Job title:
Head of Finance
Salary:
£65-95k depending on experience
Location:
Hybrid, near Bedfordshire area
About the Company:
Founded in late 2024, our client is a high-technology defence startup which aims to eliminate the risk of missile strikes on NATO and its allies. The company is creating a range of interceptors to counter the threat of cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and hypersonic weapons.
About the Role:
As our Head of Finance, you'll own reporting, planning, and financial infrastructure end-to-end. You'll bring clarity and rigour to the numbers, ensure investor readiness, and partner with teams across the company to allocate resources strategically. This role combines operational finance discipline with strategic foresight - you'll shape the financial backbone that supports the next phase of growth, major contracts, and fundraising milestones.
Responsibilities:
* Reporting & Investor Readiness (Top Priority):
Own monthly reporting packs (P&L, cashflow, budget vs. actuals). Build concise, executive-friendly dashboards and KPI decks. Run the monthly close process with outsourced accountants. Prepare board and investor reporting materials, with audit-ready metrics and defensible assumptions. Build, maintain, and update the long-term financial model. Integrate hiring, revenue, and cost updates into forecasts. Lead scenario planning aligned with company strategy, people plans, and product roadmap.
* Strategic Resource Planning & Org-wide Financial Support:
Set up and optimise revenue operations stack (CRM → contracts → invoicing → revenue recognition). Establish billing, invoicing, and payment tracking systems. Act as finance point of contact for external customers. Drive cost-centre accountability and transparency. Analyse unit economics by product, program, and customer.
* Systems, Tooling & Compliance:
Implement and integrate FP&A, expense, and vendor management tools. Build lean approval workflows for spend and hiring. Define procurement guardrails and enforce cost discipline. Ensure audit readiness with clear process documentation. Support compliance requirements across the organisation.
* Financial Operations (Day-to-Day):
Manage relationships with accountants, ensuring timely payroll and filings. Oversee AP/AR processes, vendor onboarding, and spend tracking. Enforce internal controls and approval flows. Own the month-end close and reconciliations process.
Experience & Qualifications Needed:
* 7-10 years of finance experience, ideally with time in FP&A, strategy, or operational finance roles in high-growth startups, defence, or hardware/industrial contexts.
* Proven track record of building financial models, dashboards, and reporting packs for executive and investor audiences.
* Experience running month-end close and audit-ready reporting processes.
* Strong systems thinker; comfortable implementing tools and workflows from scratch.
* Commercial mindset; you understand unit economics, cost allocation, and how finance drives strategy.
* Excellent communicator; able to distill complex data into simple, actionable insights for execs, board members, and external stakeholders.
* Bonus: Experience with fundraising, strategic planning, or defence/regulated industries.
Why now?
Our client is entering a critical growth stage – securing contracts, scaling operations, and preparing for future fundraising. You'll join as our first senior finance hire, building the foundation for disciplined growth while directly shaping how they scale.
Equal Opportunity Statement:
Our client is committed to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.