Job Title: Finance Manager
Location: Ashford, Kent
Salary: £45,000 - £55,000 per annum ( dependent on experience)
Job Type: Full time/Permanent
We are seeking an experienced Finance Manager with manufacturing industry experience to lead financial operations, drive performance improvements and support strategic decision-making. This is an excellent opportunity for a hands‑on finance professional to take ownership of finance processes within a fast‑paced manufacturing environment.
Key responsibilities
* Lead month-end and year-end close activities, ensuring accurate and timely financial reporting and statutory compliance
* Prepare management accounts, budgets, forecasts and long‑range financial models
* Own manufacturing cost accounting, production costing, standard costing, inventory valuation and variance analysis
* Provide commercial business partnering to operations, supply chain and production teams to improve margin and operational efficiency
* Manage cash flow forecasting, working capital optimisation and capital expenditure planning
* Oversee audit, tax and regulatory processes in conjunction with external advisors
* Implement and optimise finance processes, controls and ERP‑related finance functionality (e.g. SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics or similar)
* Produce KPI reporting and present financial performance to senior management
Skills and experience required
* Proven experience as a Finance Manager or senior finance role within the manufacturing industry (essential)
* Strong technical skills in cost accounting, inventory management and production costing
* Hands‑on experience with ERP systems and advanced Excel skills; experience with BI tools an advantage
* Solid understanding of budgeting, forecasting, cash management and statutory reporting
* Experience leading month-end and year-end close, and supporting external audits
* Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills; able to translate financial data into actionable insight for non‑finance audiences
* Experience managing and developing finance teams
* Professional accounting qualification (ACCA, CIMA, ACA or equivalent) or relevant degree preferred
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