Role Description – Group Chief Financial Officer
Role Overview
Role Title: Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Reports To: Group Chief Executive Officer
Location: London (3/4 days a week)
Role Purpose
The Group CFO is the principal financial adviser to the Group CEO and the Board. The role provides strategic financial leadership across a complex, multi-billion-revenue international corporate portfolio. The successful candidate will act as a key commercial partner and rigorous financial challenger, navigating high-volume, low-margin dynamics while overseeing a highly complex pension fund matching or exceeding the scale of the Group's liabilities.
MUST Haves:
- Worked in a highly transformative, large (multi billion revenue) brand with strong exposure to influence international board level decisions. In a current CFO, dep CFO or large Divisional CFO role with FTSE 250 or PE backed environments.
- You will have operated in a true 'group' structure and have the ability to vary your executive style between multiple international and UK brands.
Direct Reports
- Group Financial Controller (covering Group corporate accounting, technical accounting, and operational business unit controls)
- Director of Treasury
- Director of Group FP&A
- Director of Pension Strategy / CEOs of Pension Trusts
- Controls and Internal Audit (joint leadership with the GFC)
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Partnering & Board-Level Engagement
- Act as the principal financial partner to the Group CEO.
- Provide high-level, rigorous financial interaction and strategic counsel directly to principal PE investors and key executive stakeholders.
- Synthesize operational and financial insights from diverse business units to shape and execute overarching corporate strategy.
- Ensure the Executive Committee executes commercial decisions on a consistent, high-quality financial framework.
- Represent the Finance function on the Group Board and its respective committees.
Portfolio Management & Transformational Mandate
- Actively drive financial leadership within a rapid turnaround and major transformational environment.
- Successfully navigate a highly diverse corporate portfolio mix, dedicating targeted focus to a heavy-volume, low-margin domestic core operation (~70% of the mandate) while providing high-level oversight to a lighter-touch, thriving international brand.
- Drive Group-level M&A strategy, including the execution, negotiation, and valuation tracking of partnerships, acquisitions, and strategic disposals.
Pension Strategy & Governance
- Lead the Group's comprehensive pension strategy across multiple defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) schemes.
- Maintain ultimate accountability for a highly complex pension fund.
- Own the executive relationship with the Trustee Boards, ensuring all pension strategies align with long-term capital allocation and corporate objectives.
Financing, Treasury, and Capital Structure
- Own the Group capital structure, funding strategy, and liquidity risk frameworks.
- Lead all high-level corporate financing activities, overseeing debt facilities, liquidity management, banking relationships, and rating agencies.
- Provide continuous oversight to an elevated, sophisticated Treasury function.
Financial Control, FP&A, and Operational Style
- Maintain a highly detailed, "roll-up-the-sleeves" approach, staying deeply on top of core financial data, volume metrics, and performance indicators.
- Ensure absolute integrity of Group financial reporting and manage the consolidated control environment across all operational business units.
- Direct Group-wide planning, budgeting, and rolling forecasting through the Head of FP&A.
- Establish and run a unified performance framework that operates smoothly across a decentralised finance community
Leadership of a Decentralised Function
- Operate effectively within a decentralised, international matrix model where core operating subsidiaries maintain their own dedicated operational CFOs
- Establish clear Group governance, standards, compliance, and strategic performance expectations
- Foster deep collaborative relationships with subsidiary finance directors and their management teams
- Champion capability, technical training, and leadership succession planning across the broader finance community
Candidate Experience and Capability
- Corporate Scale: An upward-trend executive coming out of a large, complex, multi-billion-revenue environment.
- Mandate Fit: Proven track record as a leader who actively thrives and delivers results within rapid turnaround, restructuring, and major transformational environments.
- Portfolio Diversity: True "Group" corporate exposure, managing a distinct portfolio mix comprising high-touch mature operations alongside lighter-touch growth assets
- Capital Markets & Corporate Finance: Deep expertise in capital structure optimization, treasury, and corporate debt alongside a demonstrable M&A track record
- Stakeholder Management: Broad experience operating with demanding Boards, PE investors, or major long-term institutional shareholders
- Operational Model: Proven ability to influence, guide, and lead within a decentralised operating model
Leadership Characteristics
- Operational Style: A hands-on, "roll-up-the-sleeves" professional who is deeply analytical and on top of numbers, balancing detail with macroscopic strategic vision
- Cultural Fit: A resilient, low-ego, high-output executive focused on execution and performance over hierarchy
- Strategic Judgement: Commercially astute, independent-minded, and analytically strong when working with complex datasets
- Relationship Focus: Highly effective partner and constructive challenger to the Group CEO, capable of navigating senior peer dynamics effortlessly
Package details £1.4M+ comp with variables. Broken down into basic, car, bonus and LTIP's.
Basic £350,000-£400,000 (with a degree of flex for the right candidate)
Apply below or reach out to rob.patterson@thejssgroup.com
Disclaimer: For roles at this level we receive extensive applications to advertised opportunities. As much as we endeavour to respond to each application, we would advise if you have not received communication within 21 working days that your application has been unsuccessful at this time.
