Head of Finance

Head of Finance

Hailsham, East Sussex

Salary Negotiable

A renowned services sector client is seeking a fully qualified and highly commercially astute senior finance professional to join them as Head of Finance. The ideal candidate will have at least 5 years post-qualified experience and be accustomed to operating at this level of seniority. This is a hugely established business that many individuals will be familiar with and one with a rich history in the area. Set in an idyllic rural location with beautiful surroundings, this client offers employees a truly unique working environment.

Reporting directly to the COO and board, this individual will manage a team of 2 finance staff and play a pivotal role within the organisation. They will actively contribute towards key senior business decisions, ensure complete financial compliance and control, funding streams and investment strategy, and help drive the business forward. This is a professional office environment where professional credibility and gravitas to be able to present at a senior level are key.

Overview of duties:

• Help create finance department strategic plans; monitor and adjust for risk when necessary
• Manage all financial, budget and procurement activities including the preparation of the annual budget and operations plan, and the allocation of resources and budget targets to operating units
• Collaborate on budget, commercial opportunity, capital expenditure, investment opportunity and divestments; and prepare annual budgets, quarterly reforecasts, and other ad-hoc financial planning tasks
• Develop, implement and maintain an enterprise risk management process including effective mitigation strategies and manage processes for financial forecasting, budgeting and
• reporting, ensuring appropriate systems are in place
• Establish an internal audit process to ensure compliance with best practice; and prepare analyses that drive and support business decisions, including advice on the financial and tax implications of these activities
• Assess financial risk of any and all business operations, investments and innovations
• Conduct surplus and cost analyses including the development of unit costs for all functions of the business
• Recommend cost-reducing solutions
• Ensure the SAGE accounting system is appropriately configured and maintained
• Review the monthly payroll, ensuring variance and exception reporting is undertaken
• Ensure a timely close of monthly accounts including balance sheet reconciliations
• Produce and distribute monthly management accounts by working day seven for the Senior Management Team and Heads of Unit, and investigate significant variances
• Prepare annual statutory accounts and audit schedules
• Review finance systems and processes and streamline where appropriate
• Ensure all accounting activities and internal audits comply with financial regulations
• Manage the finance team on a day-to-day basis to ensure the smooth running of the finance office
• Supervise the Finance Assistant in processing accounting transactions and journals, including payroll and purchase ledger payments, VAT returns and HMRC returns
• Supervise the Payroll Assistant ensure all payroll information for the month is uploaded to the payroll portal within the relevant timescales.

Candidate requirements:

• Qualified accountant (ACA/CIMA/ACCA) preferably with at least 5 years’ post-qualified experience.
• Ability to organise and manage a range of priorities and deadlines
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with an ability to compile and interpret data from a variety of sources, select appropriate methods of analysis, monitor emerging trends and issues, and disseminate information
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Experience of managing, coaching and developing a Finance team
• Experience of preparing management and statutory accounts including liaising with auditors
• Experience in financial strategic planning and risk assessment
• Strong stakeholder service orientation in addition to demonstrating integrity and discretion
• Great attention to detail and accuracy

Please apply via website or contact Georgina at Harvey John for more information.

Harvey John recruitment is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.