Financial Controller - Growth Finance Lead for a Scale-Up

Better Placed; Greater London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Better Placed is partnering with a fast-growing marketing agency entering an exciting growth phase. They seek a Financial Controller to own the finance function and be a key partner to the leadership team, balancing hands-on finance with strategic insight.

The role covers financial control and commercial finance, including budgeting, forecasting, profitability analysis, working capital, and potential acquisitions.

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant with experience in a growing SME or Group
• Autonomy to drive improvements rather than waiting for direction
• Ability to explain numbers to CEO or senior stakeholders
• Agency/advertising/marketing project environment experience advantageous

Responsibilities

• Take overall responsibility for the smooth running of the Group finance function and ensure the team operates with clear processes, priorities and accountability.
• Lead and develop a small finance team, providing direction, coaching and support while creating an environment where people can continue to grow.
• Own the month-end process and ensure the leadership team receives clear, commercially useful reporting on performance.
• Produce and develop management information covering revenue, margins, costs, client performance and key business metrics.
• Oversee the Group's consolidated reporting across multiple entities, ensuring intercompany balances and underlying information are accurate.
• Partner with the CEO and senior stakeholders on annual planning, budgeting and ongoing forecasting.
• Maintain strong oversight of cash, debtor performance and working capital, with a particular focus on ensuring the Group has good forward visibility of liquidity.
• Oversee core transactional finance activities including billing, supplier payments, payroll and banking.
• Take ownership of the Group's tax, statutory reporting and audit requirements, working alongside external advisers where appropriate.
• Ensure the business remains compliant as the UK's digital tax and invoicing landscape continues to evolve.
• Review existing finance processes and identify opportunities to simplify, automate and improve the way the team works.
• Explore practical applications of AI and automation to remove repetitive work and improve the quality and speed of financial information.
• Work closely with operational teams to understand the commercial drivers behind agency performance and improve financial accountability.
• Develop profitability and margin reporting, helping the business understand where it is making money and where performance can be improved.
• Support commercial analysis around major client contracts and post-project performance.
• Provide financial analysis to support strategic projects, including acquisitions and the subsequent integration of new businesses.

Skills

ACA/ACCA/CIMA qualification

Finance team leadership

Financial control

Management accounting

Group reporting

Budgeting & forecasting

Cash management

Automation / process improvement

Communication with senior leadership

Analytical mindset

Education

ACA/ACCA/CIMA qualification

Tools

Excel

Cloud-based finance software

Job description

Better Placed is partnering with a fast-growing marketing agency entering an exciting growth phase. They seek a Financial Controller to own the finance function and be a key partner to the leadership team, balancing hands-on finance with strategic insight.

The role covers financial control and commercial finance, including budgeting, forecasting, profitability analysis, working capital, and potential acquisitions.