Head of Finance

Design Museum

Head of Finance

Salary: £70,000 per annum

Permanent, Full-Time (35 hours per week)

Hybrid Working 3 days a week in the office

Closest stations High Street Kensington and Holland Park

The Design Museum is the world's leading museum devoted to contemporary design in every form. Through exhibitions, learning programmes, partnerships and research, we demonstrate how design shapes the world around us and enables people and communities to thrive. Since relocating to our landmark Kensington home in 2016, millions of visitors have engaged with our work, helping to make the museum a global hub for the transformative potential of design. 

As we continue to evolve and innovate, we are seeking an experienced and commercially-minded finance leader to join our senior leadership team. This is an exciting opportunity to shape the future of the finance function, strengthen business partnering across the organisation and provide strategic financial leadership in support of the museum's ambitious plans.

This is a highly visible and influential role, offering the opportunity to work closely with senior stakeholders, the Board of Trustees and budget holders across a diverse organisation with multiple income streams.

About the Role

Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer, the Head of Finance will lead the Finance team and play a central role in supporting the museum's strategic and operational objectives. You will be responsible for financial planning, business partnering, reporting, governance and financial control, ensuring leaders across the organisation have access to timely, insightful information to support decision-making. 

As the museum continues to embed and optimise its Microsoft Business Central platform, you will champion continuous improvement, automation and data-driven decision-making, helping to develop a modern, forward-looking finance function. 

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the Finance team, fostering a high-performing culture focused on analysis, business partnering and continuous improvement
• Support the development and delivery of the museum's rolling five-year business plan
• Lead the annual budgeting and forecasting process across the organisation
• Partner with departmental leaders across exhibitions, commercial, retail and development teams to deliver accurate and timely management and board reporting
• Drive automation, reporting enhancements and data quality improvements
• Lead financial appraisal and modelling for business cases, investment decisions and new initiatives

About You

We are looking for a professionally qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or CIMA) with significant leadership experience and a strong track record of partnering with senior stakeholders.

You will bring:

• Prior experience of leading a finance function within a diverse organisation
• Strong expertise in budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting and audit management
• Proven business partnering skills and the ability to influence strategic decision-making
• Advanced financial modelling and analytical capability
• Experience of developing high-performing teams
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to present complex financial information clearly to non-finance audiences
• A proactive, pragmatic approach with a passion for continuous improvement and organisational impact

Apply Now

The Design Museum is partnering exclusively with Allen Lane and Iain Slinn on the recruitment of this role.

For a confidential discussion and further information, please contact Iain directly.