Director of Finance in City of Westminster

As our Director of Finance, you will work in partnership with our Managing Director, Senior Executive team and Corporate Finance teams to oversee the entire accounting function here in London. Supported by a small team covering various accounting functions, you will have overall responsibility for maintaining and controlling all financial transactions and reporting to ensure that corporate standards and operational SOPs are adhered to and that they comply with any statutory requirements.

You will also be responsible for the training & development of the finance team to ensure they have a full understanding of financial controls and audit requirements. You will take a leading role in supporting the senior executive team with the creation of the annual budget and manage the ongoing business forecast. You will oversee and manage the production of our month end financial statements including the P&L, accruals and balance sheet reconciliations and prepare our month end business review pack for our ownership meeting.

A strong commercial acumen will be required along with the ability to advise and sometimes challenge senior directors on the financial impacts of strategic plans and ad-hoc projects; through to the implementation of cost saving exercises to maximise profits. This will require you to have a solid understanding of operational/capex budgets and business plans to coach and guide managers in accordance with budget guidelines.

In addition to month end, you will also support the senior team with the production of statistics and financial reports to support decision making across the business. You will also support the operation with the management of permits, insurances, licences and contracts to ensure they do not lapse and the business remains compliant.

This is not a 'Standard' Director of Finance position so you will need to have miles and miles of personality and stamina, be highly social, upbeat and friendly; confident and able to handle pressure well; thrive in a high volume, high energy environment and able to work equally well both independently and as part of a team.

Qualifications

• A minimum of 5+ years' experience as a Director of Finance, Finance Manager/Controller gained within a similar Lifestyle Hotel or large 4- or 5-star Hotel in London or the UK is essential for this role.
• A minimum of 5 years prior experience as a Director of Finance or Financial Controller is essential and should have been ideally gained in a large 5 star 'Lifestyle' property or wider hospitality business.
• Solid understanding of all accounting principles and prior experience of month end processes / production of month end accounts, forecasting, budgeting, and statutory reporting responsibilities.
• Prior experience of presenting month end results to ownership and corporate teams.
• Be well versed in UK legal requirements including VAT, taxation, social security, business reporting to HMRC and insurance.
• Ideally hold formal accounting qualification or certified designation CIMA or ACCA equivalent.
• Have previously managed the full end to end budgeting process with excellent commercial acumen and business planning combined with a touch of creative 'blue sky' thinking to support bespoke projects and activities that deliver true ROI.
• Strong organisational skills, and the ability to work within tight deadlines both individually and managing a wider team.
• Have wider Hotel operational knowledge in order to support and guide HODs and divisional specialists with financial support relating to their area.
• Have exceptional written/numerical skills and be proficient in the use of accounting and payroll software including Hyperion, iScala, ARCS, Opera PMS, Birchstreet, Fourth Payroll.
• Candidates should have advanced skills in Excel.
• Fluency in English is essential for this role.
• All applicants must be eligible to live and work in the UK. Documented evidence of eligibility will be required from candidates.