The Donkey Sanctuary is an international animal welfare organisation, offering care and protection to donkeys worldwide. Our vision is a world where every donkey has a good quality of life, and our mission is to improve the lives of donkeys every day. We will achieve this by transforming the lives of donkeys in need worldwide by fostering greater understanding, collaboration and support, and by promoting lasting, mutually life-enhancing relationships. 

The Senior Finance Business Manager is a pivotal role leading the evolution of finance business partnering within the charity to ensure key financial objectives are achieved to deliver the organisation’s strategy and change agenda. The post holder will be customer focussed to deliver professional and timely financial support and be fully integrated with the core activities within the organisation, whilst challenging and holding budget managers to account. Furthermore, the postholder will contribute to developing a culture of strong financial stewardship, promoting the need for economy, efficiency and effectiveness in all aspects of the charity’s world-wide business. This is a high profile role and the postholder will be expected to build collaborative partnerships and maintain strong relationships with the Executive, Senior Managers and their teams across the organisation and its subsidiaries.

About you:

• Current fully qualified active member of a recognised professional accounting institute (ICAEW, ICAS, CIMA, ACCA) with extensive post qualification experience.
• Experience in financial and management accounting for a medium to large international organisation, to include multi-currency group financial reporting, budgeting, and forecasting.
• Experience of successfully leading and motivating teams, managing workloads, prioritising and meeting deadlines including performance reviews, coaching and personal development planning.
• Demonstratable experience of developing finance business partnering within an organisation.
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft applications including Excel (to include proven track record in using and building Excel models for financial analysis) and Word.
• Ability to analyse and address complex issues including the need to deliver different support to different organisational areas.
• Proven track record in financial risk management and evaluation of business cases and commercial proposals
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to flex and adapt communication to suit a wide range of audiences.

About the role:

Your principal duties and responsibilities will include –

• Lead the Finance Business Partners to discharge their responsibilities by providing high quality financial information, expert advice, training, support and challenge in respect of financial management reporting and risk mitigation, to ensure senior managers and budget holders are able to meet their key operational and strategic business objectives.
• Develop and evolve the charity’s business partner model to align to strategic changes in the way the charity operates, ensuing it is fit for purpose, efficient and effective.

• Build collaborative networks to actively champion financial stewardship amongst non-finance managers by developing support education and coaching to operational managers and budget holders to understand business partnering and to facilitate the successful delivery within their areas of responsibility.

• Effectively recruit, manage, train and develop a team of finance business partner, and assistant business partner professionals, setting SMART objectives and managing performance including timely performance reviews; ensuring the team understand their contribution to the charity’s strategic objectives and their own roles and responsibilities.

• Support the development of financial reporting to the organisation so that information flows from individual operational reports through to charity wide financial forecasting (including overseas subsidiaries), holding to account those responsible for delivery. The post holder will ensure a clear articulation of reported risks with mitigations.
• Acts as the finance change manager for organisational strategic projects impacting the design of the financial systems/processes, actively championing and leading the delivery of benefits to achieve measurable improvements in operations.

What we offer in return:

Based in Sidmouth, Devon – an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty – this is a full-time, 18 month fixed-term contract starting as soon as possible, working 35 hours per week, 08.30-16.30, Monday-Friday.

The working pattern for this role will combine onsite and home working under our guiding principles for such roles, with onsite attendance currently anticipated to be twice per week.

Benefits:  

Competitive pension.

Life assurance.

31 days holiday (including Bank holidays), rising to 34 will each full year of service.

Wellbeing team.

Recorded Pilates and Yoga classes.

Long service awards.

Healthshield plan –

• Reimbursement of some medical expenses up to the specified limits per membership.
• Offers, discounts and cashback on shopping, travel and entertainment from participating outlets.
• Access to a 24/7 GP and counselling service.

Free parking.

Subsidised restaurant and shop.

Closing date for completed applications: Sunday 20 April 2025.

The Donkey Sanctuary is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable people (children and adults), and expects all staff and volunteers to undertake this commitment. Applicants will be subject to safer recruitment processes, including an application for a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check where required for the post.

Please note: The Guaranteed interview scheme is only applicable to candidates who consider themselves to have a disability applying for roles based within the United Kingdom.

NOTE TO APPLICANTS: We look forward to receiving your application, but we do ask you to complete this in your own words, and not to employ an Artificial Intelligence (AI) writing tool or assistant. Applications that are considered not to be an applicant’s own work may not be shortlisted for interview.