Associate Director of Finance

Cushman & Wakefield | Core; Dubai; On-site; AED 480,000 - 720,000; Full time

Job summary

Cushman & Wakefield | Core in Dubai seeks an Associate Director – Finance to lead UAE & Egypt finance operations, including accounting, reporting, treasury and planning. A hands-on leader who builds teams, improves processes and partners with the business.

You will own month-end close, IFRS 15 revenue recognition, intercompany, tax compliance, controls, and business partnering with service lines, banks and auditors.

Qualifications

• Degree in Accounting or Finance; professional qualification preferred (ACCA/CPA/CA/CMA).
• Minimum 10 years in finance, with 3–5 years in a leadership role.
• Experience leading process improvements and implementing financial systems or automation.
• Multinational or multi-entity experience is advantageous.
• Proficiency in ERP systems (NetSuite, SAP, Dynamics 365) and advanced Excel/Power BI.

Responsibilities

• Oversee day-to-day finance operations across UAE and Egypt entities, including billing, AP/AR, banking and reconciliations.
• Own month-end and year-end close with timely, accurate reporting.
• Manage IFRS 15 revenue recognition, commissions and payroll coordination with HR.
• Drive working capital, cash flow, and intercompany positioning.
• Lead budgeting and reforecasting cycles with service line heads; provide variance analysis.
• Develop dashboards and strengthen data flow between CRM and finance platforms.
• Develop and lead a growing finance team across Dubai and Cairo.

Skills

IFRS knowledge

Budgeting & forecasting

Business partnering

Leadership

Process improvements

Financial systems

Education

Degree in Accounting/Finance

Professional qualification (ACCA/CPA/CA/CMA) preferred

Tools

NetSuite

SAP

Dynamics 365

Power BI

Excel

Job description

Associate Director – Finance

In today’s world, where and how you work is critical for success. Real estate is no longer just focused on footprint and costs - but delivering strategic outcomes for organizations. That is why we partner with you to craft a tailored approach that aligns with your unique goals and meets the needs and preferences of your employees.

Operating across 400 offices in 60 countries, we collaborate with the industry’s top professionals, and we are supported by leading technology and research to ensure consistent results. We build enduring relationships by making our team an extension of your business—aligned with your goals and committed to maximizing bottom-line performance.

Job Summary:

The Finance Director will oversee the full spectrum of finance operations in UAE & Egypt, leading accounting, reporting, treasury, and financial planning activities. A hands-on leader with a drive to build, improve, and scale finance operations. Invested in developing teams, fostering collaboration, and engaging cross-functionally.

This role carries full accountability for the Accounting & Finance department and plays a key part in advancing the organization’s financial maturity, control environment, and business partnering capabilities.

Responsibilities of the role:

• Finance Operations
• Run day-to-day finance operations across the UAE and Egypt entities — billing and invoicing, accounts payable and receivable, banking operations and reconciliations.
• Own the month-end and year-end close calendar, delivering a timely, accurate and well-documented close across all entities.
• Oversee fee and commission revenue recognition under IFRS 15 — agency commissions, retainers and milestone-billed consultancy mandates — including WIP and unbilled balances.
• Manage agent and consultant commission calculations and payouts, and oversee payroll in coordination with HR (WPS, end-of-service accruals).
• Drive working capital and cash flow — billing discipline, collections and receivables management to keep cash conversion healthy in a fee-based business.
• Oversee client monies and owner accounts in line with RERA requirements.
• Manage intercompany positions and FX exposure across the UAE and Egypt entities, including EGP volatility.

• Team Leadership
• Manage, develop and motivate the finance team across Dubai and Cairo — setting priorities, allocating workload and maintaining clear standards.
• Review and quality-assure the team's output — from reconciliations to reporting packs — before it reaches the CFO.
• Coach team members, run structured development and performance conversations, and build capability and cover across the function.
• Act as the escalation point for the team and the business's first port of call on day-to-day finance matters.

• Reporting, Controls & Compliance
• Produce monthly management accounts, KPI dashboards and board/exco pack inputs to a CFO-ready standard.
• Manage statutory reporting and the external audit process end-to-end for the UAE and Egypt entities under IFRS.
• Ensure compliance with UAE Corporate Tax, VAT, ESR, UBO and AML obligations, and Egypt tax requirements, working with external advisors.
• Maintain strong internal controls, delegation of authority and finance policies, and close out audit findings.

• Commercial Finance & Business Partnering
• Run the annual budgeting and reforecasting cycle with service line heads, consolidating for CFO review and sign-off.
• Deliver variance analysis with a clear commercial narrative — fee income, service line margins, pipeline conversion and cost discipline.
• Partner with service line heads on pricing, fee proposals and mandate profitability.
• Support the CFO with analysis and business cases for investments and market opportunities.
• Deputize for the CFO in internal forums and manage day-to-day working relationships with banks, auditors and tax advisors.
• Deliver ad-hoc analysis and special projects as directed by the CFO.

• Systems & Process Improvement
• Continuously improve and automate finance processes across billing, AP/AR, reconciliations and close.
• Develop reporting dashboards (e.g. Power BI) and strengthen data flow between the CRM (Microsoft Dynamics 365) and finance platforms.

Team Leadership & Development

• Manage and develop a small but growing finance team (currently 3 members).
• Build capability, accountability, and collaboration within the team.
• Provide mentoring, feedback, and professional development opportunities.
• Promote a culture of integrity, teamwork, and continuous learning.

Qualifications

• Degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field; professional qualification (ACCA, CPA, CA, CMA) preferred.
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience in finance, including 3–5 years in a leadership role.
• Demonstrated ability to lead process improvements and implement financial systems or automation projects.
• Experience working in multinational or multi-entity environments is an advantage.
• Proficiency in ERP systems (e.g., NetSuite, SAP, Dynamics 365) and advanced Excel / Power BI skills.
• Strong technical grounding in IFRS (including IFRS 15 revenue recognition), month-end close, controls and audit.
• Working knowledge of the UAE tax and regulatory landscape (Corporate Tax, VAT, ESR, AML); Egypt exposure an advantage.