Finance Manager - Theatre Venues

Finance Manager - Theatre Venues

Reporting to the Head of Venues Finance, the Venues Finance Manager is responsible for overseeing the financial operations of the venues finance division and managing the venues finance team, to ensure efficient, timely and accurate delivery of all aspects of financial reporting for multiple UK theatres.

The role will be responsible for overseeing and developing the Venues finance team, currently two Assistant Management Accountants and a Finance Assistant.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Team Leadership and Management:

• Lead, mentor and develop the venues finance team to maximise performance.
• Assign tasks and set performance objectives to ensure deadlines are met. Maintain regular communication to ensure the team fully understand the tasks allocated to them and to ensure that the tasks are being completed to deadlines.
• Conduct weekly team meetings to ensure clarity for the venues team of what is coming up and expected of them. Discuss financial performance, give updates and discuss challenges.
• Provide training, support and guidance to improve team members' performance. Improved performance includes the team being more robust in questioning and challenging the TD's/venues explanations.
• Identify areas for improvement and encourage initiatives to resolve issues and reduce areas of risk.

Financial Reporting & Compliance:

• Preparation of monthly management accounts (full Profit & Loss, Balance Sheet and cashflow, including relevant journals), variance analysis & commentary, for initial review with Head of Venues Finance before distribution to senior managers and theatre directors.
• Review draft monthly management accounts with Head of Venues Finance and Group Finance Director.
• Take direct ownership of the financial reporting of at least 3 theatre venues, including building relationships with key stakeholders at each of these venues.
• Balance sheet reconciliations - perform reconciliations for your own venues and review other team members' monthly balance sheet reconciliations, investigating and resolving any discrepancies to ensure that every balance sheet item for all venues reconciles every month.
• Manage 2 key month end finance processes across all venues (examples of which include hospitality trackers and associated costs of sale and margins, settlements, fixed assets, new systems, deferred income, credit cards/expense management)
• Key contact for the year end Audit process for Venues Finance, responding to audit queries that come in from our auditors
• Manage the cash flow process, including the preparation of a 12 week cash flow reporting cash requirements to group.
• Assist the Head of Venues Finance with the integration of new venue acquisitions.

Collaboration & Stakeholder Management:

• Create and maintain close working relationships across all departments including Group finance, Hospitality, Programming, Operations, Marketing, HR & payroll, Systems and IT.
• Regularly liaise and build strong relationships with the rest of the Venues Finance team, Regional Directors, Theatre Directors, Theatre Administrators and Venues management teams.
• Regularly liaise with venues theatre directors (TDs) including arranging and leading monthly meetings to discuss prior and current month financial performance at the venue and any issues arising that could impact financial performance.
• Circulate draft and final monthly management accounts on a timely basis to TD's and regional directors for commentary.

Skills, Experience and Qualifications:

• A minimum of 3 years' experience working as a senior management accountant with management responsibilities.
• Qualified accountant (ACA/ACCA/CIMA)
• Experience in managing and developing a finance team.
• Advanced Excel and IT skills. Experience with a complex accounting system, ideally Sage X3/Microsoft Business Central.
• Strong attention to detail
• Excellent interpersonal skills; committed and enthusiastic.
• The ability to work calmly, effectively and professionally in a fast-paced environment.
• Dynamic, enthusiastic, self-starter and willing to go the extra distance to make a difference.
• Ideally knowledge of and/or experience in live theatre, entertainment or hospitality.

Handle actively welcomes applicants from under-represented backgrounds - we pride ourselves on attracting the best talent for every opportunity through a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.