Head of Commercial Finance

Company description

About us

We believe in the power of ingenuity to build a positive human future.  

As strategies, technologies, and innovation collide, we create opportunity from complexity. 

Our teams of interdisciplinary experts combine innovative thinking and breakthrough technologies to progress further, faster. Our clients adapt and transform, and together we achieve enduring results. 

We are over 4,000 strategists, innovators, designers, consultants, digital experts, scientists, engineers, and technologists. And we have deep expertise in consumer and manufacturing, defence and security, energy and utilities, financial services, government and public services, health and life sciences, and transport.  

Our teams operate globally from offices across the UK, Ireland, US, Nordics, and Netherlands. 

PA. Bringing Ingenuity to Life. 

Job description

• Hybrid working - our approach is to be in the office a minimum of 2 days per week.
• Location: London (or Melbourn, UK with commutable access to London). Global remit
• Reports to: Chief Financial Officer

Role Overview

As Director of Commercial Finance , you will lead PA Consulting’s global Commercial Finance function and act as a strategic partner to the C-suite and senior leadership teams. This is a high-impact role responsible for shaping commercial strategy, driving revenue and profitability, and ensuring compliance with global commercial and financial requirements. You will serve as a formal delegate for the CFO on critical finance responsibilities and play a pivotal role in enabling PA’s continued growth.

You will have direct accountability for the Commercial Finance Manager, Project Administrator and Credit Control teams (c55 heads in total) and their remit, ensuring they deliver real-time financial insight, strategic guidance, and commercial support to PA’s Consulting business. This includes oversight of financial planning, reporting, risk management, and commercial governance across the full lifecycle of service delivery.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Business Partnering
  • Partner with the Exec-team and Go-To-Market Leadership teams to influence strategic decisions across diverse consulting markets.
  • Drive commercial strategy, pricing, and bid support for complex, high-value engagements.
  • Provide leadership and direction to Commercial Finance Managers, ensuring alignment with corporate priorities and operational goals.
• Financial Operations & Transformation
  • Lead a global finance team (c. 55 FTEs) across multiple geographies, ensuring operational excellence and scalability.
  • Own and optimise financial models (Bid Model and Strategic Pricing Model) to support project performance and cash flow management.
  • Oversee delivery of weekly, monthly, and quarterly performance reporting, variance analysis, and actionable insights.
  • Ensure robust forecasting and sensitivity modelling across business units.
• Compliance & Governance
  • Ensure full compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), and open-book accounting requirements.
  • Oversee contract audits, rate negotiations, and compliance submissions for key clients.
  • Maintain and evolve assignment and business policy manuals e.g. PAAAS and PABM maintaining as interactive digital platforms.
  • Drive audit readiness and external audit coordination, ensuring IFRS compliance and SOX controls integrity.
• Risk Management & High-Risk Engagements
  • Serve on the High-Risk Assignment Steering Committee, mitigating financial and operational risks.
  • Provide rapid intervention and remediation plans for underperforming engagements.
  • Oversee Commercial Finance Managers’ risk management activities, including open-book reporting and high-risk assignment reviews.
• Leadership & Development
  • Coach and mentor senior finance leaders and partners globally.
  • Deliver training to enhance commercial acumen and profitability awareness across the Partner team.
  • Build capability within the Commercial Finance Manager population through workshops, coaching, and structured development plans.

Qualifications

What We’re Looking For

• ACA qualified (or equivalent) with 10+ years of progressive finance experience.
• Proven track record in commercial finance within complex, multi-regional organisations.
• Experience in managing large teams with a broad remit.
• Demonstrated success in driving revenue growth, profitability, and risk mitigation.

Key Skills & Competencies

• Strategic Finance Business Partnering
• Global Team Leadership & Organisational Design
• Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) and FAR Compliance
• Open-book Accounting & Contract Auditing
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills
• Expertise in UK GAAP and IFRS
• Finance Transformation & Operational Efficiency

We know the skill-gap and ‘somewhat need to tick every box’ can get in the way of meeting brilliant candidates, so please don’t hesitate to apply – we’d love to hear from you.

Apply today by completing our online application

#LI-HM3

Additional information

Life At PA encompasses our peoples' experience at PA. It's about how we enrich peoples’ working lives by giving them access to unique people and growth opportunities and purpose led meaningful work.

We believe diversity fuels ingenuity. Diversity of thought brings exciting perspectives; diversity of experience brings a wealth of knowledge, and diversity of skills brings the tools we need. When we bring people together with diverse backgrounds, identities, and minds, embracing that difference through an inclusive culture where our people thrive; we unleash the power of diversity – bringing ingenuity to life.

Find out more about Life at PA here .

We are dedicated to supporting the physical, emotional, social and financial well-being of our people. Check out some of our extensive benefits:

• Health and lifestyle perks accompanying private healthcare for you and your family
• 25 days annual leave (plus a bonus half day on Christmas Eve) with the opportunity to buy 5 additional days
• Generous company pension scheme
• Opportunity to get involved with community and charity-based initiatives
• Annual performance-based bonus
• PA share ownership
• Tax efficient benefits (cycle to work, give as you earn)

We recruit, retain, reward and develop our people based solely on their abilities and contributions and without reference to their age, background, disability, genetic information, parental or family status, religion or belief, race, ethnicity, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity (or expression), political belief, veteran status, or any other range of human difference brought about by identity and experience. We are on a journey towards ensuring our workforce is diverse at all levels and that our firm is representative of the world around us. We welcome applications from underrepresented groups.

Adjustments or accommodations - Should you need any adjustments or accommodations to the recruitment process, at either application or interview, please contact us.