Financial Controller

Distinct Recruitment; Leicester; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 61,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday + bank holidays

Pension

Free parking

Flexibility around family commitments

One day working from home after 6 mo

Job summary

Distinct Recruitment is seeking a Financial Controller based in Coalville with a salary up to £55,000. The right candidate will have the opportunity to develop the finance function and potentially progress to Head of Finance or Finance Director.

You will improve management reporting, cash flow forecasting and work closely with MD and a small team. Flexible working arrangements and genuine growth opportunities are offered in a thriving SME.

Qualifications

• Experience in an SME environment and ready to own the finance function.
• Good background in management reporting, cash flow, and job costing.
• Ability to improve processes and management information.

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of finance and improve reporting.
• Develop cash flow forecasting and management processes.
• Work closely with external CFO and small finance team.

Skills

Management accounts

Cash flow forecasting

Financial reporting

Job costing

Commercial mindset

Education

ACA/ACCA/CIMA qualified or QBE

Job description

Financial Controller Coalville Up to £55,000 Potential progression to Head of Finance / Finance Director Most Financial Controller jobs are about stepping into an established finance function and keeping things moving. This one is a bit different. You’ll be joining a profitable, cash‑rich and growing SME that has got to the point where the finance function now needs to develop alongside the business. That’s really the opportunity here. The business has grown well, has a strong underlying operation and has further growth planned over the next few years, including acquisitions. They now want someone internally who can take more ownership of finance, improve the quality of reporting and help build a function that can support a much bigger business.

The role Initially, there will definitely be a hands‑on element. You’ll be taking ownership of the numbers, improving management reporting, developing cash flow forecasting and getting much closer to margins, job profitability and overall business performance. There are also plenty of processes that can be improved. They’re changing systems, reviewing how things are currently done and looking at what can sensibly be brought back in-house from the external accountants. The information is there, but they want someone who can turn it into better management information and give the MD a much clearer view of what is actually driving the business. You’ll be working with a small finance team, reporting directly to the MD, with an external fractional CFO also there to support you as the role and finance function develop.

Where could it go? This is probably the most interesting part. They’re not recruiting a Financial Controller because somebody has left. They’re recruiting because the business has grown and they need somebody who can grow with it. There is further growth planned, including acquisitions, and as the business becomes larger the finance function will naturally need to become more sophisticated as well. For the right person, there is a genuine opportunity for the role to develop into Head of Finance and potentially Finance Director over time. So you’re not just coming in to run what already exists. You’ll have a real opportunity to shape what finance looks like as the business grows.

What are they looking for? Someone practical, commercially minded and happy working in an SME environment. You could be ACA, ACCA or CIMA qualified, part‑qualified, or qualified by experience (QBE). They’re open‑minded on qualification and are more interested in finding someone with the right level of experience who can genuinely take ownership of the role. You’ll need good experience around management accounts, cash flow, reporting, margins and ideally job costing. A background in engineering, manufacturing, services, maintenance, logistics or another operational business would be useful, but they’re pretty open‑minded on sector. More important is finding someone who can get into the detail when needed, but also step back and look at the bigger picture. Someone who enjoys improving things rather than just maintaining them.

Package

• Salary up to £55,000
• 25 days holiday + bank holidays
• Pension
• Free parking
• Office‑based in Coalville
• One day working from home available after successful completion of the six‑month probation period
• Flexibility around family commitments
• Genuine longer‑term progression towards Head of Finance / Finance Director

If you’re looking for a Financial Controller role where everything is already perfectly set up and the job is simply to keep it ticking over, this probably won’t be for you. But if you like the idea of joining a successful growing business, improving what’s already there and potentially building the finance function you could one day lead, it’s definitely worth a conversation.