Group Financial Controller

OLIVER Agency; City Of London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading agency in financial management is seeking an experienced UK Group Financial Controller to provide maternity cover. This critical role involves leading the financial reporting team, ensuring compliance with UK and US standards, and supporting strategic financial decision-making across the organization.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in financial leadership in a multi-entity environment.
• Strong knowledge of UK GAAP, US GAAP, and HMRC compliance.
• Experience managing payroll and balance sheet reconciliations.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the UK financial reporting team.
• Ensure accurate UK P&L reporting and mitigate financial risks.
• Partner with the CEO and CFO to deliver financial plans.

Skills

Financial leadership

Knowledge of UK GAAP

Communication skills

Analytical skills

Organizational skills

Education

Qualified accountant (ACA/ACCA/CIMA or equivalent)

Job description

About the role

We are seeking an experienced and dynamic UK Group Financial Controller to provide maternity cover. This is a critical leadership role responsible for leading and developing the UK financial reporting team while ensuring robust financial management, compliance, and strategic support for the business.

What you will be doing

• Lead, develop, and mentor the UK financial reporting team, fostering an inclusive and high-performing culture.
• Support recruitment, training, and professional development of financial talent.
• Month-End Reporting
  • Take overall responsibility for accurate UK P&L reporting in line with group timelines.
  • Reconcile all key balance sheet accounts monthly and conduct quarterly reviews of the full balance sheet to mitigate financial risks.
  • Prepare regional review packs in collaboration with the Director of Business Partnering.
  • Work closely with the Group reporting team to ensure clear and transparent communication of expectations.
• Lead annual financial planning and quarterly reforecast processes (Overheads, Hub, and OMG).
• Build and maintain a rolling UK forecast to manage costs and forecast assumptions effectively.
• Partner with the CEO and CFO to deliver financial plans that meet margin targets (e.g., cost savings initiatives).
• Maintain robust financial controls within the UK business.
• Technical & Regulatory Compliance
  • Provide technical guidance on US and UK GAAP to the reporting team.
  • Partner with the HFBP to ensure revenue recognition aligns with US GAAP and evolving requirements (e.g., SBOX).
  • Collaborate with the Tax team to ensure HMRC compliance.
• Senior Financial Support & Business Partnering
  • Partner with senior stakeholders, overhead managers, and department heads to ensure accurate reporting and budget adherence.
  • Support cost control and financial decision-making across the business.
• Forecasting & Reporting
  • Update the B&S forecast weekly, quarterly RF, and annual budgets.
  • Review and reconcile balance sheets across the UK trading group, ensuring sufficient documentation and schedules.
  • Review monthly payroll processing and journal entries, ensuring proper allocation of costs across entities.
  • Review the P&L with the MA/FM, investigating variances against forecasts for monthly FD reviews.
• Review and approve purchase orders at the finance level for relevant departments.
• Lead and coordinate internal and external audits for UK Group businesses
• Prepare and provide all required documentation, schedules, and explanations to auditors in a timely and accurate manner.
• Act as the primary point of contact between the business and audit teams, ensuring effective communication and resolution of queries.
• Oversee the planning and execution of audit processes, monitor progress against timelines, and address findings or recommendations proactively to strengthen internal controls and compliance.
• Support management in implementing corrective actions and maintaining audit readiness throughout the year
• You will be open and willing to attend sustainability training relevant to your role and soak up recommended research and reading about sustainability issues

What you need to be great in this role

• Qualified accountant (ACA/ACCA/CIMA or equivalent).
• Proven experience in financial leadership, preferably in a group or multi-entity environment.
• Strong knowledge of UK GAAP, US GAAP, and HMRC compliance.
• Excellent communication, analytical, and organisational skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively across teams and with senior leadership.
• Experience managing payroll, balance sheet reconciliations, and forecasting.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to meet tight deadlines.
• You can be the change - you prioritise environmental responsibility, social equity, and economic viability and how that translates into your day-to-day role

Our values shape everything we do:

Be Imaginative to push the boundaries of what’s possible

Be always learning and listening to understand

Be actively pro-inclusive and anti-racist across our community, clients and creations

OLIVER is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive working environment where all employees are encouraged to reach their full potential, and individual differences are valued and respected. All applicants shall be considered for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, neurodivergence, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by local laws.

OLIVER has set ambitious environmental goals around sustainability, with science-based emissions reduction targets. Collectively, we work towards embedding sustainability into every department and through every stage of the project lifecycle.