Chief Financial Officer

Cabinet Office; Greater London, Glasgow; Hybrid; GBP 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

The Cabinet Office is seeking a dynamic Chief Financial Officer to lead the Finance directorate during a period of significant change. This senior role sits at the heart of government, shaping P&L, budgets and financial strategy in support of the Prime Minister’s priorities and the Civil Service transformation.

You will work closely with the Permanent Secretary, be a member of the ExCo and Departmental Board, and drive the OneGov corporate services strategy while guiding risk, compliance and

Qualifications

• Proven track record leading finance in a large organisation.
• Ability to communicate complex financial positions to senior stakeholders.
• Experience delivering transformational change in finance functions.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for Cabinet Office Finance, including budgeting, controls and risk.
• Advise the Permanent Secretary and Executive Committee on financial options and value for money.
• Oversee financial planning, performance, governance and assurance across the department.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic vision

Stakeholder engagement

Political sensitivity

Operational excellence

Job description

Cabinet office has a hybrid way of working. You will be expected to attend the office for more than 60% of your working time. There is no upper limit on the number of days of attending offices and this should be driven by business need.

Working Pattern:

Full time

Job Summary:

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Chief Financial Officer to lead the Cabinet Office Finance directorate during a period of significant change and transformation in the department and as we prepare for a new multi-year Spending Round next year.

This is a fantastic opportunity to get deep experience working at the centre of government, contributing to the leadership and delivery of the Prime Minister’s priorities, as well as the future strategy for the UK Civil Service and Government functions and services.

As Cabinet Office CFO you will work closely with Cat Little in her role as both Permanent Secretary for the Cabinet Office and Chief Operating Officer of the Civil Service. You will be a member of ExCo and the Departmental Board (also attending the Cabinet Office Audit and Risk Committee), as well as representing the Cabinet Office in the Government Finance Function.

As CFO, you will be responsible for supporting the Principal Accounting Officer in managing risk and compliance with Managing Public Money. You will have a pivotal role in the establishment of the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the creation of the OneGov Agency, which will take effect from 1 April 2027.

Working with the Cabinet Office Chief People Officer, you will play a leading role as part of the Matrix cluster of departments, overseeing Cabinet Office’s migration to a new ERP (shared services platform) and developing strategic opportunities for shared corporate services across the wider Cabinet Office Group.

You will report to Harriet Aldridge, Cabinet Office Chief Operating Officer and work alongside functional leaders in Strategy, HR, Commercial and Digital as a key part of the Cabinet Office Corporate Services Senior Leadership Team. You will lead a team of 4 Deputy Directors (SCS1s) and c120FTE based predominantly in London and Glasgow.

Job Description:

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership:

• You will provide strong, visionary leadership for all aspects of the Cabinet Office Finance function, including strategic finance, financial controls and operation, compliance, debt and risk.
• You will play a key role in the creation of the Office for the Prime Minister and Cabinet (OPMC), and in the establishment of the OneGov Delivery Agency, which will involve the carve out of a number of service delivery areas from the department of state.
• Working closely with the Chief People Officer (CPO), you will oversee the Cabinet Office’s migration to the new shared services platform as part of the Matrix cluster, and the strategic opportunities for future corporate services that come from this.

Financial Management and performance:

• You will provide the department’s Permanent Secretary, Board and Executive Committee with a clear understanding of our financial performance including budgets, forecasts, risk and opportunities, and choices / trade offs to optimise the use of resources and ensure that the resources authorised by Parliament for use by the Cabinet Office are used for the purposes intended.
• You will provide accurate and timely Estimates to Parliament and a robust cash management system.

Strategic financial advice:

• You will be responsible for providing the Permanent Secretary (as Principal Accounting Officer) with high-quality advice to ensure the financial and accounting consequences of decisions / options are well understood, and ensuring that the Accounting Officer is appropriately discharging her PAO duties with respect to Regularity, Propriety, Feasibility and Value for Money.

Financial Planning and controls:

• You will lead the department’s financial planning process, as part of Business Planning, ensuring the department has a coherent, affordable and effective financial plan that can be delivered within an acceptable risk tolerance. This includes having personal accountability to the Accounting Officer for the economic, efficient and effective use of resources and working closely with other key partners, in particular the Cabinet Office’s Strategy Director, Chief Digital & Information Officer and the Chief People Officer, to secure the resources the department needs to deliver its policies, programmes and operational delivery requirements.
• You will be responsible for leading and ensuring compliance with HMT spend controls and overseeing Cabinet Office corporate compliance and assurance, as well as debt management.

Skills and capability:

• You will be responsible for developing and continuing to improve the financial management capability of the department and its leaders, through education, control and influence.
• You will lead the Government Finance Function within the Cabinet Office to build strong, diverse, effective and high-quality inclusive functions that are respected and collaborative, command credibility at all levels and promote a culture of evidence based and expert decision making, as well as value for money across the organisation.

Governance and performance:

• You will be responsible for ensuring the department has clear and effective frameworks for budget management, planning, performance and investment management.

Business Partnering and Stakeholder management:

• You will be required to influence and build relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders, including at Board level, with HM Treasury and other government departments; with partners in the Matrix shared services cluster and challenging constructively to ensure alignment with financial and organisational strategy.
• You will be responsible for leading and developing a highly expert, respected and user focused business partnering function which operates in a wholly integrated and seamless way with HR, digital and commercial teams.

Person Specification:

It is important that, through your CV and supporting statement, that you provide evidence of the professional skills, breadth of experience and personal qualities for this post.

• Proven Leadership: evidence of a track record of success in a senior Finance leadership role in a large and complex organisation with success in building, motivating and inspiring supportive, inclusive and high performing multi-disciplinary teams, leading through both business-as-usual and transformational change.
• Strategic Vision: experience of delivering a clear strategic vision for the future of a finance function in a large and complex organisation.
• Stakeholder Engagement evidence of strong ability to influence and build relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders, including at Board level, as a trusted finance advisor and partner with the ability to communicate complex financial positions compellingly with confidence, clarity and credibility.
• Political Sensitivity: you will have to show excellent political skills, including the ability to understand and operate within complex, evolving and ambiguous environments, to manage risk and reach sound judgments on a range of strategic and reputational issues.
• Operational Excellence: you must demonstrate how you consistently promote excellent service delivery and a continuous improvement approach in your team’s output, whilst balancing working at pace to manage a full workload with conflicting short and long-term priorities.