Director of Finance, Europe

THE ROLE

In the role of Director of Finance, you will be the senior strategic finance leader responsible for driving financial results and transparency, supervising various finance functional areas, and helping shape IRC’s strategy and delivery in Europe together with the Europe SLT and Senior Vice President (SVP) of Europe.

You will report in partnership to the IRC Senior Director, FP&A in New York and the SVP of Europe in Belgium. This will enable you to act as a nexus between IRC, the Global Function Leaders, the New York headquarters, the European Headquarters, other European offices, and Global Program locations as needed.

KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITIES:

Working within a Finance matrix structure, you will be responsible for and oversee:

Financial Planning & Analysis: Responsible for IRC Europe’s financial planning and annual budgeting in collaboration with the Management team to support IRC Europe’s growth.

Controllership: Partner and support IRC Global Controller, ensure compliance of donor funds across Europe with local and relevant international regulations, including tax, accounting standards, and reporting requirements.

Treasury & Risk Management: Identify and manage financial risks, including currency exchange. Provide insights into the financial health of IRC Europe.

Functional Leadership: Manage and mentor a team of finance professionals, fostering a high-performance culture of learning and best practices to ensure the function’s goals are met.

Stakeholder Relations: Build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders:

Internal

• All members of the Europe SLT
• Other functional areas including but not limited to Operations, External Relations (ER) and Legal
• Finance leads across European IRC offices
• Finance counterparts in IRC’s New York HQ/Global Programs (CRRD/RAI)

External

• Support the country Controllers with financial planning and preparation to the IRC Board (i.e. UK, Germany, and Sweden)

ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Budgeting, financial planning, investment analysis and monthly reporting
• Develop the European Finance teams into a highly effective and collaborative function, working closely with IRC New York and making structural recommendations where appropriate
• Escalate risks within Europe
• Deliver on financial targets aligned with global IRC goals and track its implementation across offices
• In partnership with External Relations, strategically and operationally support the Europe Fundraising team by partnering on finance matters
• Lead, coordinate and represent Europe in key European projects
• Financial planning and annual budgeting in collaboration with the Management team
• Ensure management of financial operations and risks, including funding flows, FX risk, ERP systems, integration with IRC New York systems

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Essential

• Demonstrated experience working effectively in a senior Finance role
• Understanding of statutory donor financial compliance; experience in financial management of commercial contracts and competitive tenders
• A track record of using financial analysis to drive growth strategies and performance excellence
• Experience of leading financial planning and analysis, managing significant budgets and a track record of sound financial management
• Experience in change management building highly effective teams, ideally in highly fluid and fast-growing organisations. Specific experience of re-engineering a finance function
• Adaptability, flexibility, and resilience. Remains calm in high pressured situations, accepts new assignments and challenges, and responds productively to change
• Ability to work well with others, manage a variety of stakeholders and in a cross-cultural team environment; collaborates effectively across groups and sets a tone of co-operation
• Effective communication skills

Desirable

• Experience working in a large international non-governmental organization (INGO) managing a $300-$500 million P&L
• Familiarity with UK, German and/or Swedish governance requirements
• Ability to speak German would be an advantage