By James Rodgers, Head of Tax Recruitment
For tax professionals considering their first move from practice into industry, one of the biggest misconceptions can be surprisingly simple: assuming that a job title tells you everything you need to know about a role.
In practice, titles are largely standardised. Whether you're at a Big Four firm, a mid-tier practice or a law firm, there is a fairly well-understood hierarchy. Analyst, Associate, Senior Associate, Manager, Senior Manager, Director, Partner. Each level carries broadly similar expectations around experience, responsibility and compensation.
However, industry doesn't work that way.
Once you move in-house, job titles become far less reliable as a measure of seniority, scope or earning potential. Every business creates its own organisational structure, and titles often reflect internal conventions rather than any market-wide standard.
As a result, two people with the same title can be doing vastly different jobs, while two completely different titles can represent almost identical levels of responsibility.
I've seen this play out repeatedly across the tax market.
Recently, I worked on a Tax Associate role within an investment management fund. The total package exceeded £110,000 and the ideal candidate profile was a Manager from a recognised accounting firm. The role offered exposure to a sophisticated fund environment, significant responsibility and genuine long-term progression opportunities.
Yet several strong candidates ruled themselves out before even exploring the opportunity because they saw the word "Associate" and assumed it represented a step backwards in their career.
In reality, the role was anything but junior.
This is one of the biggest traps tax professionals can fall into when evaluating opportunities in industry.
Why Titles and Compensation Don't Always Align
The disconnect becomes even more obvious when you look at compensation.
In practice, progression and salary are closely linked. Move up a grade and your remuneration generally follows a predictable path.
In industry, that relationship can look very different.
I've seen Tax Managers at large, listed businesses earning less than Tax Associates at private equity funds. I've seen Heads of Tax at smaller organisations earning less than Senior Managers in practice. Equally, I've seen Analyst-level positions at well-capitalised investment firms offering packages that would surprise many experienced tax professionals.
The reason is simple: businesses don't price roles based primarily on what the title sounds like.
They price them according to the value of the skill set required, the complexity of the work, the level of responsibility involved and the commercial realities of the business itself.
A growth-stage fund with a lean finance function may need one individual to take ownership of a significant portion of the tax agenda. Internally, that person might be called an Associate, a Manager or something entirely different. The title is largely irrelevant. The compensation reflects the importance of the role.
Conversely, a large multinational may have an impressive-looking hierarchy full of Director or Associate Director titles, but with relatively narrow remits and multiple layers of management. In those situations, the title may sound senior, but the scope and remuneration can tell a different story.
What Tax Professionals Should Focus on Instead
When assessing an in-house opportunity, the questions that matter most rarely relate to the job title itself. Instead, focus on:
Total compensation
Look beyond base salary. Consider bonus potential, long-term incentives, carry arrangements, pension contributions and wider benefits. The overall package often tells a more accurate story than the title.
Scope and ownership
What will you actually be responsible for? Will you own key tax processes and decisions, or will you be supporting someone else who does?
Complexity of the tax work
Consider the size of the tax footprint, the jurisdictions involved, transaction exposure and the technical challenges you'll encounter. Complexity often creates career-enhancing opportunities regardless of title.
Career progression
How is the team structured? What does progression look like over the next two to five years? A seemingly modest title today may offer a far stronger long-term trajectory than a more senior-sounding alternative elsewhere.
The business itself
Where is the company heading? Growth, acquisitions, fundraising activity and international expansion can all significantly influence the opportunities available within a role.
Don't Let a Title Make the Decision for You
One of the biggest differences between practice and industry is that job titles lose much of their predictive value.
The title alone rarely tells you how much you'll earn, how much responsibility you'll have or how valuable the experience will be for your long-term career.
Yet many tax professionals still filter opportunities primarily through that lens, particularly when considering their first move in-house.
That can mean overlooking roles with exceptional compensation, greater autonomy, broader exposure and stronger progression prospects simply because the title doesn't match expectations.
The most successful moves into industry tend to come from candidates who look beyond the label and focus on the substance of the opportunity.
Because when it comes to in-house tax roles, what the job is often matters far more than what it's called.
get in touch
Looking to make a move in-house or hire your next in-house tax professional? Contact James Rodgers, SRM's Head of Tax Recruitment, on jamesrodgers@srmrecruitment.com or call +44 (0)7852 322955.
