Chief Financial Officer

Locations: Glasgow or London. Cabinet office has a hybrid way of working. You will be expected to attend the office for more than 60% of your working time. There is no upper limit on the number of days of attending offices and this should be driven by business need.

Working Pattern: Full time

Job Summary: We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Chief Financial Officer to lead the Cabinet Office Finance directorate during a period of significant change and transformation in the department and as we prepare for a new multi-year Spending Round next year. This is a fantastic opportunity to get deep experience working at the centre of government, contributing to the leadership and delivery of the Prime Minister’s priorities, as well as the future strategy for the UK Civil Service and Government functions and services.

As Cabinet Office CFO you will work closely with Cat Little in her role as both Permanent Secretary for the Cabinet Office and Chief Operating Officer of the Civil Service. You will be a member of ExCo and the Departmental Board (also attending the Cabinet Office Audit and Risk Committee), as well as representing the Cabinet Office in the Government Finance Function.

As CFO, you will be responsible for supporting the Principal Accounting Officer in managing risk and compliance with Managing Public Money. You will have a pivotal role in the establishment of the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the creation of the OneGov Agency, which will take effect from 1 April 2027.

Working with the Cabinet Office Chief People Officer, you will play a leading role as part of the Matrix cluster of departments, overseeing Cabinet Office’s migration to a new ERP (shared services platform) and developing strategic opportunities for shared corporate services across the wider Cabinet Office Group.

You will report to Harriet Aldridge, Cabinet Office Chief Operating Officer and work alongside functional leaders in Strategy, HR, Commercial and Digital as a key part of the Cabinet Office Corporate Services Senior Leadership Team. You will lead a team of 4 Deputy Directors (SCS1s) and c120FTE based predominantly in London and Glasgow.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership: You will provide strong, visionary leadership for all aspects of the Cabinet Office Finance function, including strategic finance, financial controls and operation, compliance, debt and risk.
• Financial Management and performance: You will provide the department’s Permanent Secretary, Board and Executive Committee with a clear understanding of our financial performance including budgets, forecasts, risk and opportunities, and choices / trade offs to optimise the use of resources and ensure that the resources authorised by Parliament for use by the Cabinet Office are used for the purposes intended.
• Strategic financial advice: You will be responsible for providing the Permanent Secretary (as Principal Accounting Officer) with high-quality advice to ensure the financial and accounting consequences of decisions / options are well understood.
• Financial Planning and controls: You will lead the department’s financial planning process, ensuring the department has a coherent, affordable and effective financial plan that can be delivered within an acceptable risk tolerance.
• Skills and capability: You will be responsible for developing and continuing to improve the financial management capability of the department and its leaders, through education, control and influence.
• Governance and performance: You will be responsible for ensuring the department has clear and effective frameworks for budget management, planning, performance and investment management.
• Business Partnering and Stakeholder management: You will be required to influence and build relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders, including at Board level, with HM Treasury and other government departments.

Person Specification

It is important that, through your CV and supporting statement, you provide evidence of the professional skills, breadth of experience and personal qualities for this post.

Essential Criteria:

• Proven Leadership: evidence of a track record of success in a senior Finance leadership role in a large and complex organisation.
• Strategic Vision: experience of delivering a clear strategic vision for the future of a finance function in a large and complex organisation.
• Stakeholder Engagement: evidence of strong ability to influence and build relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders.
• Political Sensitivity: you will have to show excellent political skills, including the ability to understand and operate within complex, evolving and ambiguous environments.
• Operational Excellence: you must demonstrate how you consistently promote excellent service delivery and a continuous improvement approach in your team’s output.