Hands-On Assistant Financial Controller for a Media Agency

Hunterlodge Advertising; Rickmansworth; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

Hunterlodge Advertising, a UK-based full-service advertising agency, is seeking a hands-on, mid-level finance professional to own daily financial administration and support the Finance Director.

You will work closely with colleagues across the agency to support month-end reporting, cashflow management, and robust financial controls, while the Finance Director retains responsibility for strategy, governance and statutory reporting.

Qualifications

• Hands-on finance role focusing on accuracy, discrepancy resolution and smooth processes.
• Experience with purchase and sales ledgers, reconciliations, month-end journals and management accounts.
• Attention to detail, and ability to resolve issues and explain financial information clearly.
• Knowledge of VAT processes and internal controls.
• Proficient with accounting software and Microsoft Excel.
• Strong organisation and communication skills, with the ability to explain financial queries to non-finance colleagues.
• Proactive approach and ability to own daily workload while knowing when to escalate.

Responsibilities

• Maintain purchase and sales ledgers, process supplier invoices, client billing, staff expenses promptly.
• Check invoices against purchase orders, supporting documentation and approval procedures, ensuring correct coding and allocation to jobs.
• Prepare supplier payment runs for approval and resolve invoice and payment queries with suppliers and client finance teams.
• Monitor aged debt, follow up overdue invoices and flag collection issues to the Finance Director.
• Maintain organised financial records with a clear audit trail.
• Complete regular bank, credit card, supplier statement and ledger reconciliations, investigating discrepancies promptly.
• Reconcile media platform charges and credit card transactions against PO, campaign records and supplier invoices.
• Maintain and reconcile work-in-progress (WIP) with account teams to confirm costs and status.
• Prepare monthly balance sheet reconciliations and flag unreconciled balances or unusual transactions for review.
• Prepare month-end journals, accruals, prepayments and payroll entries with supporting schedules.
• Prepare monthly management accounts and supporting reports for the Finance Director to review.
• Support cashflow forecasting by updating expected receipts and payments.
• Assist with budgets and forecasts, investigate variances and provide cost/margin details.
• Coordinate payroll information and liaise with payroll provider to ensure accurate processing.

Skills

Accounts payable

Bank reconciliations

Month-end reporting

Cashflow management

VAT processes

Excel

Communication

Education

AAT qualified or ACCA/CIMA part-qualified

Tools

Accounting software

Job description

Hunterlodge Advertising, a UK-based full-service advertising agency, is seeking a hands-on, mid-level finance professional to own daily financial administration and support the Finance Director.

You will work closely with colleagues across the agency to support month-end reporting, cashflow management, and robust financial controls, while the Finance Director retains responsibility for strategy, governance and statutory reporting.