Job Description

Purpose of the role

To play a crucial role in ensuring the Barclays Group’s adherence to statutory and regulatory corporate governance requirements and industry standards, facilitating communication between the board of directors and other key stakeholders for regulated and/or significant Barclays Group legal entities.

Accountabilities

• Act as Company Secretary to regulated or significant legal entities, including liaison with the Chairman and senior executives, assisting with board succession and board and committee evaluations, agenda preparation, board paper management, attending and minuting board meetings where required.
• Provision of support, advice and guidance to the Barclays Group on company law and appropriate regulations, its own policies and best practice in corporate governance and to the Directors on their fiduciary duties and other legal or regulatory obligations.
• Creation and review of corporate governance documents, including charters, terms of reference, matters reserved for the board, policies, and procedures in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.
• Maintenance of compliance with corporate governance requirements, best practices and industry standards across the Barclays Group governance practices.
• Assistance on project work, for instance corporate re-organisations, liquidations, mergers and formations and the signing of subsidiary financial accounts.
• Maintenance of the company’s statutory registers, other registers such as conflict of interest registers, and data fields required for adherence to Barclays Group policies and standards.
• Stakeholders support with their ongoing compliance with the Group Policy on Legal Entities and Directors.

Director Expectations

To manage a business function, providing significant input to function wide strategic initiatives. Contribute to and influence policy and procedures for the function and plan, manage and consult on multiple complex and critical strategic projects, which may be business wide.

They manage the direction of a large team or sub-function, leading other people managers and embedding a performance culture aligned to the values of the business. Or for an individual contributor, they lead organisation wide projects and act as deep technical expert and thought leader, identifying new ways of working and collaborating cross functionally. They will train, guide and coach less experienced specialists and provide information affecting long term profits, organisational risks and strategic decisions.

Provide expert advice to senior functional management and committees to influence decisions made outside of own function, offering significant input to function wide strategic initiatives.

Manage, coordinate and enable resourcing, budgeting and policy creation for a significant sub-function.

Escalates breaches of policies / procedure appropriately.

Foster and guide compliance, ensure regulations are observed that relevant processes in place to facilitate adherence.

Focus on the external environment, regulators, or advocacy groups to both monitor and influence on behalf of Barclays, when appropriate.

Demonstrate extensive knowledge of how the function integrates with the business division / Group to achieve the overall business objectives.

Maintain broad and comprehensive knowledge of industry theories and practices within own discipline alongside up-to-date relevant sector / functional knowledge, and insight into external market developments / initiatives.

Use interpretative thinking and advanced analytical skills to solve problems and design solutions in often complex/ sensitive situations.

Exercise management authority to make significant decisions and certain strategic decisions or recommendations within own area.

Negotiate with and influence stakeholders at a senior level both internally and externally.

Act as principal contact point for key clients and counterparts in other functions/ businesses divisions.

Mandated as a spokesperson for the function and business division.

All Senior Leaders are expected to demonstrate a clear set of leadership behaviours to create an environment for colleagues to thrive and deliver to a consistently excellent standard. The four LEAD behaviours are: L – Listen and be authentic, E – Energise and inspire, A – Align across the enterprise, D – Develop others.

All colleagues will be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Values of Respect, Integrity, Service, Excellence and Stewardship – our moral compass, helping us do what we believe is right. They will also be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Mindset – to Empower, Challenge and Drive – the operating manual for how we behave.

The Director, Assistant Company Secretary (Fixed-Term Contract) position is required to provide senior company secretarial and governance support within the Paris-based Europe Company Secretariat team.

The role will support the delivery of governance activities across Barclays Europe, including the provision of Board and Committee support, legal entity governance, regulatory engagement and strategic governance initiatives. Operating at Director level, the individual will provide senior governance advice to Board members and executive stakeholders, whilst ensuring compliance with statutory, regulatory and corporate governance requirements.

The fixed-term appointment is required to provide additional capacity and expertise during a defined period of increased governance activity, ensuring continuity of service and maintaining the effective delivery of governance obligations across the European business.

The position will be based in Paris to support local governance requirements and key stakeholder engagement across Barclays Europe.