Letter from Fran Gillon – Chief Executive

Dear Candidate,

I am delighted that you have expressed an interest in applying to be our Finance Officer. I hope this candidate brief gives you all the information you need about the requirements of this role. You can also find more information about us on our website: The Intellectual Property Regulation Board. Our ambition is to be a regulator that patent and trade mark attorneys are proud to be regulated by.

This is an exciting time to be part of legal services regulation – and the intellectual property sector (IP) in particular which will play a key role in the UK’s future economic success. We work on a variety of different regulatory projects and are just starting a major review of our education requirements. We also undertake investigations into complaints and can take disciplinary action against attorneys.

We are a small team of 7 members of staff, most of whom work part time. We also have a Board of 9 Directors, chaired by Lord Smith of Finsbury. Our annual budget is ~£1.2m, most of which is funded by practising fees paid by attorneys and their employers. More information about our finances is also on the website.

We want to recruit a highly motivated and self-sufficient Finance Officer who can work on their own initiative (you will be the only person on the team who has a specific finance role). We are introducing some exciting changes to some aspects of the finance work including outsourcing payroll provision, integrating expenses claims and automating invoice processing. You will have the opportunity to play a key part in driving efficiency through those changes. Of course, you will also be responsible for keeping track of our finances using QuickBooks Online and will play a key role in the collection of practising fees each year through our CRM.

If this is a role that interests you, we would very much like to receive your application. You can find all the details on how to apply further along in this brief. If you have any further questions about the role once you have read this candidate brief please contact Thewlis Graham via email: applications@thewlisgraham.com for a confidential conversation with Sarah Thewlis.

Yours faithfully 

Fran Gillon

Chief Executive