Head of Finance and Operations, Irish SME

Sigmar Recruitment; Dublin; Remote; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance bonus

Remote work

Pension

Private healthcare

Professional membership support

Job summary

Sigmar Recruitment is seeking a Head of Finance and Operations for an established media and events business operating across Ireland and the UK. You will lead the finance function, drive profitability, and oversee operations while working closely with the CEO to execute growth plans.

You will manage budgeting, forecasting, cash flow, statutory accounts, audit, tax, and payroll across entities, with emphasis on margin improvement and effective commercial decision making.

Qualifications

• Professionally qualified accountant with at least five years’ post‑qualification experience.
• Senior finance professional in a small/medium business with ownership of the full finance function.
• Experience across Ireland and the United Kingdom with multi-currency exposure.
• Proven track record of improving margin through cost reduction, pricing or operational change.
• Strong commercial and analytical skills, turning financial data into business decisions.
• Strong systems capability, including implementing or upgrading finance/CRM systems.
• Experience working directly with a CEO or senior leadership team.
• Confidence to operate in a fast‑moving, remote business with minimal process layers.
• Excellent organisational, communication and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the finance function across multiple entities and currencies.
• Provide timely reporting on revenue, margin and profitability.
• Partner with the CEO and department heads on pricing, contracts and investments.
• Own profitability of events and projects with costed plans and post‑review analysis.
• Identify cost-saving opportunities and strengthen commercial decision making.
• Manage procurement, banking relationships and FX exposure.
• Oversee finance and CRM systems to ensure reliable reporting.
• Lead and develop the finance team as the business grows.
• Coordinate operational projects and administration.

Skills

Qualified accountant

Senior finance leader

Multi-entity / multi-currency

Cost reduction

Commercial analytics

Finance systems

CEO collaboration

Stakeholder management

Strategic thinking

Remote work adaptability

Tools

CRM systems

Job description

Head of Finance and Operations

About Your New Employer

Our client is an established media and events business operating across Ireland and the United Kingdom.

• Join a successful company with a strong portfolio of media platforms, professional communities, awards programmes, conferences and industry events.
• Help lead an ambitious growth strategy focused on expanding the existing business and developing new digital services.
• Work in a commercially focused organisation with a broad client base and a strong presence across multiple industry sectors.
• This is an opportunity to join a growing business at an important stage of its development and have a direct impact on its commercial performance, profitability and operational effectiveness.

About Your New Job

Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer, you will be the senior finance appointment in the company, combining financial leadership with responsibility for business operations.

This is not a caretaker finance role. You will own the numbers, improve how the business operates and work directly with the CEO to turn the growth plan into practical execution.

As Head of Finance and Operations, you will:

• Lead the finance function across the company’s Irish and UK entities, including management accounts, budgeting, forecasting, cash flow, statutory accounts, audit, tax, VAT and payroll.
• Provide clear and timely reporting on revenue, margin and profitability across the company’s products and services.
• Partner with the CEO and Heads of Department on pricing, contracts, investment decisions, business development and commercial performance.
• Own the profitability of events and projects, ensuring each initiative has a clear costed plan before delivery and a post-completion profit and loss review.
• Improve margins by identifying cost‑saving opportunities, renegotiating supplier arrangements and strengthening commercial decision‑making.
• Manage procurement, supplier contracts, banking relationships, foreign exchange exposure and external advisers.
• Oversee finance and commercial systems, including finance and customer relationship management systems, ensuring they produce reliable reporting.
• Lead and develop the finance team as the business grows.
• Manage operational projects, outsourced delivery arrangements, company administration, insurance, data protection, business continuity and people administration.
• Work with internal teams and external service providers to improve efficiency and remove operational bottlenecks.

Your performance bonus will be linked to two key measures: achieving the agreed annual revenue target and delivering the required net profit margin. Revenue growth at the expense of margin will not qualify for the bonus.

What Skills You Need

• A professionally qualified accountant with at least five years’ post‑qualification experience.
• Experience as the senior finance professional in a small or medium‑sized business, with ownership of the full finance function.
• Experience working across more than one company and currency, ideally involving both Ireland and the United Kingdom.
• A proven track record of improving margin through cost reduction, supplier negotiation, pricing or operational change.
• Strong commercial and analytical skills, with the ability to turn financial information into clear business decisions.
• Strong systems capability, including experience specifying, implementing or improving finance and customer relationship management systems.
• Experience working directly with a CEO, founder or senior leadership team.
• The confidence and initiative to operate in a fast‑moving, remote business without relying on layers of process.
• Excellent organisational, communication and stakeholder management skills, together with high levels of integrity, discretion and attention to detail.
• A genuine appetite for growing a business and owning the outcome, rather than acting as a steady number two.

Experience in a project‑based business, media, events, publishing, membership organisations or agencies would be advantageous. Experience building a finance team, commercial modelling, pricing or strategic business planning would also be beneficial.

What's on Offer

• A competitive senior‑level salary and performance‑related bonus.
• Additional benefits including pension, private healthcare and professional membership support.
• Remote working with occasional travel to the company’s main office.
• The opportunity to work directly with the CEO and influence the future direction of the business.
• The chance to lead and shape the finance and operations function as the organisation scales.