Finance & Operations Manager

Day-to-day Finance Operations

• Oversee accounts receivable and payable, sales invoicing, purchase invoices, expenses and supplier payments.
• Ensure client invoices are accurate, complete and raised promptly.
• Review bank reconciliations and ensure transactions are correctly recorded.
• Manage contractor invoices, cost allocation and monthly payments.
• Coordinate payroll information and work with external payroll support.
• Control employee expenses, company cards and recurring costs.
• Maintain appropriate payment approval processes and financial controls.
• Support contracts where they affect rates, purchase orders, payment terms or billing.
• Resolve discrepancies and close finance queries promptly.

Compliance and External Relationships

• Prepare or coordinate VAT returns, PAYE and other tax-related submissions and payments.
• Ensure statutory deadlines and financial obligations are met.
• Work effectively with our consultant Finance Director, external accountants, payroll provider and other advisers.
• Support year-end accounts, audits and corporation-tax preparation.
• Maintain appropriate records and supporting documentation.
• Flag financial, contractual, legal or compliance risks before they become urgent.

Commercial Support

• Review the financial viability and margin of projects, proposals and client arrangements.
• Support pricing decisions and challenge work unlikely to deliver an appropriate return.
• Improve visibility of contractor costs, team utilisation and project profitability.
• Identify scope creep, cost leakage and missed billing opportunities.
• Provide financial insight supporting recruitment, resourcing and investment decisions.
• Help TEMBO become more commercially disciplined without introducing unnecessary bureaucracy.

Business Operations

• Take ownership of essential day-to-day business operations.
• Improve processes and clarify responsibilities and handovers.
• Manage operational suppliers, services, subscriptions and recurring commitments.
• Support office-related expenditure and supplier arrangements.
• Coordinate relationships with IT, software, insurance and professional advisers.
• Maintain visibility of contracts, renewal dates, policies and operational commitments.
• Support insurance renewals and routine legal and compliance administration.
• Ensure critical processes and responsibilities are documented to support business continuity.
• Identify opportunities to improve value, service and operational control.

Systems and Process Improvement

• Improve how information moves between finance, sales, project delivery and resourcing.
• Support the effective use of QuickBooks, HubSpot, Monday.com and Google Workspace.
• Identify duplication, missing information, weak handovers and unnecessary administration.
• Improve data quality and consistency across systems.
• Develop useful dashboards, reports and workflows.
• Support system integrations and process automation where they provide clear business value.
• Ensure important processes are documented and understood.
• Coordinate appropriate training when new systems or processes are introduced.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

• Strong experience as a Finance Manager, Management Accountant, Finance & Operations Manager or in a similarly hands-on role.
• Experience taking meaningful ownership of an internal finance function.
• Advanced QuickBooks Online or Xero knowledge, with confidence working in QuickBooks.
• Experience producing management accounts, budgets, cash-flow forecasts and useful management reporting.
• Strong knowledge of accounts receivable and payable, VAT, PAYE, payroll and financial controls.
• Experience managing invoicing, supplier and contractor payments, bank reconciliations and expenses.
• Experience supporting year-end accounts, audits and external accountant relationships.
• Strong commercial judgement and an understanding of project margins and working capital.
• Experience improving business systems, processes and reporting.
• Excellent Excel or Google Sheets skills.
• The ability to explain financial information clearly to non-finance colleagues.
• A highly accurate, organised and dependable approach.

A formal accountancy qualification or part-qualification would be beneficial, but practical capability, commercial judgement and relevant experience are more important to us than letters after your name.

We welcome candidates currently completing their accountancy qualifications, provided they already have the experience and confidence to own TEMBO’s day-to-day finance function.

THE RIGHT PERSON FOR TEMBO

You will be calm, commercially aware and comfortable in a fast-moving entrepreneurial business.

You will be curious when something does not look right and confident enough to challenge decisions constructively. You will be happy working at both a detailed and strategic level and proactive about improving systems and processes.

You will be direct, warm, pragmatic and able to build strong relationships across the company. Most importantly, you will take ownership and close loops without repeated reminders.

You will enjoy creating order, making things better and helping a growing business develop stronger financial and operational discipline.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

Within your first six months:

• QuickBooks is accurate, organised and trusted.
• Monthly reporting is delivered consistently and on time.
• Leadership has clear visibility of cash, commitments, debtors, margins and forecasts.
• Credit control is proactive, structured and properly documented.
• Invoicing, payments and reconciliations are accurate and controlled.
• Project margins, contractor costs and potential leakage are more visible.
• Financial and operational processes are simpler, documented and less reliant on individual knowledge.
• Systems and information work together more effectively.
• Statutory, year-end and compliance requirements are well organised.
• Risks are identified early, with practical recommendations attached.
• Finance and operations are viewed as commercially useful partners to the business.

WORKING PATTERN

This is a permanent, full-time position based in our London office four days per week, with the option to work remotely one day per week.

Regular office attendance is important because the role works closely with colleagues across TEMBO and supports live financial, commercial and operational decisions.