Interim Fractional Finance Director (6-months)

Location: Remote with 2 days per month in the North East.

Reporting To: Managing Director and Group CFO

Type: 6-month Contract, 3-4 days per week – Outside IR35.

Industry: Advertising & Marketing (Investor-backed)

Overview:

Stanton House is exclusively recruiting an experienced and commercially minded Interim Fractional Finance Director to lead financial operations and strategic financial planning for an advertising & Marketing business. Backed by private investors and poised for growth, this role is critical in ensuring financial rigour, operational excellence, and business partnering at both agency and group level.

Key Responsibilities:

Financial Reporting & Management Accounts

• Deliver timely, accurate and insightful financial reporting, including full management accounts with schedules and narrative commentary by working day 8 post-month-end.
• Provide both written and verbal (virtual or in-person) commentary to senior stakeholders.
• Deliver detailed variance analysis against budget, forecast, and historical benchmarks.

Budgeting, Forecasting & Planning

• Lead the annual budgeting process, coordinating inputs across the Senior Leadership Team.
• Manage reforecasting exercises quarterly (or as required), with detailed narrative and supporting schedules.
• Provide financial insight and support for strategic planning discussions with agency and group leadership.

Cash Flow & Statutory Reporting

• Produce and maintain accurate weekly cash flow forecasts for group reporting.
• Prepare year-end statutory accounts in collaboration with the financial accountant from group finance.
• Drive timely and clean audit outcomes with minimal adjustments.

Finance Leadership & Team Development

• Train and develop a remote Management Accountant (Overseas) ensuring effective onboarding to the agency and Paprika MIS.
• Support FinOps colleagues across the group handling transactional finance.

Commercial & Operational Leadership

• Serve as a key member of the Senior Leadership Team, contributing to business decisions beyond finance—including IT, HR, commercial, and operational matters.
• Provide financial input into tenders and pitch processes, particularly around commercials, pricing strategies, and terms of trade.

Continuous Improvement & Systems

• Champion a culture of continuous improvement in financial reporting and business intelligence.
• Leverage the Paprika MIS to enhance KPI delivery and visibility of business performance.

External Relationship Management

• Liaise with external service providers across IT, facilities, utilities, and other operational suppliers, ensuring optimal value and service quality for the agency.

Ideal Candidate Profile:

• Proven experience as a Finance Director / Head of Finance in an agency or professional services environment.
• Familiarity with Paprika MIS or similar agency finance platforms is ESSENTIAL.
• Strong understanding of investor-backed business dynamics and financial reporting at group level.
• Hands-on, proactive approach with the ability to balance strategic thinking and operational delivery.
• Expert communicator, confident in both verbal and written presentations to senior stakeholders.
• Experience managing and mentoring remote finance professionals.