FINANCE DIRECTOR – KIPLING JOB PURPOSE The Finance Director leads the school's financial management and controllership activities, ensuring accuracy, integrity, and strong alignment with strategic priorities. This includes budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, internal controls, compliance, cash flow oversight, and strategic decision support. The role works closely with the School Leadership Team, Regional and Group Finance to provide high‑quality financial insights, enable effective decision‑making, and ensure long‑term financial sustainability. Responsibilities include managing financial statements, statutory accounts, and audits in accordance with internal policies and regulatory requirements (IFRS and Group standards). A key focus is maintaining robust financial controls, safeguarding assets, driving operational efficiency, and ensuring reliable financial systems, budgeting, forecasting and processes. The Finance Director also leads cost‑optimization initiatives, vendor and contract management, tax compliance and working‑capital management. JOB RESPONSIBILITIES Reporting and audit Lead the month‑end close and ensure timely, accurate management accounts, financial statements, and performance reports for the School Leadership Team, Regional Finance and Group Finance. Oversee statutory accounts in compliance with local GAAP, IFRS and Group policies, ensuring full regulatory alignment. Manage all internal and external audit processes, including planning, documentation, communication with auditors, and follow‑up on findings. Regularly assess and strengthen financial and compliance controls to enhance governance, reduce risk and ensure the integrity of financial information. Prepare and review key financial reports (month‑end closing, CAPEX, cash collection, KPIs, variance analyses) to support operational and strategic decision‑making. Maintain high standards of documentation, data quality and process discipline to ensure accuracy, auditability and operational efficiency. Ensure financial accounts and business reports are accurate, produced within deadlines and adequately highlight operational performance. Financial Planning and Controls Prepare and lead the school's budgeting, forecasting and multi‑year financial planning processes, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities and proactive identification of risks and opportunities. Analyze financial performance against budget and forecast, identifying risks, opportunities and required actions to support informed decision‑making by the School Leadership Team and Regional Finance. Implement and maintain strong financial controls to safeguard assets, ensure data accuracy and support compliance with internal policies, Group requirements and local regulations. Oversee cash‑flow planning and working‑capital management, ensuring liquidity, efficient resource allocation and operational continuity. Drive continuous improvement by enhancing financial processes, tools and reporting capabilities, improving efficiency, reducing manual work and strengthening internal controls. Ensure financial performance aligns to forecasts and all risks and opportunities are understood, communicated and managed by the School Head of Finance with support from the Regional Team. Procurement and Contract Management Oversee procurement and contract management, ensuring transparency, cost‑effectiveness and compliance with Group and Regional policies. Lead negotiations, evaluate vendor performance and work with Operations and Facilities to ensure purchasing decisions support operational efficiency and long‑term financial sustainability. Implement strong procurement controls – including vendor due diligence, approval workflows and periodic contract reviews – while identifying opportunities to streamline processes, consolidate suppliers and drive cost optimisation without compromising service quality. Stakeholder Management Build strong partnerships with the School Leadership Team, Regional Finance, Group Finance and budget holders, providing timely and accurate financial insights to support strategic and operational decisions. Act as a trusted advisor to academic, operational and administrative departments, clearly communicating financial implications, business cases and cost considerations aligned with school priorities. Liaise professionally with parents, staff, auditors and external stakeholders on financial matters, ensuring transparency, responsiveness and a high standard of service. Coordinate required inputs for Group Tax, Legal and Treasury teams, ensuring accuracy, compliance and adherence to corporate expectations. Leadership and Collaboration Lead, develop and mentor the Finance team, fostering a culture of accountability, continuous improvement and strong service orientation across all financial processes. Oversee AP and AR activities, ensuring efficient execution, strong internal controls and the adoption of tools and systems that enhance accuracy, efficiency and customer service. Collaborate closely with Operations, Facilities and other departments to integrate financial insights into operational decisions and optimise resource utilisation across the school. Maintain effective partnerships with Regional Finance, Group Finance and the Group Real Estate team, ensuring alignment on strategic initiatives, capital projects and long‑term planning. Ensure full compliance with financial procedures, accounting standards, local regulations and Group policies, maintaining high levels of governance, control and accuracy across all financial processes. Oversee payroll processing, ensuring timely payments, proper accounting treatment, adherence to regulatory requirements and strong coordination with HR and operations. Continuously evaluate and enhance financial processes, identifying opportunities to streamline workflows, improve efficiency, strengthen internal controls and reduce manual activities through automation and system improvements. Maintain accurate, reliable and audit‑ready financial systems and records, ensuring that policies, procedures and controls remain updated in response to regulatory changes, audit findings and evolving Group requirements. Promote a culture of compliance, ownership and operational discipline within the Finance team, ensuring consistent application of best practices across all financial activities. PERSONAL SPECIFICATIONS Minimum of 8 years of experience in accounting, controllership or financial leadership, preferably in an educational or service‑based organization. Strong experience with statutory compliance in the country, including audits. Solid knowledge and practical experience with IFRS and local‑to‑IFRS adjustments. Experience in budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, consolidation and cash‑flow management. Proven ability to implement process improvements, automation and strong internal controls. Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Business Administration, Economics or related field; CRC is a plus. Strong analytical skills and ability to translate complex financial data into clear insights for non‑finance stakeholders. Proficiency with financial systems (e.g., Microsoft Dynamics/Navision) and strong Excel/financial modelling skills. Experience in procurement and contract management, including vendor evaluation and negotiation. Excellent communication skills and ability to collaborate effectively with academic, operational and administrative teams. Ability to interact with parents and external stakeholders with clarity, professionalism and empathy when needed. Strong influencing, negotiation and relationship‑management capabilities. Ability to work under pressure, meet tight deadlines and maintain accuracy and composure. High level of ownership, integrity and commitment to continuous improvement. Adaptability, learning agility and alignment with the values and culture of Nord Anglia Education. PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES Collaborate with Empathy – A team player who shares knowledge to help colleagues and students learn and grow. Understands the culture, background and needs of others so everybody feels welcomed, included and accepted. Self‑aware, conscious of impact and adapts behaviour to work collaboratively. Communicate with Impact – Communicates openly, with transparency and kindness, influences and encourages people to share ideas, builds trust and makes a positive impact on students’ lives. Make Considered Decisions – Decisions made with the best interests of students, school communities and the wider organisation in mind, acting with integrity and using technology to generate data and insights. Embrace Change – Effective in changing environments, dealing with ambiguity, adaptable and motivated to fulfil responsibilities. Drive Growth – Entrepreneurial and strategic thinking, challenging self and others to deliver outstanding commercial performance and growth. At Nord Anglia Education, we are an equal opportunities employer dedicated to creating a diverse and inclusive workforce. In our schools and offices around the world, we treat all colleagues fairly based on their skills and qualifications, without discrimination. We value individuals from all backgrounds, including those with different abilities and neurodivergent conditions, as well as those who identify with various protected characteristics. Nord Anglia Education is committed to ensuring the highest possible safeguarding standards in our schools and we expect every employee to share this commitment. #J-18808-Ljbffr