Senior Management Accountant (12 Month FTC)

Senior Management Accountant (12 Month FTC) (London – Hybrid)

About Finova 

Finova is the UK's leading lending and savings technology provider, supporting one in every five mortgages nationwide. Our agile, cloud-native solutions enable over 60 banks, building societies, specialist lenders, equity release providers and a network of 2,400+ brokers to stay ahead in a competitive market.

Built on open architecture and backed by deep industry expertise, our platform is designed to scale. Each year, we process over £50 billion in loans, manage nearly £50 billion in savings, and support the digital servicing of more than 650,000 UK borrower accounts.

Be part of a team that’s driving innovation, enabling growth and shaping the future of UK lending.

For Lenders 

Finova offers a flexible, modular technology suite designed to help lenders move faster, scale efficiently and deliver standout digital experiences.

Financial Institutions use Finova to launch products faster, process applications up to 50% more efficiently and reduce operational costs — all while staying fully compliant in a fast-moving market. 

The Finance Team

We are a close-knit team who work alongside the business to help them achieve their goals. Day to day we collaborate with department heads, customers and suppliers, and support our 500+ colleagues. The team has grown considerably as the business has grown, and we are now investing in our systems, processes and people so that we can keep providing a first-class service as we scale.

Continuous improvement and AI

We take continuous improvement seriously. Everyone in finance has access to Claude and Gemini, and we actively encourage using them to take the grind out of the work. We also run Finance Labs: two to three hours of protected time every week, dedicated to improving our own processes rather than just running them.

About the Role:

Reporting to the Financial Controller, this is a 12month fixed-term contract with the opportunity to extend.

The role has two halves: the first is owning the management accounting month-end close and balance sheet reconciliations for all accounts other than cash, payroll, and trade debtors and creditors, which sit with our operational finance team.

The second is working alongside the Financial Controller on the technical and judgemental areas, and building the processes and documentation that make them repeatable each year. This includes goodwill and impairment, acquisition accounting, group consolidations, shared-based payments and R&D capitalisation, ensuring our policies are documented, with clean computations and an evidence trail that stands up to audit. If you enjoy the technical work and also enjoy leaving something better behind, this is a good use of a year.

We want to be upfront about two things: (1) This is a hands-on role in a small team, so you will be preparing as well as reviewing, and (2) it is genuinely time-boxed: a permanent Management Accountant will be recruited during your contract, and handing over cleanly, with documentation and coaching, is part of the job rather than an afterthought.

About you:

• Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or equivalent) with at least 3 years post-qualification experience, and ideally 5 or more. Practice-trained or a group reporting background are both welcome.

• Strong IFRS knowledge is essential. You are confident in applying the standards to real transactions, not just describing them, and you can form a view, document it and defend it to an auditor.

• Genuinely comfortable with the judgemental areas. Goodwill and impairment testing, acquisition accounting and consolidation, and the capitalisation of development costs.

• Audit-facing. You have been the person auditors come to, and you know how to run a clean audit file rather than assemble one under pressure.

• A process builder, not only a preparer. You leave documented, repeatable processes behind you. We will judge this contract partly on what still works after you have gone.

• Comfortable supporting on tax. You do not need to be a tax specialist, but you should be able to pull together the information our advisers need on corporation tax and R&D tax claims, and understand what they are asking for and why.

• Experience in a private equity backed or group environment is desirable. You understand why these numbers get scrutinised and what good looks like when they are.

• Software or SaaS background is highly desirable, especially revenue recognition on subscription revenue and professional services contracts, which is where most of the judgement sits for us.

• Systems capable. NetSuite experience is an advantage, alongside strong Excel and Google Sheets skills. An interest in using AI to take manual effort out of the close is welcome.

• A generous coach. You will hand over to a permanent successor and may help us assess candidates for that role.

• Available at short notice and comfortable with a fixed-term contract.

What will you be doing?

• Own the management accounting month-end close – including balance sheet reconciliations for all accounts other than cash, payroll, and trade debtors and creditors, which are owned by the operational finance team.

• Consolidation and intercompany – the intercompany matrix, our India subsidiary including trial balance review and NetSuite posting, eliminations and consolidation entries.

• Work with the Financial Controller on technical judgements – intangible assets and impairment testing, acquisition accounting, and the more complex or contentious areas of the accounts. You will take real weight off the FC here rather than simply escalating to them.

• Put R&D capitalisation on a proper footing – documented policy, clean computations against the standard cost framework, a per-project evidence trail, and embed monthly reviews of the capitalised balance.

• Statutory accounts and audit – prepare the financial statements including all supporting notes and disclosures, coordinate audit planning, readiness and the information request list, and be the first point of contact for auditor queries.

• Support the Financial Controller on tax – prepare and pull together the information needed for corporation tax computations and R&D tax claims, working with our external advisers, and help make those cycles less manual each year.

• Debt and equity accounting – bank debt interest and fee accruals, preference share dividend accruals, share capital maintenance and reconciliation to the share register.

• Improve the close, not just run it – documented, faster and less dependent on individuals, supporting our move towards a five working day close. You will have protected time each week to do this.

• Hand over properly – document what you build and coach the permanent Management Accountant so that everything you own is still working after your contract ends.

What We Offer:

• Hybrid working ️
  We operate on a hybrid model that is primarily office-based, requiring three days in the office each week, with the flexibility to work remotely for the remainder.

• Private medical insurance ‍⚕️
  Comprehensive health cover, with the option to add your family to your plan, because your well-being matters to us.

• Life assurance & income protection
  We provide life assurance and income protection to give you peace of mind for the future

• Family friendly policies
  Our enhanced family-friendly policy goes beyond maternity and paternity leave, offering paid time off for when plans change or alternative paths to parenthood are needed.

• Work from anywhere
  Some thrive in the office, others at home — and many do best with choice. With approval, Finova employees can work abroad for up to 4 weeks each year.

• Flexible holiday package ️
  Enjoy 25 days paid holiday allowance, plus all public holidays. And, you can rebook any public holidays for a day that aligns with your personal beliefs or celebration calendar. We also offer holiday trading allowing you to purchase or sell your holiday allowance.

• Company pension scheme
  With salary exchange, you save on tax and can build a secure future.

• Employee assistance programme
  We understand that mental health is just as important as physical health. Access to a 24/7 confidential counselling helpline ensures you have support when you need it.

• Electric car scheme
  Get a brand-new electric vehicle with salary sacrifice as a benefit, paid for through your gross monthly pay, saving on Income Tax and National Insurance.

• Health cash plan
  Our Health Cash Plan empowers you to prioritise your wellbeing by providing effortless reimbursement for everyday healthcare costs, from dental and optical visits to physiotherapy.

• Gym discounts ️
  Achieve your fitness goals for less with GymFlex, which offers significant savings on annual memberships at over 3,000 gyms and leisure centers nationwide.

• Perks that matter
  We fuel your day with a fully stocked pantry of fresh fruit and snacks and keep the team spirit high with weekly socials and events.

Equal Opportunity Statement

We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. If you’re passionate about this role but don’t meet all the criteria, please reach out, we’d love to discuss how your skills and experiences align with our needs.