Flex Company Secretary Trainee : June 2024

Company Secretary Apprenticeship

We are really delighted to be recruiting our first cohort of Company Secretary trainees after 7 very successful cohorts of Flex trainee and Flex Apprentices qualifying as lawyers..

We are looking for 10 academically strong candidates from a socially mobile background who are open to qualifying as company secretary through the in house route. We are looking for trainees for our Summer cohort - starting in June/July 2024. You would be employed by Flex for 24 months and seconded out to an in-house Co-sec team in a corporate company. We have some AMAZING clients who are keen to help you progress your career.

Before you start, you will come and do a stint with Flex Legal for 2 weeks before we place you into our clients. This will be a 2 week training course on soft skills and some basic company secretary training.

While at our clients, you will work 4 days a week with one day off to study for the apprenticeship. You will study with Part 1 of the Corporate Governance Institute exams to qualify.

Your salary across both years will be £30,000 and you will have access to Flex legal’s benefits.

Why become a company secretary?

• The skillset for a company secretary overlaps with the skillset for a good lawyer - organisation, great stakeholder management, and communication skills

• Company secretary teams are becoming more important with more regulation and compliance hitting companies, so its a great career to get involved in at at this time

• You can earn similar salaries to lawyers but career progression is a lot quicker

• You get better business exposure, as you will often sit in the Board, help with the AGM, write Board minutes, so you have incredible exposure to the C-suite at an early stage of your career

• It is a fantastic career choice if you enjoy business law and how companies are run

• Learn practical and commercial experience from the top FTSE100 legal teams

• Be part of a cohort of trainees doing the same as you in other companies

All about company secretary:

Company Secretary teams support their company to comply with corporate governance and advise internally on adhering to statutory and regulatory requirements. You would have access to the top people in the organisation and get a great 'umbrella' commercial view of the company. You would attend board meetings and form relationships with lots of stakeholders including Finance, Treasury, Tax, Legal. There would be exposure to work in shareholder complaints, contribute to the company ESG/sustainability strategy, Rewards, contribute to the AGM and much more.

• The Company Secretary team advises and supports the Board on corporate governance matters.

• Co-sec teams usually manage all aspects of Board governance, including meeting management, Board materials support, advice to the Board on succession planning, corporate governance and corporate compliance.

• Co-sec teams usually oversee the corporate governance of any subsidiaries, both in the UK and overseas, focusing on Board composition, filings and meeting governance.

Typical Responsibilities

• Assisting the team with corporate statutory filings in the UK and overseas jurisdictions.

• Maintaining and updating in-house compliance tools to ensure filing deadlines are met.

• Responsible for monitoring of a shared mailbox, managing corporate signings and notarisation of documents in a timely manner.

• Assisting the team with drafting key corporate documentation such as Board resolutions, meeting notices, annual general meeting papers.

• Assisting the team with the management of Board and committee meetings and production of meeting materials.

• Developing skills in minute-writing.

• Assistance with KYC, audit and due diligence requests

• Collaborating with colleagues in cross-functional groups on matters with a corporate governance focus.

• Liaising with various stakeholders throughout the business.

• Assisting with special projects as required.

• General administrative tasks, scanning, filing, arranging couriers etc

Entry requirements

• This position is open to graduates who hold a 2.1 minimum in Law, Accounting, Business or Business Management Degrees. You will have the advantage of exemption from one of the seven level 1 modules - Company Law.

• The right to work in the UK: you must have the continuous right to work in the UK for two years from the date you would start as a trainee. For example, if you are applying for March 2024 start, you must have the right to work until March 2026. Unfortunately, Flex is unable to sponsor work visas at this time.

• Be a social mobile candidate: Flex Trainee is designed to bring socially mobile and diverse aspiring solicitors into the profession. As part of your application, you will be asked to provide more details of your background and upbringing, particularly related to your education and social background

• A strong commitment towards successfully completing the Corporate Governance Institute exams to qualify as a Governance officer.

Desirable skills:

• Must be a self-starter

• Highly Organised

• Good attention to detail

• Time management is key

• Proactive in building stakeholder relationships

• Be authentic.

• Be a team player.

• Demonstrate a high level of execution, focus and prioritisation, be thorough and apply high standards in all tasks/activities.

• Be solution focused.

• Be willing and open to grow and develop.

How to Apply?

• Please send your CV and covering letter via this online application portal and fill in our social mobility criteria 

Process of application:

• Stage 1: Flex Legal reviews CV and covering letter (April/May)

• Stage 2: You will be sent a Test Gorilla link with some video Questions and 2 short online tests. You will have 72 hours to complete this. (April/May)

• Stage 2: Flex asks you for an interview OR assessment centre (May)

• Stage 3: Flex helps you prepare for interviews with clients (May)

• Stage 5: Interviews with clients (May/June)

• Stage 6: Offered a place on the scheme if successful

• Stage 7: 2 weeks training with Flex Legal

• Stage 8: Placement starts with Flex’s clients (tbc - Summer 2024)