Chair
and
Non-Executive Director
AJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK, with over 295,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £56.5 billion. Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.
We are currently looking for three individuals to join our Board of Directors and play a key role in shaping our future.
Key accountabilities to the Board and shareholders
- Promotion of the long-term success of the AJ Bell group.
- Long-term growth and increase in shareholder value.
- Business performance, ensuring that key financial and business targets are met.
- Financial efficiency of the business.
- Taking account of the interests of all stakeholders.
Role profile
Chair
As the Chair, you will lead the Board, with responsibility for the management of the Board, as well as the conduct of the general business of the Board and Board members.
Who we’re looking for
- You will have FTSE 100/large FTSE250 experience gained from a current or previous executive, non-executive or adviser role.
- You will also have experience in financial services.
Role profile
Non-Executive Director
(NED)
As one of two new NEDs, you will provide constructive challenge, strategic guidance and offer specialist advice. You will scrutinise and hold to account the performance of management and individual executive directors against agreed performance objectives.
Who we’re looking for
It is preferred that you have experience in one or more of the following:
- Served as a member or as a Chair of Remuneration Committee.
- Operational risk background with the ability to Chair Risk Committee.
- Technology and/or operational oversight within a regulated environment.
- Ideally listed board experience which may have been gained as an attendee rather than as a member.
As these are senior roles within the business, it is of great importance to find the right fit in terms of experience and culture, for both AJ Bell and the candidates.
We have retained Warren Partners to work with us on this project and there will be a thorough interview process, to ensure we find a partnership that works for both sides. Initial discussions will be with Julia Fearn and/or Joëlle Warren of Warren Partners, who will position the role and complete a preliminary assessment. The first stage for shortlisted candidates will be with the Nominations Committee. Interview dates are to be confirmed.
For candidates who are successful in the first stage, there will then be a second stage, which will involve personal meet-and-greets with a number of key stakeholders, including other members of the Senior Management Team and Board. For those candidates applying for one of the two open NED roles, we hope to also include at this stage the individual identified as the Chair designated from this exercise. Dates for this stage are to be confirmed.
All positions are subject to approval by our regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority.
*Please note, our interview process will be adapted as appropriate, in order to adhere to the latest Government guidelines on COVID-19.
which role(s) you are interested in.
AJ Bell was co-founded in 1995 by our CEO Andy Bell and Nicholas Littlefair. Since then, we have grown the business to become one of the largest investment platforms in the UK.
Headquartered in Manchester with an office in central London, we now have 900 employees and have been named one of the Sunday Times ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ for three consecutive years.
Our core focus is to help people to invest so that they can reach their long-term financial goals. We do this by ensuring our investment platform is one of the easiest to use, delivering a first-class service and keeping our costs consistently low.
Customers
312,300
Assets under administration
£62.5bn
Revenue
£126.7m
Profit before tax
£48.6m
Company timeline
-
The start of AJ BellAndy Bell and Nicholas Littlefair set up AJ Bell
Launch of SippdealThe UK’s first online SIPP for the direct-to-consumer market
Launch of SippcentreA low-cost SIPP for financial advisers
The first institutional investorSeneca Investment Management becomes AJ Bell’s first institutional investor
AJ Bell SecuritiesAJ Bell acquires Lawshare Limited and rebrands it as AJ Bell Securities
ISAs and dealing accountsAn ISA and dealing account are added to Sippcentre and Sippdeal.
AJ Bell Securities launches Custody Solution for wealth managers.
AJ Bell MediaAJ Bell acquires MSM Media Limited and rebrands it as AJ Bell Media
AJ Bell Youinvest and InvestcentreSippdeal and Sippcentre are rebranded as AJ Bell Youinvest and AJ Bell Investcentre. Naming rights are secured for the AJ Bell Stadium
AJ Bell InvestmentsAJ Bell acquires Mansard Capital LLP and Indexx Markets Limited – they are rebranded as AJ Bell Investments
A new home and the launch of AJ Bell Passive fundsThe Manchester headquarters move to Exchange Quay. AJ Bell launches its range of AJ Bell Passive funds
Successes and milestonesAJ Bell is named as one of the Sunday Times ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ in the UK
Stockbroking operation migrated from Tunbridge Wells to Exchange Quay
AJ Bell lists on the London Stock Exchange
Building on our successAJ Bell is a FTSE 250 company
The number of employees passes 850
AJ Bell is named as one of the Sunday Times ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ for the third consecutive yearPerformance overviewThe business has a track record of delivering sustained, organic growth since our inception in 1995. Our continued growth since our successful listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in 2018 underpins our ambitious growth plans for the future. This is further evidenced in our latest trading update, in which we reported a record quarter for platform customer numbers.
Our compelling investment case is summarised below.
Key investment highlight
Description
Our market
An attractive retail market within the UK savings and investment industry
Our proposition
An award-winning platform operating in both advised and D2C market segments
Our customers
A growing base of loyal, high-quality customers
Our people
Entrepreneurial, founder-led management team and a highly engaged workforce
Our business model
A profitable and scalable platform with embedded growth and margin expansion opportunities
Quality of earnings
High-quality, largely recurring revenue from a diversified mix of revenue streams
Cash generation
Our highly cash-generative and capital-light model supports a progressive dividend
Sustainable organic growth
of the AJ Bell business
Our propositions
Our key platform propositions are AJ Bell Investcentre and AJ Bell Youinvest.
Our adviser proposition provides financial advisers and wealth managers with a suite of online tools to help manage their retail clients’ portfolios, as well as a range of in-house investment solutions.
Customer numbers:
Average customer profile:
Best platform for advisers
(AUA over £25bn) 2020
Professional Adviser Awards
Our direct-to-consumer proposition is one of the UK’s fastest-growing retail investment platforms. It is an online, execution-only platform, offering customers a low-cost, easy-to-use way of managing their investments via its website and mobile app.
Customer numbers:
Average customer profile:
Best investment platforms for
ISAs and DIY pensions 2020
Boring Money Best Buys 2020AJ Bell Investcentre scores well across the board in our adviser reviews and is also highly rated by advisers when it comes to supporting their investment proposition. Advisers tell us the platform also sets itself apart from the pack on its price and quality of service.
Source:
Platforum Adviser Platform Guide, September 2019The AJ Bell Way
The AJ Bell Way supports the development of our strategy and enables communication of this strategy to all key stakeholders
Click on the segments of the wheel below to find out more about our strategy
Our customers
We help people to invest but will not provide personal recommendations. We will continue to develop our customer propositions with a focus on ease of use, service and price.
Finance and assurance
We will preserve our financial security, regulatory and reputational standing. We will treat all stakeholders fairly.
Our technology
We will deliver scalable technology solutions that are easy to use for both customers and colleagues, appropriate to their needs and adaptable for future change. The security of our technology is of paramount importance.
Our people
We will develop and support our talent to help them achieve their potential. We will strive to ensure our staff are actively engaged. Our strong employer brand and culture will enable us to attract and retain quality staff.
Our customers
We help people to invest but will not provide personal recommendations. We will continue to develop our customer propositions with a focus on ease of use, service and price.
Growth
We will grow both customer numbers and AUA, and the key focus will be on organic growth. We will grow in a sustainable and cost-effective manner.
Our guiding principles
Our company is built on a set of guiding principles that define the way we do business. These principles inform everything we do, creating a culture in which we strive to think like our customers, make investing easier and lead our markets.
IntelligentWe know our stuffPrincipledWe do the right thingPersonalWe are human, not robotsFocusedWe give customers what they need, not what they don’tEnergeticWe never stand stillStraightforwardWe make investing easy and accessibleAJ Bell is a financially strong business, evidenced by a well-capitalised, profitable and highly cash-generative business model. The business has a track record of delivering growth and has developed a clear strategy to ensure that this continues. The Board is confident about the long-term prospects of the business.
Les Platts
Chairman
Our continued growth is underpinned by our purpose to help people to invest and our strategic aim of being the easiest platform to use. We continue to invest in technology and innovation to enhance the user experience and extend our range of simple, transparent, low-cost investment solutions.
Andy Bell
Chief Executive Officer
The AJ Bellshareholder breakdown- Andy Bell (24%)
- AJ Bell employees (10%)
- AJ Bell customers (9%)
- Other (57%)
Life atAJ Bell
Our people
The passion, expertise and commitment of our employees are the driving force behind our success. In return for their hard work, we strive to provide an environment in which they feel supported, engaged and inspired. We provide our employees with fantastic opportunities for development so they can progress with the business. We have recently announced a range of enhancements to our benefits package, which includes our Buy As You Earn (BAYE) scheme, offering staff the opportunity to share in the success of the business.
Our culture
Our culture is underpinned by our guiding principles, strategy and purpose. We measure culture in a number of ways, including direct feedback from our customers, our employees and other stakeholders. As we continue to grow, the communication and reinforcement of our culture remain key focuses for our Senior Leadership Team.
You can hear more on culture at AJ Bell from our CEO, Andy Bell, here.
Diversity and inclusion
Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is a continuous process; we value people of all backgrounds and experiences, and strive to create an inclusive environment in which all individuals feel supported and empowered to thrive.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy is shaped around two key pillars: investing in our community and investing in our environment.
We are proud of our employees who are committed to giving something back, and we support them through paid time-off for volunteering and our matched fundraising programme. We also invest in a range of initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint and, in 2020, we achieved carbon neutral status.
As a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we launched our AJ Bell Wage War on COVID campaign, raising over £300,000 for charities and initiatives supporting people directly impacted by the crisis.
The ExecutiveManagement BoardThe Board continues to provide strong support and appropriate challenge to the Executive Management Board (EMB) to ensure the strategy is sound, achievable and ultimately delivered.
Visit our website to read more about our EMB members, their skills and expertise.
To apply, email your CV and covering note to jf@warrenpartners.co.uk, indicating
which role(s) you are interested in.
