Financial Controller

The Company

Shield Safety is the UK’s leading provider of Food Safety, Fire Safety and Health & Safety software and services. Trading since 2003, the company was founded by Food Safety and Health & Safety Practitioner Mark Flanagan, who believes in making safety simple for every business in the UK.

For the past 20 years, Shield Safety have been working with some of the largest and most respected brands in the UK Hospitality and Retail sectors, including Tesco, Revolution Bars, Interstate Hotel Group, Malmaison and Wilko Retail Ltd, and we have an impressive 95% customer retention rate. Through service-delivery and our flagship cloud-based software and companion app, RiskProof, we are helping businesses revolutionise their safety processes.

Key Responsibilities

• Leading and developing the finance team, with a focus on people development and talent management
• Responsible for the strategic planning processes and forecasting/budgeting cycles
• Partner with the Head of FP&A to ensure all sales, margin and product requirements are included and robustly reviewed/challenged
• Oversee the period-end and year-end close activities
• Managing, developing and maintaining strong working relationships with internal and external stakeholders
• Partner the LT / SMT and other key stakeholders to proactively drive a cost-conscious approach to spending in the business
• Responsibility for the timely and accurate completion of the monthly and weekly business performance reports including rolling forecasts and variance reporting
• A strong cashflow focus (maintain 18 month rolling operational forecast)
• Development and refinement of management accounting and reporting, including KPIs and business analysis
• Responsibility for the maintenance of the standard costing system, to ensure they are up to date and accurate.
• Preparation of draft annual accounts, working paper files and consolidation of financial statements and supporting with the statutory audit, and being a key point of contact
• Provide ad-hoc analysis to support business decisions
• Identifying and communicating business risks and wider group business opportunities
• Supporting organisation in all financial matters, contributing to maximising profitability
• Management of external finance stakeholders and third parties
• Key part of any due diligence / M&A activity as and when required

Knowledge & Skills

• Fully qualified accountant (ACA/ CIMA or ACCA), 3yrs+PQE with prior experience of leading a team in a professional service business
• Exceptional levels of technical accounting knowledge
• A desire and ability to be the “subject matter expert”
• Experience of leading and developing teams
• Experience in implementing a new financial system
• Ability to manage external stakeholders
• Expert communicator with well developed skills in literacy, building rapport, presenting and producing written communications
• Analytical skills and the ability to problem solve
• Proactive in approach, prepared to challenge the status quo
• Ability to re-prioritise to meet key deadlines

What We Offer

Continued training and development is key for all members of our team. A tailored training and induction plan is developed for each new starter to help them get up to speed on everything they need to know. For those who like variety, there will be many opportunities to get involved in various projects across departments, and we fully support regular CPD in order to help everyone reach their full potential.

At Shield Safety, we have worked closely as a team to develop an enhanced benefits package that benefits everyone. All of our colleagues benefit from flexible working hours, birthdays off, remote working options for those who are office-based and we also offer a generous holiday allowance so you can make the most out of your time off. As well as all this, we also provide an enhanced pension scheme, enhanced maternity & paternity leave, health cash plan, financial support and much more to support the health and overall wellbeing of our colleagues.

We are a social bunch and our Social Committee organise regular events and get-togethers to encourage friendships, meet new people and have fun together (both in-person and remotely depending on each person’s circumstances).

Our offices are in the heart of Manchester’s Northern Quarter surrounded by bars, restaurants and music venues. Public transport of all kinds is just a short walk away and close-by there’s plenty of affordable parking. Our culture is passionate, collaborative and diverse and we enjoy working in a relaxed, dress-down environment where dogs are more than welcome.

Everyone is equal. Full stop

At Shield Safety, we don’t just say we’re 100% committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, we do something about it.

We offer a range of family-friendly and inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, colleague engagement forums and support for colleagues from different backgrounds.

We also welcome and encourage job applications from people from every type of background, and especially those from underrepresented groups.

No job applicant, temporary worker or employee will ever receive less favourable treatment from us because of their age, disability, gender or transgender status, race and ethnicity, religion and belief, marriage or civil partnership status or sexual orientation.

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Salary: £50,000.00-£60,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Additional leave
• Company events
• Company pension
• Cycle to work scheme
• Discounted or free food
• Employee discount
• Enhanced maternity leave
• Enhanced paternity leave
• Flexitime
• Sick pay
• Store discount
• Work from home

Schedule:

• Flexitime
• Monday to Friday
• No weekends

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Manchester