvement / growth mindset culture across the team.  Develop after action plans with strong execution on clear concrete remediation plans to evolve the operating environment

• Work with Data & Analytics to automate data feeds, journal entries, reconciliations and reporting / analytics  

Close Process Management, Automation & Analysis

• Partnering with Finance Operations, oversee quarter-end, and year-end financial close processes, ensuring timely and accurate financial reporting. 

• Drive automation and process improvements including streamlining our overall close process across all accounting bases to 20 business days.

• Develop and execute strategies within the next ~3 years to increase our close process automation and leverage of offshore resources to less than 25% of our current process capabilities.

• Partnering with New Transactions Integration team, develop and execute plans to implement GAAP, NAIC, SFS & EBS accounting changes (e.g., LDTI, CECL) effectively.

• Provide financial analysis of uncorrected errors and out of period adjustments. Based upon the severity may present key insights and findings to the Disclosure Committee, Executive Team, Audit Committee, and Board of Directors. 

• Support the development of Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) type analysis used in our Financial Reporting processes.

• Establish and monitor finance function key performance metrics, offering strategic recommendations.

Getting the books right:

• Manage and enhance review procedures to verify that all non-investment data is appropriately posted to the general ledger for all basis of accounting in a timely manner  

• Ensure that quarterly valuation and subsequent event procedures are performed and well documented

• Monitor and assess the team’s performance in conducting accurate and well documented reconciliations across all non-investment financial applications (e.g. SAP, Actuarial Systems, Coupa, Data Lake, etc.) with appropriate corrections in source systems as needed

• Provide company standard for workpapers supporting the financial results have high quality documentation, are thoroughly reviewed, are compliant with corporate governance policies including, but not limited to, end user control standards that minimize back and forth between reviewers, internal auditor or external auditors

• Work with the New Transaction Integration team to absorb new transactions into business-as-usual activities  

• Ensure that accounting conclusions are properly documented and maintained

Analysis:

• Maintain expectations on what the performance should be in various economic environments to help inform analysis performed by the Insurance and Group Controller team

• Implement framework to ensure timely granular analysis and attribution is performed to determine that the numbers are right and identify issues

• Provide insights to users of the actual financial information understand the story behind the numbers

• Partner closely with Forecasting team to share updates to forward-looking expectations

Reporting:

• Develop a consistent reporting package that can be used by all stakeholders for financial reporting / planning purposes

• Lead a quarterly call with Executive Leaders and critical stakeholders to walk through actual results / analysis

• Assist in preparation quarterly earnings report and audited financial statements including footnotes

• Assist in compilation of quarterly and yearly footnotes, MD&A, Statutory exhibits, debt covenant reporting, pricing committee and audit committee reports

• Support evolving business needs such as legal entity restructurings and debt issuances with high-quality financial reports and analysis

Financial Systems & General Ledger Ownership

• Oversee the general ledger systems strategy, ensuring integration, accuracy, and efficiency in financial reporting and general ledger management.

• Own the general ledger structure and chart of accounts, ensuring consistency and compliance across all entities and accounting bases.

• Collaborate with IT, Finance Transformation, Data & Analytics and other finance teams to enhance system functionalities, streamline financial processes, and improve data integrity.

• Lead initiatives to implement and optimize financial software and ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Workday, Coupa, Reinsurance Administration Systems) to drive automation and efficiency.

• Establish system controls, maintain data accuracy, and ensure alignment with financial policies and reporting standards.

Reserve & Reinsurance Accounting

• In partnership with the Actuarial organization, develop, automate and implement a timely and accurate process to record policy / block level reserves in the General Ledger for all accounting bases.

• Ensure sufficient detail of reserve changes is recorded in our General Ledger and Sub Ledger to enable accurate and timely financial statement disclosure and analysis

• Develop product / block level analysis to determine the accuracy of reserves (e.g., relationship of Investment results to Additional Insurance Reserves; interest rate change relationship to AOCI for LDTI reserves).

Accounts Payable & Expense Accounting           

• Oversee accounts payable processes to ensure timely and accurate vendor payments, expense allocations, and cash flow management.

• Establish and maintain policies and procedures for expense accounting to ensure compliance with internal controls and financial regulations.

• Implement automation and process improvements to enhance efficiency and accuracy in accounts payable, expense allocations and cost center performance reporting.

• Monitor and analyze expense trends, providing strategic recommendations to optimize cost management.

Group Transactions & Consolidation

• Manage group consolidation processes, ensuring accurate elimination of intercompany transactions and balances.

• Ensure the accuracy of foreign currency denominated transactions and related reporting of translation gains & losses in our financial statements.

• Oversee intercompany agreements, reconciliations, and resolution of discrepancies.

• Produce cash flow statements for the various legal entity and reporting bases in support of the company’s required financial statements.

• Post journal entries to timely and accurately report our financial results under all accounting bases.

• Oversee and automate the reconciliation of the reported balance sheet amounts on a quarterly basis under all accounting bases.

Compliance & Risk Management

• Partner with Financial Controls in leading the efforts to mature internal controls over financial reporting to comply with SOX/MAR requirements

• Design and maintain robust internal control frameworks to ensure financial accuracy and mitigate risks.

• Conduct risk assessments and implement controls to address emerging risks.

• Ensure compliance with financial policies, regulatory requirements, and accounting standards.

• Support internal and external audits, ensuring findings are addressed efficiently.

What You Will Have:

• Demonstrated progressive leadership of large teams and leading leaders of teams

• Demonstrated experience building / transforming organizations and operating environments

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field or MBA preferred

• Professional accounting designation, CPA or Equivalent required

• 15+ years of progressive public accounting and financial management experience, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership role.

• Extensive knowledge of (re)insurance industry accounting principles, financial reporting standards, and regulatory compliance.

• Strong knowledge of GAAP, NAIC, SFS & EBS financial reporting requirements.

• Drive innovation and adoption of new technologies and ways of working

• Ability to develop and implement long-term strategic plans that align with the organization's financial goals and investment strategies

• Proficiency in financial software and general ledger systems (e.g., SAP, WorkDay).

• Strong analytical, communication, and interpersonal skills.

• High level of integrity, accountability, and ability to manage multiple priorities under tight deadlines.

• Proven ability to drive transformation initiatives, process improvements, and system enhancements within an accounting & reporting function.

• Change agent mindset with experience leading organizational change, implementing new technologies, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

• Demonstrated success working and collaborating cross-functionally across various departments and levels of the organization.

• Foster a collaborative and inclusive team culture, encouraging teamwork and mutual respect.

#LI-Hybrid