Senior Finance Business Partner

FlightStory is a media & investment group, and our mission is to elevate the stories, build the communities and invest in visionary entrepreneurs contributing to a happier, healthier humanity.

Mission

Become a trusted business partner across Flightstory’s media team, operating across Production, Marketing, Events teams and more. You will have the organisation and attention to detail required to manage numerous complex cost budgets, as well as the big picture thinking and to present clear reports to senior management. You must be comfortable challenging business partners constructively, whilst managing the fast-moving nature of the creator-led business. This includes the need to be highly agile including a hands-on approach to managing and tracking financial performance. Drive financial rigour and commercial insight across the media business. Act as a trusted partner to stakeholders, ensuring budgets are owned, understood and optimised. Your role will combine hands-on operational delivery with forward-looking analysis that enables better, faster and more commercially astute decision-making.

Outcomes

• Ownership of cost budgets
  • Full ownership of cost centre budgets across multiple departments
  • Partner proactively with budget holders to ensure financial accountability and delivery against overall business targets
  • Lead the budgeting and re-forecasting process for operational cost bases
  • Ensure clear visibility of performance versus budget, with actionable insight and clear next steps
• Cash and Capital Management
  • Own short and medium-term cashflow forecasting
  • Partner with the Director of Finance to proactively identify and mitigate short- and long-term cash risks
  • Administrative responsibility for company bank account, managing payment approvals
• Month-end Optimisation and Process Improvement
  • Continuously challenge existing processes to drive efficiency, automation and improved accuracy
  • Shorten reporting timelines while improving quality of insight
  • Leverage advanced Excel and data tools to increase automation and reduce manual intervention
• FP&A: Management Reporting
  • In the medium term, take on responsibility for FP&A consolidation across the Finance team
  • Coordinate first draft of the monthly reporting deck for review with the Director of Finance
  • Highlight risks, opportunities, trends and key business drivers with data-led insight
• Management of Assistant Accountant
  • Set clear priorities and structure for the Assistant Accountant’s workload
  • Provide regular coaching, development feedback and performance management
  • Create a high-accountability, high-support environment to enable growth and ownership

Competencies

• Fully qualified (ACCA, CIMA, ACA or equivalent). 3+ years PQE, ideally within a fast-paced commercial business (media, agency, startup or high-growth environment advantageous).
• Proven experience in business partnering and cost ownership
• Strong understanding of accounting principles, compliance and financial controls.
• Demonstrated experience in financial modelling
• Advanced Excel/Google Sheets capability; experience with finance systems (e.g. Xero) and data tools preferred
• Strong communication skills with the confidence to challenge constructively to become a trusted partner across the business
• High emotional intelligence, sound judgement and resilience under pressure
• Relentless focus on continuous improvement and operational excellence
• You are kind, highly organised, commercially curious and outcomes-driven

What Success Looks Like

• Clear, credible budgets with transparent assumptions and disciplined tracking
• Risks and opportunities identified early and managed proactively
• Strong, trust-based relationships with business stakeholders
• Concise, high-quality management reporting that drives decision-making
• Streamlined processes that reduce manual effort and increase insight
• Efficient, well-controlled month-end close with focus on forward-looking analysis
• Clear development progression and increasing ownership from the Assistant Accountant

You’ll Thrive Here If

• You combine operational rigour with commercial and strategic thinking
• You are hands-on, detail-oriented and comfortable owning outcomes end-to-end
• You actively challenge the status quo and look for smarter ways of working
• You thrive in demand-heavy, fast-paced environments where speed, precision and accountability matter and are committed to the necessary effort to meet critical deadlines across a global organisation
• You enjoy partnering with creative and commercial teams, bringing clarity to complexity