Audit Assistant Manager – Belfast or Newry
Hybrid (min. 3 days/week in office) | Permanent
A well-established, growing accountancy and business advisory practice in Northern Ireland is looking for an ambitious, qualified Audit Assistant Manager to join their expanding audit and assurance team. This is a firm with a genuinely broad private-client base spanning construction, hospitality and a wide range of other sectors — alongside a fast-growing public sector audit practice that has doubled in size over the past year. This is a rare opportunity to build a career that isn't boxed into one niche: you'll get real depth in public sector/not-for-profit audit work during its intensive season, balanced with a varied portfolio of owner-managed and SME clients the rest of the year.
About the Role
You'll play a key role in supporting the management of a portfolio of audit and assurance clients — from planning through to completion — while supervising, coaching and developing junior team members and trainees. This is a firm where people at every level, from trainee to partner, work closely together; there's no rigid hierarchy of who talks to whom, and everyone is expected to pitch in as a team.
Key Responsibilities- Support the planning, execution and completion of audit assignments, hitting deadlines and budgets
- Supervise, direct and coach trainees and junior staff on your assignments, with early review of their work
- Build and maintain strong client relationships through proactive, responsive service
- Assist with preparation of financial statements and consolidated/group accounts — this is a hands-on, practical role, not a "client hands you the numbers" set-up
- Identify and communicate audit findings, risks and recommendations, consulting with managers and directors as needed
- Contribute to business development — networking events, internal client functions and feeding into tenders and proposals (with financial incentives for new client wins)
- Ensure compliance with professional standards, regulatory requirements and quality management procedures
- Maintain technical knowledge through ongoing CPD
What They're Looking For
Essential- ACA, ACCA or equivalent professional qualification (fully qualified — not part-qualified)
- Solid experience managing audit assignments and supporting a client portfolio
- Experience coaching, mentoring and reviewing junior team members' work
- Strong communication, organisational and relationship-management skills
- Comfortable managing budgets and timelines (fee negotiation is not required at this level)
- Experience with group audits and consolidated accounts
Desirable- Exposure to public sector, not-for-profit or other regulated-entity audit work
- Experience with owner-managed/SME businesses across a broad range of industries
- Familiarity with CaseWare, Inflo or similar audit/accounts-prep software (training provided if not)
- Some involvement in tenders, proposals or networking/business development activity
The firm is especially keen to hear from candidates who've worked across a blend of public sector and SME/commercial audit — that combination is hard to find but exactly what makes someone thrive here. Candidates from mid-tier firms tend to transition especially well, though strong candidates from larger firms with genuine SME portfolio exposure are also very welcome.
What You Can Expect
- Hybrid working with a minimum of three days a week in the office (to support and coach the trainee team) — flexible between Belfast and Newry depending on client base and time of year
- Condensed hours — finish at 1pm on Fridays
- Minimal client site travel — cloud-based audit software means most work is done in-office, with only the occasional day on-site to close out an audit
- Clearly defined, structured progression with annual promotion rounds
- A genuinely team-first, supportive culture — people pull together when someone's stretched, and it goes both ways
- Reporting into an Assistant Manager/Manager structure with a clear route through to Director level
- Financial incentives for business development and client referrals
Practical Details
- Location: Belfast preferred; Newry considered for the right candidate with flexibility for travel
- Reports to: Director (public sector team)
- Interview process: Initial informal Teams call, followed by an in-person interview with senior leadership. No technical assessment for this level.
- Start: Urgent need, ideally in place ahead of the January public sector audit season
Interested candidates should be fully qualified (ACA/ACCA or equivalent) with demonstrable audit management and team supervision experience.
