About the role
We have a fabulous opportunity for an experienced and proactive professional to join our team as a Share Plan Manager. In this key role, you will lead the end-to-end awards and vesting processes for our executive and all-employee share plans, acting as a vital resource for the business and ensuring the seamless operation of our global equity programs.
The successful candidate will be an advocate for operational excellence—collaborating closely with stakeholders in Legal, HR Reward, Finance, and Tax to ensure absolute compliance with statutory requirements across all jurisdictions. You will provide the essential coordination and expertise required to manage our global share plans effectively, from pre-award planning to post-vesting reporting.
Key responsibilities include:
- Leading and optimising the end-to-end management of discretionary executive and all-employee share plans, ensuring a rigorous approach to administration, legal requirements, and communications
- Acting as the internal expert on employee share plans, liaising with legal and tax advisors to ensure global compliance regarding securities laws, data protection, and local reporting obligations
- Managing the grant and vesting cycles in collaboration with external administrators (Equiniti), ensuring system efficiency and the maintenance of accurate data across the Global Nominee and application portals
- Partnering with the Group HR Reward team, Registrar, Trustees, and Brokers to define annual planning, track key deliverables, and manage budgeting requirements
- Ensuring compliant plan operations for internationally mobile employees, working with the International Mobility manager and Group Tax to resolve complex cross-border queries
- Proactively draft and update plan rules, explanatory booklets, and internal Q&As to ensure participants and directors have a clear understanding of their equity holdings
- Providing critical data and insights for Finance and Operating Companies, including the production of share plan information for the Annual Report & Accounts
So, if you are a detail-oriented professional with a flair for managing complex global schemes and a commitment to high-standard governance, then we might be looking for you!
About you
- Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) with a strong background in Legal, Company Secretarial, or Share Schemes management
- Proven ability to lead end-to-end processes and meet strict statutory deadlines within a complex, matrix environment
- Solid understanding of share plan principles, including global taxation, legal compliance, and equity administration platforms (e.g., Equiniti)
- Exceptional writing and interpersonal skills, with the ability to translate complex technical data into clear stakeholder communications
- A proactive problem-solver capable of interpreting regulatory changes and maintaining high data integrity
- Highly professional with the diplomacy required to handle confidential executive-level information
- A team player dedicated to supporting HR and Finance while upholding rigorous internal governance
Location: This is a full-time role, split between home working and our Head Office in Paddington, London with limited travel as required.
About us
We are DS Smith, together with International Paper, we are a global leader in sustainable packaging solutions and other fibre-based products. We believe a better, more sustainable tomorrow is possible with the right people, who challenge and support one another to enact positive change. We employ more than 65,000 colleagues in North America and Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), who are experts in innovation, manufacturing, design, sales, sustainability, supply chain, and much more. Together with our customers, we make the world safer and more productive, one sustainable packaging solution at a time. Become part of a world-leading organisation and do your best work with us!
Fair recruitment at DS Smith
To fulfil our purpose of redefining packaging for a changing world, we aim to build a diverse, motivated, and engaged workforce. Our goal is to create a culture of inclusion where everyone is treated fairly, differences are valued, and everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed.
Our people come from diverse backgrounds, bring different perspectives, ideas, and experiences to generate unique solutions focused on present and future sustainability challenges. We welcome all candidates to apply, even those not meeting all criteria.
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