Group Finance Manager

Group Finance Manager

JOB DESCRIPTION

Employment basis: Full-time

Reports to: Group CFO

Department: Finance

Job summary

Lead the day-to-day management and development of the group finance function, ensuring accurate, timely and meaningful financial reporting, effective financial controls and strong cash and treasury management.

Working closely with the Group CFO, the role will oversee management accounting, financial accounting, budgeting, forecasting and statutory compliance, providing commercial insight to support decision-making across the group.

The role will also lead the identification, development and deployment of practical AI tools and automation across the whole organisation, working with departmental leaders and IT to improve efficiency, strengthen processes and deliver measurable business benefits.

Key responsibilities

Financial reporting and commercial insight

• Lead the monthly management accounts and group consolidation process, ensuring accurate reporting within agreed deadlines.
• Review group and entity-level results, balance sheets and cash flow reporting, ensuring significant movements, risks and accounting judgements are understood and explained.
• Provide clear analysis of performance against budgets, forecasts and prior periods, identifying trends and recommending corrective action.
• Develop meaningful management information, dashboards and business metrics covering profitability, margins, operating costs, inventory and working capital.
• Partner with departmental and business unit leaders to improve financial understanding, challenge assumptions and support commercial decisions.
• Lead completion of annual statutory accounts as per agreed timetable and quality requirements
• Prepare reporting and analysis for the Group CFO, directors and other stakeholders.

Budgeting, forecasting and planning

• Coordinate the annual budgeting and regular forecasting processes, working with budget holders to develop robust assumptions and clear accountability.
• Maintain integrated financial forecasts covering profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow.
• Develop financial models and scenario analysis to assess risks, investment proposals and business opportunities.
• Monitor expenditure and financial commitments, identifying opportunities to improve cost control, profitability and cash generation.
• Support the Group CFO with strategic planning and other financial projects.

Treasury, liquidity and banking

• Take responsibility for day-to-day group treasury activities within policies and authority limits agreed with the Group CFO.
• Own short- and medium-term cash flow forecasting, including a rolling short-term forecast, and monitor actual cash movements against expectations.
• Maintain visibility of cash balances, liquidity and funding requirements across group entities and currencies, escalating emerging pressures promptly.
• Manage banking platforms, mandates and access arrangements, maintaining appropriate security and segregation of duties.
• Manage deposits, intercompany funding and cash transfers to optimise available funds within approved liquidity and counterparty limits.
• Monitor foreign exchange exposures and coordinate currency purchases and hedging transactions in accordance with approved policy and delegated authority.
• Oversee payment approval controls and authorise payments within agreed limits.
• Recommend improvements to banking treasury processes and working capital management.

Financial control, statutory reporting and tax

• Oversee the integrity of accounting records and ensure bank, balance sheet and intercompany reconciliations are completed, reviewed and resolved promptly.
• Review significant journals, provisions, consolidation adjustments and accounting treatments, ensuring consistent application of group policies.
• Oversee annual statutory accounts and audit delivery, coordinating the finance team, external accountants and overseas advisers. Lead contact for auditors during day-to-day fieldwork.
• Ensure VAT returns are prepared, reviewed and submitted on time, with effective reconciliations and controls over accuracy and completeness.
• Coordinate corporation tax and other statutory reporting requirements with external advisers, maintaining a clear compliance timetable.
• Oversee intercompany accounting, settlements and transfer pricing adjustments in accordance with group policy.
• Maintain and improve financial policies, delegated authorities and internal controls, ensuring audit findings and control weaknesses are addressed.
• Coordinate other assigned reporting requirements, including statistical and sustainability-related information.

Finance team leadership and support

• Oversee the work of the Financial Accountant
• Coordinate workloads and reporting deadlines, maintaining effective cover for key activities.
• Standardise and improve finance processes across group entities, working collaboratively with overseas colleagues and advisers.
• Promote a culture of accuracy, accountability, continuous improvement and constructive business support.
• Deputise for the Group CFO when required, within agreed responsibilities and authority.

AI development, deployment and organisation-wide efficiency

• Support CFO with practical programme of AI adoption and automation across the the finance team
• Work with departmental leaders to identify repetitive activities, process bottlenecks and opportunities to improve productivity, service quality and decision-making.
• Develop, configure and pilot approved AI tools, reusable prompts, assistants and automated workflows, working with IT and specialist providers where required.
• Lead the transition from successful pilots to operational deployment, including testing, documentation, user training and clear ownership.
• Establish appropriate controls with IT and relevant business owners over data access, confidentiality, output validation and human review.
• Ensure AI-enabled processes retain appropriate approvals, audit trails and accountability.
• Measure adoption, time savings, quality improvements and financial benefits, reporting progress to the Group CFO and relevant stakeholders.
• Monitor deployed tools and workflows, addressing errors, changing requirements and opportunities for further improvement.
• Build organisational capability through practical training, guidance and the sharing of effective use cases.

Systems and continuous improvement

• Lead improvements to finance systems, reporting structures and data quality, including the effective use of ERP and associated tools.
• Improve integration between financial and operational information, reducing manual processing and duplicated effort.
• Maintain clear process documentation and ensure changes are tested, controlled and embedded effectively.
• Undertake other reasonable duties consistent with the role and comply with the company’s Quality Management System.

Essential qualifications and experience

• Qualified accountant, such as ACA, ACCA or CIMA.
• Experience of managing a finance function or a substantial finance team within a multi-entity or international organisation.
• Strong technical accounting knowledge and practical experience of management reporting, consolidation, statutory accounts and audit.
• Experience of budgeting, forecasting, financial modelling and commercial analysis.
• Practical experience of cash flow forecasting, treasury operations, banking controls and foreign exchange management.
• Strong understanding of balance sheet controls, VAT reporting and statutory compliance.
• Demonstrable experience of delivering systems, automation or process improvements with measurable benefits.
• Practical capability in using AI tools and the ability to translate business requirements into effective, controlled workflows.
• Strong Excel, analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Effective leadership, communication and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to work with non-finance colleagues.
• Ability to balance operational delivery with improvement projects and meet deadlines without compromising quality.

Desirable skills and experience

• Experience of NetSuite, MS Business Central or a comparable ERP system.
• Experience of deploying AI or automation beyond the finance function.
• Familiarity with Microsoft Copilot, Power Automate, Power BI or comparable tools.
• Experience of low-code development, workflow integration or working with technical implementation partners.
• Knowledge of international tax, transfer pricing and multi-currency reporting.
• Experience of borrowing facilities, covenant reporting and treasury policy development.