Lead, Accountant (UK and Ireland) in Saint Albans

Company Description

Santen is a specialized company with a proud 130-year heritage focused exclusively on eye health. As a Japan-originated, global company with our footprint in over 60 countries and regions, our mission is to provide essential and significant value to patients and society through our products and services created from our expertise in ophthalmology and from the patient’s perspective.

For our UK office we are looking for a Lead Accountant to join the team in St. Albans.

Job Description

• Support month-end close activities, partnering with outsourced finance providers to ensure timely, accurate reporting and robust balance sheet reconciliations.
• Serve as a key contact for Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, expense management, purchase-to-pay processes, and credit control activities, helping optimise cash collection and working capital.
• Support VAT, statutory audit, and compliance requirements while ensuring adherence to internal controls, financial policies, and governance standards.
• Partner with Sales, Marketing, HR, and other business functions to monitor costs, provide budget visibility, and deliver meaningful financial insights.
• Prepare variance analysis, management reports, and performance dashboards to support operational decision-making and business performance tracking.
• Contribute to monthly performance reporting, budgeting, and forecasting processes, supporting the delivery of financial objectives.
• Drive continuous improvement through process optimisation, automation, data quality enhancements, finance transformation initiatives, and cross-functional finance projects across the region.

Qualifications

• 2–4 years of finance experience with strong knowledge of month-end close processes, balance sheet reconciliations, and core accounting principles.
• Hands-on experience with SAP; Power BI skills are advantageous.
• Experience within the pharmaceutical, medical device, or biotechnology industry is preferred.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to evaluate complex financial data and provide actionable insights.
• AAT Qualified

Ready to make a difference? Apply today and help us shape the future of eye health.

Additional Information

What we offer: Competitive Salary: A market‑aligned base salary starting from 46576 – 64043, depending on experience and location.

Grow your career at Santen. A career at Santen is an opportunity to make a difference. We aspire to contribute to the realization of “Happiness with Vision” by providing eye health products and services to patients, consumers, and medical professionals around the world. Guided by our CORE PRINCIPLE, “Tenki ni sanyo suru”, Santen is engaged in the global research & development, manufacturing, and sales and marketing of pharmaceutical products in ophthalmology. We have team members around the world using their diverse talents to unlock new modalities and drive innovations for patient outcomes, education and treatment. At Santen, we believe in empowering all our team members with flexible ways of working and a highly inclusive work environment.

The Santen Group is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to building diverse teams and ensuring a safe and inclusive physical and virtual workplace for every one of our team members. All employment decisions are based on business needs, role requirements and individual qualifications regardless of race, color, ethnicity, national origin/ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/ expression, age, disability, medical condition, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

If you require any kind of accommodation during our recruitment process, please let the recruiter from our team know.

Summary

• Type: Full-time
• Function: Finance
• Experience level: Mid-Senior Level
• Industry: Pharmaceuticals