TfL plays a key role in shaping what life is like in London. Our transport infrastructure and public transport network is admired around the world. We are literally changing London for the future – making it one of the best cities to live, work and visit. Over 3 billion journeys were made across our transport network in 22/23 and we do all that we can to keep our city moving, growing and working. To meet the needs of our customers, now and for the future, we’re providing the modern and affordable transport network London needs.
To support this, our multi billion pound programme to make our services more reliable, frequent and accessible includes introducing new trains, building a new road tunnel under the Thames at Silvertown, and investing in congestion and air quality initiatives on our roads through our healthy streets approach. As a Finance graduate, you will have a huge part to play in this, working to generate a surplus, to reinvest in our services. You will work with stakeholders to make commercial business decisions together; challenging, driving and guiding them to reduce costs and increase income.
What will I be doing?
As a graduate, this three-year programme will develop your holistic understanding of all the different aspects that make up Finance as a business function. In total, you’ll complete up to nine placement rotations. Alongside this, you’ll be studying for the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) professional qualification through the Level 7 Accountancy Taxation Professional apprenticeship.
Our aim is to equip you with the range of skills and breadth of experience you need for your successful career. Your journey through the scheme will allow you to build up knowledge in transactional accounting, apply that knowledge and gain partnering experience across all of TfL’s major Business Units in a Finance Business Partnering role, before transitioning into a strategic finance placement and contributing towards TfL’s significant strategy publications, assisting with our treasury management or seeking innovative funding solutions for some of our most interesting projects.
We also understand that everyone’s career and ambitions are different, so every graduate’s journey with us is unique. We have designed a rotational placements structure, with core and elective placements to allow to shape your career to your own ambitions. Here is an example of what your development journey could look like:
First 9 months
Finding your feet in Finance, getting to know the fundamentals, and developing your transactional accounting knowledge.
Record to Account:
- Providing customers with support for Payroll, Intercompany and Balance Sheet adjustments
- Making sure that TfL’s financial data is accurate by operating and maintaining process controls for the General Ledger, including the review, preparation and posting of manual journal entries, General Ledger account reconciliations and validations
- Maintaining TFL’s finance timetable for General Ledger close and Financial Planning and Analysis activities
Project to Assets:
- Providing asset accounting advice; accounting disclosures; manage and maintain 16 asset registers; portfolio of approx. £28billion
- Controlling and governing central staff cost recharges to projects, time-sheeting rate card
- Maintaining IFRS16 related processes and the lease database
- Rationalising asset registers and embed new project to asset processes
Reporting:
- Providing real-time standardised reports with business insights to support all financial and people related decisions
- Focusing on internal HR and Finance reports
- Maintaining and supporting the reporting catalogue to support self-service
- Supporting better forecasting with advanced modelling tools
Next 12 months
Financial Planning and Analysis:
Work on TfL’s consolidated position and help shape our multi-year business plans. Manage the demands of internal and external stakeholders
Investment Appraisal:
Focus on assessing the viability of projects, programme or portfolio decisions and the value they generate. You will provide insightful analysis and recommendations to senior internal stakeholders, supporting important investment and prioritisation decisions.
Corporate Finance:
Develop your modelling skills while looking at how TfL’s next big project will be funded or explore how TfL manages it’s borrowings and investments.
We also have an established Graduate and Apprentice Committee as well as an Alumni group, these groups are powerful networks in developing your understanding of the organisation, different apprenticeship schemes and opportunities to develop your career. Many current graduates and apprentices believe this to be a powerful support network and they often hold apprentice only events that are very beneficial to your continued learning.
Next 15 months
Applying your knowledge and developing your partnering skills with a more flexible structure, selecting placements from a range of TfL’s delivery organisations.
Finance Business Partnering:
You will develop effective business partner relationships with your chosen business area, providing real time support and analysis, becoming a trusted adviser, adding value and assisting with decision making. There are a vast range of business partnering opportunities across TfL, including with Capital Delivery, Operations, Places for London, Customer and Strategy.
Where can this career take me?
After completing the scheme, you’ll roll-off into a permanent role that best suits the skills you have developed over the three-year programme, balanced with the needs of the business. This could be into a position such as a finance business partner, financial reporting accountant, a corporate finance analyst, amongst other opportunities. TfL has an excellent track record in continuing to support our graduate alumni with very high retention and promotion rates. In five years, you could move between finance business partner roles to get a breadth of experience in project and commercial functions. In ten years, you could progress to a senior role in any finance area.
Achieving this industry recognised ACMA CGMA designation as a chartered management accountant with CIMA will provide the technical skills, professional knowledge and tools to long-term career success in Finance.
What training and support will you get?
Our award-winning teams will support your ongoing development, through a wide range of on-the-job practical experience and placements. We'll support your professional development through a combination of training, mentoring, and networking.
You'll also receive one-to-one guidance throughout the programme from your:
- Placement manager: Responsible for your day-to-day management and support with your development
- Scheme sponsor: A senior manager who acts as a technical and professional adviser and has line manager responsibility
- Buddy: Usually, an apprentice or graduate who gives support to you and ensure that you feel welcomed in the organisation
- Development adviser: Supports your professional development through providing career coaching and career progression at TfL
What do we look for?
Our core values are extremely important to us, and we desire candidates who are:
- Caring about our colleagues, our customers and our work
- Open to each other, to new ideas and to working together
- Adaptable to diverse needs and willing to innovate
Assessment process
You will receive support and information around each assessment stage as you progress through your application.
Please pay close attention to emails and deadlines provided noting you have 1 week to complete assessments and we cannot re-issue these tests.
Assessment centres for graduates and intern roles will take place from November-January, please note that many roles only have 1 assessment day and we are unable to guarantee additional dates. We are conducting assessment centres in person and virtually (role dependent).
What Qualifications will I gain?
You’ll be studying for the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) professional qualification through the Level 7 Accountancy Taxation Professional apprenticeship.
Achieving this industry recognised ACMA CGMA designation as a chartered management accountant with CIMA will provide the technical skills, professional knowledge and tools to long-term career success in Finance.
Inclusive Recruitment Process
We operate a transparent recruitment process that removes barriers for candidates with a disability. Please let us know if you require reasonable adjustments for any stages of the application process.
We're a Disability Confident employer, and we offer guaranteed interviews to candidates who apply via the scheme where the minimum criteria for skills, knowledge and experience has been met.
In High Volume campaigns including Graduate, Apprentice and Intern recruitment the minimum criteria we set is achieving a pass mark in our first stage assessments, adopting a proportionate approach as part of the Disability Confident scheme.