Chief of staff jobs in Central london, greater london
Help shape financial decision-making at one of the UK’s leading universities
King’s is a large, complex and internationally engaged university with ambitious plans for the years ahead. We are looking for an experienced finance leader to join us as Deputy Director of Finance Business Partnering (Operations), playing a key role in strengthening financial performance, decision-making and long-term sustainability across our Professional Services directorates.
This is an exciting opportunity for someone who wants to make a real impact. You will be part of our Financial Strategy, Planning and Performance function, helping King’s maintain the sustainable financial foundation needed to support our education, research and wider contribution to society.
The role
Reporting to the Director of Finance Business Partnering (Operations), you will lead high-quality finance business partnering services across a range of Professional Services areas, including Student Services, IT, Philanthropy and Alumni, Executive portfolios and other directorates.
You will directly line manage a team of Finance Business Partners and their Management Accountant teams, with overall responsibility for a team of around eight people, including three direct reports. You will also play a substantial leadership role across the wider Operations Finance Business Partnering team, supporting a team of around 19 colleagues.
This is a hands-on senior leadership role. You will work closely with senior stakeholders, providing expert advice, constructive challenge, analysis and timely decision support. You will help ensure financial plans are robust, risks and opportunities are understood, and resources are aligned with King’s strategic priorities.
What you will be doing
You will model excellent finance business partnering, using high-quality data and insight to support leaders across King’s Professional Services and Operations directorates. You will help stakeholders understand financial performance, make evidence-based decisions and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, value for money and long-term financial resilience.
Key responsibilities will include:
- Leading the delivery of finance business partnering across multiple Professional Services areas.
- Providing strategic financial advice, scenario modelling and long-term forecasting to support decision-making.
- Leading and supporting annual planning, monthly reporting, quarterly updates and forecasting processes.
- Developing clear, robust reporting and commentary for senior stakeholders, including Executive-level audiences.
- Supporting business cases, complex financial issues and cross-cutting initiatives.
- Ensuring income and expenditure are recorded correctly and that management accounts provide meaningful insight.
- Promoting compliance with financial policies, controls, data protection and secure use of financial information.
- Championing improvements to reporting, tools, dashboards, templates and processes.
- Supporting the Director in leading the Operations Finance Business Partnering team, including culture, priorities, development and ways of working.
- Deputising for the Director when required.
About you
We are looking for a qualified accountant with significant experience of leading financial advice, planning, forecasting and reporting services in a large, complex organisation.
You will bring strong leadership skills, a service-focused approach and the ability to develop high-performing teams. You will be comfortable operating in complex stakeholder environments, managing competing priorities and influencing senior leaders with clarity, confidence and credibility.
You will be someone who can combine technical financial expertise with sound judgement, strong relationship-building skills and a commitment to continuous improvement.
You will need to bring
- A professional accountancy qualification.
- Experience of leading financial support, advice or business partnering services relevant to this role.
- Strong leadership skills, including the ability to manage and develop professional staff.
- Experience of leading short- and long-term planning, forecasting and reporting processes.
- The ability to deliver change and financial improvement across a finance function and wider organisation.
- Resilience and the ability to manage multiple objectives across teams and complex stakeholder groups.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present clearly to senior stakeholders and committees.
- Strong numeracy and IT skills, including Excel and experience using corporate finance and reporting systems.
A degree-level qualification and experience of working in or with the university sector would be advantageous, but are not essential.
Why join King’s?
This role offers the chance to help shape a step change in finance business partnering at King’s. You will be joining at a time when the team is embedding a refreshed business partnering offer, improving reporting and forecasting tools, strengthening stakeholder support and building financial capability across the organisation.
You will have the opportunity to work on high-profile priorities, influence senior decision-making and contribute to financial sustainability across a university with a powerful mission in education, research and service to society.
How to apply
To apply, please send your CV by 25th May 2026.
For an informal conversation about the role, please contact Phil Southern at Ivy Rock Partners.
Thank you!
About Us
People’s Economy aims to build the agency and power of people facing injustice and working for social change so that they have the expertise, capabilities and resources to develop their own analysis of how the economic system is a root cause of the injustice they face, develop strategies to change it and then take action with others. Our vision is for a world with economies that meet the needs and priorities of people currently experiencing economic injustice.
About the Role
This role leads our work across Birmingham at an exciting moment. We are developing a participatory, community-centred approach to analysing the city's economy, identifying opportunities for change and coordinating alliances to act on them. This means bringing together mixed groups, including grassroots changemakers, researchers, funders and other partners, and facilitating processes that help people make sense of complex information together, find common ground and make decisions about collective priorities. The role requires someone who can hold these processes well: strong facilitation skills, communicating complex ideas accessibly, building trust across groups, sustaining momentum over time and helping diverse coalitions move from analysis to strategy to action.
The Senior Programme and Network Lead will develop and deliver initiatives that support a growing movement for economic justice across the city, with a particular focus on building support and engagement amongst grassroots changemakers and communities experiencing economic injustice. It will manage projects and resources, conduct programme development and delivery, oversee outreach and partnerships, changemaker recruitment and contribute to fundraising, ultimately playing a key role in shaping our regional impact. This position is crucial in coordinating our work across Birmingham and driving meaningful collaboration with local and national stakeholders, in particular working collaboratively with Economic Justice Brum, a long-standing initiative working on local economic systems change.
Online Open House
Come and meet us! Candidates are invited to attend an information webinar and to meet some of the team on Wednesday 13th May at 12pm or Wednesday 21st May at 5pm. Both webinars will cover the same content, so there is no need to attend both.
For the full role description, Open House registration information and details on how to apply please visit our website by clicking 'How to Apply' below.
Registered Charity
6 - 10
Working with communities across the UK experiencing economic injustice to reimagine, rebalance, and transform the economy.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
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As an Employee Relations Specialist, you’ll be the escalation point from our People Operations team and will apply your specialist employee relations knowledge and expertise to provide professional and pragmatic employee relations advice on a range of employee relations (ER) issues, policies and processes.
You’ll pro-actively engage with managers to offer best practice advice on a range of ER case work, spotting and assessing the risks and advising managers on how to mitigate or find resolutions to those risks which are in the best interest for British Heart Foundation (BHF).
You’ll take ownership of your own case work from beginning to end and responsibility for the advisory solutions ensuring best practice timescales are adhered to. You will also ensure any risks or concerns are flagged.
About you
With a CIPD Level 5 minimum qualification, or equivalent, you'll have extensive HR knowledge and understanding around best practice. You'll also have an up-to-date ER and Employment law knowledge, and understand ACAS Code of Practise and be knowledgeable on the Equality Act.
You’ll have substantial experience managing complex casework, including dismissals and discrimination. You are able to weigh up complex evidence and reach sound conclusions that are fair and reasonable while protecting the business. You have the proven experience of navigating legal complexities and negotiating successful resolutions swiftly.
Ideally, you will have ER specialist experience confidently managing a high volume of cases in a large organisation. Additionally, experience of tribunal case preparation, restructuring, redundancy, and TUPE would be highly advantageous.
To succeed in the role you will:- be a highly effective team player
- have excellent communication skills
- be able to build trust and rapport quickly
- have strong time management skills
- be resilient and work well under pressure to multiple and conflicting deadlines.
We’re looking for someone with a passion for all things employee relations who will be an ambassador for the People Relations team. Willing to challenge and influence managers, you’ll encourage them to be the decision makers as well as positively challenge the status quo on process, policy and procedure.Working arrangements
Please note this is a 4-month fixed term contract.
This is a hybrid role, where your work will be split between your home and one day per week, on average, in our London office. This may vary from time to time, so you will need to work in a flexible way to unlock your best work for our cause.
Due to the length of the contract we are looking to get someone in post as soon as possible.
Belonging at BHF
At BHF, we offer a comprehensive range of benefits designed to support our colleagues’ wellbeing and professional growth.
We are committed to fostering a workplace where everyone feels valued and supported. Embracing different perspectives and backgrounds strengthens our organisation and empowers us to make a real difference together.
To hear from our people, check out Belonging at BHF.
Our people are at the heart of everything we do. By funding research across six decades, we’ve helped keep millions of hearts beating and millions of families together. We’re investing in ground-breaking research that will get us closer than ever to a world where everyone has a healthier heart for longer.
Benefits and development
To find out more about our benefits you can download the Benefits document at the bottom of this page or check out our Benefits and Development pages.
Need more help balancing your work and home life? Talk to us about what flexibility is available at the application or interview stage.
Interview process
Interviews are due to take place shortly after the role closes.
How to apply
It’s quick and easy to apply for a role at the BHF. Just click on the apply button below. All you’ll need is an up-to-date CV and a supporting statement, outlining your interest in the role and how you meet the role’s criteria.
As part of our commitment to be an inclusive employer and ensure fairness and consistency in selecting the best candidate for this role, the BHF will use anonymous CV software as part of the application journey.
Should you need any adjustments to the recruitment process, at either application or interview, please contact us.Please note internally this role will be known as People Relations Specialist.
Registered Charity
More than 1000
Our vision is a world free from the fear of heart and circulatory diseases.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.