Director of Finance

Standard Hotels (The Standard London); City Of London; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A luxury hotel group in London seeks a Director of Finance to oversee the accounting function, manage budgets, and ensure compliance. The ideal candidate has over 5 years of experience in a similar role in a luxury hotel, strong commercial acumen, and excellent leadership skills. This position offers competitive pay, bonuses, and additional benefits, including meals on duty and a pension scheme.

Benefits

Incentive Bonus Plan

Meals on Duty

Pension Scheme

Life Assurance (4 x Annual Salary)

Medical Assistance (including online GP)

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5+ years' experience in a Director of Finance role or equivalent.
• Understanding of accounting principles and month-end processes.
• Prior experience presenting financial results to corporate teams.
• Knowledge of UK legal requirements including VAT and taxation.
• Strong numerical skills and proficiency in accounting software.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the entire accounting function and financial transactions.
• Support the senior executive team in creating the annual budget.
• Manage month-end financial statements and business review packs.
• Advise senior directors on financial impacts of strategic plans.
• Ensure compliance with permits, insurances, and licenses.

Skills

Financial analysis

Commercial acumen

Communication skills

Organizational skills

Excel proficiency

Education

Formal accounting qualification (CIMA or ACCA equivalent)

Tools

Hyperion

iScala

ARCS

Opera PMS

Birchstreet

Fourth Payroll

Job description

Overview

Director of Finance – London (Kings Cross). Full Time. Competitive Salary DoE. Bonus & Benefits.

At The Standard, we don't just run hotels—we create cultural hubs, social playgrounds, and unforgettable experiences. Our spaces buzz with energy, inclusivity, and creativity, and at the heart of it all is our incredible team. We don’t do cookie-cutter. We don’t do scripts. We do personality, passion, and individuality.

We believe that hotels should be more than just places to sleep—we should be destinations, experiences, and moments in time that guests remember long after they leave. We challenge the status quo, bringing bold ideas, unconventional luxury, and immersive culture to everything we do. Whether it’s a buzzing lobby, an unforgettable dining experience, or a rooftop that becomes the city’s go-to spot, we create spaces that are as dynamic as the people who visit them.

We’re now on the lookout for a Director of Finance who embodies our “Anything but Standard” ethos. We celebrate individuality, diversity, and creativity. We believe in hiring people, not just CVs. If you’re ready to shake up the hotel numbers game and be part of something truly unique, we’d love to meet you.

Your role

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 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 statutory requirements. You will also be responsible for training and 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 also 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 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 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 bring personality and stamina—be highly social, upbeat and friendly; confident and able to handle pressure; thrive in a high-volume, high-energy environment and be able to work both independently and as part of a team.

Requirements

A minimum of 5+ years' experience as a Director of Finance, Senior 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 an excellence 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 and numerical skills and be proficient in the use of accounting and payroll software. Accounting software includes 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.

Benefits

• Incentive Bonus Plan
• Meals on Duty
• Pension Scheme
• Life Assurance (4 x Annual Salary)
• Medical Assistance (including online GP)