Management Accountant

Spider Web Recruitment Ltd; Colchester; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A family-owned agricultural company located near Colchester is seeking a Management Accountant to join their team. This full-time role involves producing timely management accounts, performing cost analysis, budgeting, and supporting strategic decision-making. Ideal candidates will be part-qualified or qualified accountants with experience in manufacturing or FMCG, strong Excel skills, and attention to detail. Benefits include competitive salary, generous holiday, and employee discounts.

Benefits

Competitive salary

5 weeks annual leave plus Bank Holidays

Company pension scheme

Free onsite parking

Employee discounts

Qualifications

• Experience in a manufacturing or FMCG setting.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to meet deadlines.
• Experience with standard costing and variance analysis.

Responsibilities

• Prepare monthly management accounts with variance analysis.
• Work with teams to maintain costings for products.
• Drive improvements in systems and reporting processes.

Skills

Financial analysis

Cost analysis

Budgeting

Strong Excel skills

ERP system knowledge

Education

Part-qualified or qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent)

Tools

Sage Payroll

OrderWise

KeyPrime

Job description

Management Accountant – Spider is advertising on behalf of our client who is looking for a Management Accountant to join their team on a full‑time, permanent basis at their site just north of Colchester, Essex.

Why them:

They are a family‑owned, independent farm, and since 2006 they’ve been growing their own potatoes and crafting them into award‑winning, hand‑cooked crisps on site. As they work towards becoming the UK’s first carbon‑neutral crisp producer, they’re seeking talented individuals who share their passion for quality, sustainability, and innovation. They are expanding rapidly — both in the crisp business and through new product innovation — and are looking for a Management Accountant to play a key role in supporting financial control, operational performance, and to aid strategic decision‑making across the business.

Company benefits include:

• Salary: Competitive depending on qualifications and experience.
• Holiday: 5 weeks annual leave plus Bank Holidays.
• Pension: Company pension scheme.
• Free Parking: Free onsite parking.
• Employee extras: Employee discounted products, supportive working environment, development opportunities, and involvement in an exciting, expanding food brand.

About the role:

As a Management Accountant, you will support financial control, operational performance, and strategic planning across the business. Reporting to the Financial Director and working closely with Operations and Commercial teams, you will produce timely management accounts, undertake cost analysis across manufacturing and agricultural operations, comparisons to budget, and provide insight to help drive efficiency and profitability. You will also support budgeting, forecasting, cashflow planning, and continuous improvement within the finance function. Working hours for this role will be 8am – 5pm, Monday – Friday.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

• Prepare monthly management accounts with variance analysis, commentary, performance to budget, forecasting, and support year‑end audit and statutory reporting.
• Work closely with Commercial and Operational teams to prepare and maintain costings for crisps, potatoes, and new product lines, while analysing customer, product, and SKU‑level profitability.
• Partner with production and supply chain teams to monitor yields, wastage, labour efficiency, and reconcile stock, and raw material inventories.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, cashflow planning, and undertake capital investment appraisals including ROI analysis.
• Drive improvements in financial systems, management reporting, and overall financial processes across the business.

About you:

As a Management Accountant, you will be proactive, commercially minded, and skilled at turning financial data into clear, valuable insight. You’ll thrive in a fast‑paced environment that blends agriculture with food manufacturing, working confidently across teams to support and challenge operational stakeholders. You should be a part‑qualified or qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent) with experience in a manufacturing or FMCG setting, strong Excel and ERP skills, excellent attention to detail, and the ability to meet tight deadlines. Experience with standard costing, variance analysis, agricultural operations, or systems such as OrderWise, KeyPrime, and Sage Payroll is highly advantageous.

If you have the relevant skills and experience for this Management Accountant role and would like to be considered, please apply by submitting an up‑to‑date CV. We look forward to hearing from you.

If you require any reasonable adjustments or information in an alternative format, please let us know as soon as possible.

No recruitment agencies, please