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Tax Manager - M&A (Transactions Advisory)

Posted: 03/03/26
Recruiter:Baker Thornton
Reference:3077741122
Type:Permanent
Salary:£55,000 - £65,000 Annual
Location:Reading, Berkshire
Description:

We're working with a highly regarded, mid-market accountancy and business advisory firm to recruit a Tax Manager with a strong interest in M&A and transactions tax. This is a superb opportunity for someone who enjoys deal work and wants more variety, ownership and progression.

You'll join an established corporate tax team that works together with an award-winning Corporate Finance and transaction diligence practice, supporting a diverse client base across a wide range of sectors.

The opportunity

You'll be part of a successful tax team that has advised on numerous high-profile and mid-market transactions, including:

  • Acquisitions and disposals
  • Management buyouts (MBOs) and private equity-backed deals
  • Group reorganisations and demergers
  • Cross-border and international structuring

Work is primarily UK-based, which means you genuinely get to own the tax and advisory work, rather than spending most of your time on project management or coordination. The transactions are sector-agnostic and include:

  • Tech and data-led businesses
  • University spinouts and R&D-heavy companies
  • More traditional industrials, services and consumer businesses
Key responsibilities
  • Lead or play a key role in tax due diligence assignments for buy-side and sell-side transactions.
  • Advise on transaction structuring, including tax-efficient acquisition and disposal structures.
  • Support on international tax aspects where relevant, working alongside internal specialists.
  • Advise on employment-related securities and other transaction-linked tax issues as required.
  • Work closely with the firm's Corporate Finance and transaction diligence teams, as well as other tax specialists (e.g. VAT, employment tax).
  • Build strong relationships with management teams, private equity houses and other stakeholders, explaining complex tax issues in a clear, commercial way.
  • Contribute to training, coaching, and developing junior team members.
What we're looking for

We're open on title - the firm can hire from Assistant Manager through to Senior Manager and will flex the role to the right person:

  • Qualifications:
  • ACA or CTA qualified (or equivalent), with strong corporate tax technical skills.
  • Experience:
  • Solid experience in corporate tax, with demonstrable exposure to transactions tax (M&A, due diligence, structuring or PE-backed work).
  • Brand is less important than capability and attitude. Experience can be from Big 4, Top 10 or strong mid-tier/regional firms
  • Mindset & personality:
  • Genuinely comfortable with the pace and peaks/troughs of deal work - quiet periods followed by urgent deadlines.
  • Commercial, pragmatic and able to tailor advice to owner-managers, PE investors and corporates alike.
  • A clear, confident communicator who is comfortable dealing with stakeholders at all levels.
  • Team player:
  • Enjoy collaborating with corporate finance, other tax specialists and wider teams across offices.
  • Eligibility:
  • You must have existing UK right to work - the firm cannot provide new sponsorship for this hire.
Location, hybrid working & travel

The firm's core offices for this role are Reading, Oxford, Newbury, or Southampton, with a marginal preference for Reading because that's where Corporate Finance is based.

  • Hybrid working once probation is passed - typically 2-3 days a week in the office on average, applied flexibly depending on workload.
  • During the first three months, they expect you to be in the office most days to build relationships and learn the deal processes.
  • Occasional travel between offices to work with colleagues and clients.
  • They're particularly keen on candidates currently commuting into London who live within reach of Reading/Oxford/Newbury/Southampton and would value a shorter local commute.
Culture & progression

This firm is "big enough but not too big":

  • Large enough to have specialist teams (employment tax, VAT, corporate finance, restructuring, etc.) and to run firm-wide events.
  • Small enough that you are known by name, can make a visible impact, and don't feel like a tiny cog in a huge machine.
  • Friendly, supportive environment.
  • Good work-life balance, even in transactions - this is not a culture of routine late nights and weekends.
  • Strong retention - once people join, they tend to stay.
  • Clear career progression, with genuine scope to move from Manager to Senior Manager for the right individual.
Other benefits
  • Discretionary annual bonus based on contribution and going above and beyond

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