Group Finance Director

Cook Recruitment Group operates three divisions (National Locums, Locum People & Medi Team), all servicing the medical staffing sector but with different roles and personalities. Between them, they service more than 200 hospitals across the UK. What is common across those three divisions is their adherence to Cook family values of support, care, and opportunity. It’s been a key factor in helping the business become one of the recruitment industry’s most exciting and dynamic enterprises.

THE OPPORTUNITY

This is a rare opportunity to join the senior leadership team as Finance Director at a genuinely exciting inflection point. The business is scaling, investing in its processes, and looking for a finance leader who will be instrumental in shaping how it grows — not just reporting on it.

You will work closely with the owners and recruitment directors, acting as a true commercial partner rather than a back‑office function. This is a hands‑on role with real influence, and for the right person, a clear pathway to CFO.

ROLE DETAILS

• Reporting to: Owners / Directors
• Direct reports: 5 (with additional outsourced overseas bookkeeping and transactional processing support)
• Location: Milton Keynes — fully onsite
• Sector: Healthcare Staffing / Recruitment
• Progression: Pathway to CFO

WHAT YOU WILL DO

• Finance Leadership & Reporting
  • Own the full finance function — management accounts, forecasting, cash flow, and statutory reporting — to a standard that gives the owners real confidence in the numbers.
  • Deliver timely, clear, and commercially relevant reporting to the board, translating financial performance into insight rather than just information.
  • Manage and develop a team of five, alongside an outsourced team handling bookkeeping and transactional processing, ensuring quality, accountability, and continuous improvement across the function.
• Commercial Partnership
  • Work shoulder‑to‑shoulder with the recruitment directors — understanding the commercial drivers of the business and providing the financial intelligence to support better decisions.
  • Challenge the business constructively: question assumptions, stress‑test plans, and flag risks before they become problems.
  • Play an active role in pricing, margin analysis, and framework contract performance — understanding what drives profitability at a desk and contract level.
• Process Improvement & Systems
  • Rapidly get under the skin of how finance currently operates and drive meaningful improvement — tighter controls, better workflows, and greater efficiency across the team.
  • Identify and implement the right tools and processes to support the business as it scales, including effective oversight of the outsourced bookkeeping and transactional processing function.
  • Build a finance function that is fit for a growing business — not just today, but for where National Locums is heading.
  • Contribute meaningfully to business planning and strategic decision‑making — this is not a purely operational finance role.
  • Support the owners in evaluating growth opportunities, investment decisions, and any future corporate activity.
  • Develop the financial modelling, KPI framework, and management information needed to run the business with greater rigour and pace.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

• Technical & Professional
  • Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent) with solid post‑qualification experience in a commercially active finance role.
  • Previous experience as a Finance Director, Head of Finance, or strong Financial Controller ready to step up — ideally within a fast‑paced SME or people‑based services business.
  • Recruitment, staffing, or professional services sector experience is a strong advantage; understanding of contractor pay, margin structures, and framework agreements would be valued.
  • Comfortable overseeing a small finance team alongside an outsourced bookkeeping and transactional processing function, with the credibility to hold both to a high standard.
  • Sound working knowledge of financial controls, statutory compliance, and management reporting — with the ambition to go well beyond the basics.
• Commercial & Strategic
  • Genuinely commercially minded — you understand what drives a business, not just what the numbers say about it.
  • Able to engage confidently with the owners and recruitment directors on strategy, contributing real insight rather than just financial updates.
  • Sharp and curious: you ask the right questions, spot what doesn’t look right, and follow it through.
  • You see process improvement as an opportunity, not a burden — you will want to get in and fix things.
• The Person
  • High energy and self‑motivated — you hit the ground running and don’t need managing.
  • Down to earth and direct: you communicate clearly with people at every level, from the finance team to the boardroom.
  • Collaborative and approachable — the recruitment directors need to want to pick up the phone to you.
  • Hungry for progression: you want to grow with the business and are motivated by the prospect of taking on more.
  • Resilient and adaptable — comfortable operating in a business that moves quickly and doesn’t always follow the rulebook.
  • A questioning mind with good judgement: you raise concerns early, offer solutions, and don’t just go along with things.

THIS ROLE IS RIGHT FOR YOU IF

• You are energised by the idea of walking into a business, understanding how it really works, and making it better.
• You want to be a genuine part of the leadership team — not just the person who produces the monthly pack.
• You are ambitious, but grounded enough to roll your sleeves up and do what needs doing.
• You are looking for a business where your contribution is visible, valued, and rewarded with real career progression.