Finance Manager

Contract: Full time
Salary: £52,000 – £58,000
Location: Central London, with option to work from home up to 3 days a week
Reporting to: Partnerships & Impact Director
Start date: as soon as possible

We are at an exciting point in our five year strategy and are seeking a Finance Manager to lead and shape the finance function so we can positively impact more people’s lives. We will be reviewing applications and interviewing on a rolling basis.

About In Kind Direct

At In Kind Direct, we believe everyone deserves access to life’s essentials and no usable product should go to waste. Since being founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 1996, Over £300m of products have been donated by over 1,200 manufacturers and retailers. We’ve diverted 33,165 tonnes of stock from waste, helping 11,700 charitable organisations and unlocking £281m of savings for them collectively.

We provide a single contact point for companies to donate new consumer goods such as toiletries, cleaning and laundry products, clothes, toys and office supplies to the communities that need them. Working with big names including P&G, Reckitt Benckiser, Kimberly-Clark, PZ Cussons, Disney and Amazon; we are the only UK charity with the infrastructure able to deliver this service at scale in the UK. The overall impact is an efficient, practical solution which improves people’s lives, makes giving easy for companies, and unlocks vital resource into the voluntary sector.

Our charitable network is a diverse mix of organisations, including UK charities, community groups, food banks and schools. The majority of those we work with have an annual income below £100,000, working with either a handful of staff or run by volunteers.

We are in the second year of an ambitious strategy to triple our impact by 2025 and reach over 600,000 people every week by working with 7,800 charitable partners.

Job Purpose

This is an exciting opportunity to shape the role of the finance team and embed a new business partnering approach. The finance function sits within the Partnerships and Impact division, helping to ensure our impact, financial health, and business planning are aligned. This enables sound business decisions with impact at their heart. The Finance Manager will support the Leadership Team to ensure our growth is sustainable and measurable.

With strong knowledge of charity accounting and a relevant professional qualification, you will be responsible for all financial aspects of our group entities; In Kind Direct, In Kind Direct International and Trading In Kind (TIK). This includes evolving the finance function, with continual improvement of how we work by maximising the use of our systems.

As a strong communicator, you will be able to distil complex information to a range of audiences. With excellent time management, you will set a rhythm across the organisation so financial information is available for accurate invoicing, service delivery and decision-making. You will be comfortable balancing exceptional attention to detail with the ability to deliver hands-on operational tasks alongside more strategic projects. A key early priority will be determining the right resource for our small finance team to deliver well.

As Finance Manager, you will work across the organisation to understand the key levers that affect our success. Working closely with teams across Commercial and Operational divisions, you will bring together datasets to deliver robust and ambitious plans to achieve our goals. Experienced in scenario planning, the ideal candidate will have the skills to visualise past performance, forecast projections and model possibilities to grow our impact and improve people’s lives.

Key Responsibilities

Financial Management

• Management of all financial aspects of the group (In Kind Direct, IKDI and TIK) and responsible for all financial controls being exercised and complied with
• Management of any outsourcing solutions to deliver a robust and reliable finance service
• Reviewing the current finance arrangements and work with the Partnerships & Impact Director to ensure the best service model is in place
• Ensure that financial functions are executed efficiently. All financial processes and systems are in place and optimised through regular review, including payroll and pension
• Production of management accounts, cash flow forecasts, budgets and variance analysis
• Take a leading role on the annual audit process, including liaising with external auditors
• Develop and monitor annual operating budgets and cash flow.
• Work with the Leadership team to ensure all financial targets are met
• Prepare performance reports and presentations for the Leadership team

Governance and Compliance

• Evaluate and develop finance control systems and policies, including the risk register
• Prepare management and board reports, identifying enhancements where appropriate
• Ensure all statutory forms and returns are complete to external bodies in a timely manner
• Ensure that the group complies with HMRC regulations, including preparation of quarterly VAT returns. Act as the main point of contact for any VAT or taxation queries
• Keep abreast of regulatory developments and best practice in compliance control

Business Modelling
• Provide robust financial advice, long term planning and modelling of financial strategy to support the organisation’s objectives
• Support the Commercial Director with financial reporting, analysis and insight
• Use data to identify patterns in spending, optimising for organisational resilience
• Work with the Philanthropy Partnerships Manager in designing the fundraising strategy, prepare financial models and support presentations made to funders/investors

Succeeding in this Role

Essential skills and knowledge
• CCAB/CIMA qualified (or other qualification with proven experience)
• Expert user of Excel and familiarity with Office 365 in general
• Sound knowledge of ERP systems, ideally Dynamics Nav or Business Central
• Strong knowledge of charity SORP accounting
• Exceptional attention to detail; balancing precision and timeliness in delivering tasks
• Ability to interrogate and communicate information, working with people at all levels
• Thrives on cross-functional relationships, able to influence and challenge others well

The ability to demonstrate

• A record of engaging operational teams to support delivery of customer-centric services
• Financial modelling and data analysis to drive commercial decisions and appraise risk
• Scenario planning and testing to support strategic growth
• Delivery of group, SORP and management accounts and leading annual audits
• Interrogating and improving processes basis to ensure operational efficiency
• Experience managing smaller teams and the ability to manage business partnering responsibilities with delivery of hands-on day to day activity
• Experience managing outsourced partners and suppliers

Working at In Kind Direct

Our team receive excellent training and development, and a host of staff benefits including an interest free travel loan, volunteering days, 25 days holiday each year (plus public holidays) and 7% pension scheme entitlement.

We seek to challenge discrimination and are committed to our values of kindness, togetherness, integrity and innovation. We are on an organisational journey to achieving our EDI vision and welcome any questions about our progress and aspirations. We especially welcome applications from anyone with lived experience of being on low income or working with smaller charitable organisations. We will meet all reasonable expenses and make reasonable adjustments for anyone invited to interview.

How to apply

Please read the full job description before applying and if you would like to contact us directly, please use the email subject line “Finance Manager”. For details of how your data as an applicant will be used and stored, please read our Privacy Policy. To apply, please send your CV, a supporting statement and a completed Equal Opportunities Monitoring form to people@inkinddirect.org.