Director of Financial Planning, Performance & Strategy

Director of Financial Planning, Performance & Strategy

Location: Hampshire (Agile Working)
Salary: £130,000 + excellent benefits package, including car allowance, market-leading pension, private family healthcare, annual bonus and life assurance

The Opportunity

Our client is a large organisation operating within a complex and highly regulated industry, delivering essential services that support millions of users and businesses across the UK. The organisation is recognised for its commitment to operational excellence, innovation and long-term investment, and plays an important role within the UK's broader infrastructure landscape.

Reporting directly to the CFO and sitting on the Finance Leadership Team, this is one of the most senior finance leadership positions within the organisation. The role combines strategic finance, business partnering, performance leadership and business planning, providing the opportunity to influence decisions at Executive and Board level while helping shape the future direction of a critical organisation.

A key aspect will be leading the development of the organisation's long-term business plans, including the submission of major business planning and price control submissions with significant strategic and financial implications. You will act as a trusted adviser to senior stakeholders, providing insight, challenge and guidance on significant commercial, regulatory and investment decisions.

The Role

As Director of Financial Planning, Performance & Strategy, you will lead a team of senior finance professionals and drive the financial planning, forecasting and performance management agenda across the Group.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing strategic financial leadership as a trusted adviser to the CFO, Executive Team and Board.
• Leading the annual business planning process, ensuring alignment between strategic objectives, investment priorities, operational performance and financial outcomes.
• Driving organisational performance through robust forecasting, planning and decision support frameworks.
• Owning the Group performance management framework, ensuring clear links between business strategy and financial delivery.
• Leading and developing a high-performing finance leadership team, fostering a culture of insight-led decision making, accountability and continuous improvement.
• Representing the organisation with regulators, customers, industry bodies and other external stakeholders on financial, commercial and regulatory matters.
• Building strong relationships across the business to influence strategic decisions and drive financial performance.
• Driving improvements across FP&A processes, systems, reporting and analytical capability to create a modern, commercially focused finance function.
• Leading the development and submission of business plans relating to periodic price control reviews and acting as Bid Manager for these major strategic programmes.
• Chairing and contributing to governance forums, programme boards and cross-functional working groups.
• Supporting customer consultations and engagement with industry stakeholders.
• Providing financial leadership on investment cases, strategic projects, corporate transactions and business improvement initiatives.
• Supporting executive remuneration planning through performance target setting and value driver analysis.

The Person

We are seeking an exceptional finance leader with the credibility, strategic capability and influencing skills to operate at the highest level of a complex, highly regulated organisation.

You will be:

• A qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or CIMA).
• An experienced finance leader with a track record of advising Executive and Board-level stakeholders.
• Comfortable influencing major strategic decisions and managing complex stakeholder relationships.
• An accomplished leader of senior professional teams, achieving results through influence, coaching and alignment rather than direct supervision.
• Experienced in leading large-scale planning, regulatory, transformation or strategic programmes within complex organisations.
• A highly credible communicator, confident presenting complex information to Boards, Executives, regulators and external stakeholders.
• Commercially astute, with the ability to understand and influence operational as well as financial decision making.
• Experienced in producing high-quality management reporting, governance papers and strategic recommendations within demanding timescales.
• Naturally analytical, with strong problem-solving skills and the ability to bring clarity to complex and ambiguous challenges.
• Resilient, adaptable and comfortable making recommendations with significant commercial impact.

Experience within infrastructure, utilities, energy, rail, defence, nuclear or other regulated industries would be advantageous.

Why Apply?

This is a rare opportunity to join a nationally significant organisation in a pivotal leadership role, influencing strategy, performance, regulation and investment decisions that will have a lasting impact on the future direction of the business.

The successful candidate will join an organisation with a strong sense of purpose, an ambitious long-term agenda and a commitment to operational excellence, innovation and continuous improvement.

In return, the organisation offers a highly competitive reward package alongside a flexible agile working environment, providing the opportunity to combine meaningful work with excellent career development and work-life flexibility.

The organisation is committed to building an inclusive workplace where diverse perspectives, experiences and backgrounds are valued and encouraged.

Confidentiality & Application Information

All enquiries will be handled in the strictest confidence.

Applicants are encouraged to include their current location, or intended relocation plans, on their CV to support the recruitment process.

Please only apply for this position if you have a current Right to Work status in the UK, as unfortunately the employer is not able to support Work Visas or Sponsorship.

CMA Recruitment Group is acting as a recruitment agency in relation to this role. CMA complies with all relevant UK legislation and does not discriminate on any protected characteristics. By completing the application process, you agree to the terms outlined in our Privacy Notice and that CMA may contact you in connection with your application in relation to CMA providing you with work finding services. Our Privacy Notice can be viewed under the privacy tab on our website.

Director of Financial Planning, Performance & Strategy

Location: Hampshire (Agile Working)
Salary: £130,000 + excellent benefits package, including car allowance, market-leading pension, private family healthcare, annual bonus and life assurance

The Opportunity

Our client is a large organisation operating within a complex and highly regulated industry, delivering essential services that support millions of users and businesses across the UK. The organisation is recognised for its commitment to operational excellence, innovation and long-term investment, and plays an important role within the UK's broader infrastructure landscape.

Reporting directly to the CFO and sitting on the Finance Leadership Team, this is one of the most senior finance leadership positions within the organisation. The role combines strategic finance, business partnering, performance leadership and business planning, providing the opportunity to influence decisions at Executive and Board level while helping shape the future direction of a critical organisation.

A key aspect will be leading the development of the organisation's long-term business plans, including the submission of major business planning and price control submissions with significant strategic and financial implications. You will act as a trusted adviser to senior stakeholders, providing insight, challenge and guidance on significant commercial, regulatory and investment decisions.

The Role

As Director of Financial Planning, Performance & Strategy, you will lead a team of senior finance professionals and drive the financial planning, forecasting and performance management agenda across the Group.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing strategic financial leadership as a trusted adviser to the CFO, Executive Team and Board.
• Leading the annual business planning process, ensuring alignment between strategic objectives, investment priorities, operational performance and financial outcomes.
• Driving organisational performance through robust forecasting, planning and decision support frameworks.
• Owning the Group performance management framework, ensuring clear links between business strategy and financial delivery.
• Leading and developing a high-performing finance leadership team, fostering a culture of insight-led decision making, accountability and continuous improvement.
• Representing the organisation with regulators, customers, industry bodies and other external stakeholders on financial, commercial and regulatory matters.
• Building strong relationships across the business to influence strategic decisions and drive financial performance.
• Driving improvements across FP&A processes, systems, reporting and analytical capability to create a modern, commercially focused finance function.
• Leading the development and submission of business plans relating to periodic price control reviews and acting as Bid Manager for these major strategic programmes.
• Chairing and contributing to governance forums, programme boards and cross-functional working groups.
• Supporting customer consultations and engagement with industry stakeholders.
• Providing financial leadership on investment cases, strategic projects, corporate transactions and business improvement initiatives.
• Supporting executive remuneration planning through performance target setting and value driver analysis.

The Person

We are seeking an exceptional finance leader with the credibility, strategic capability and influencing skills to operate at the highest level of a complex, highly regulated organisation.

You will be:

• A qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or CIMA).
• An experienced finance leader with a track record of advising Executive and Board-level stakeholders.
• Comfortable influencing major strategic decisions and managing complex stakeholder relationships.
• An accomplished leader of senior professional teams, achieving results through influence, coaching and alignment rather than direct supervision.
• Experienced in leading large-scale planning, regulatory, transformation or strategic programmes within complex organisations.
• A highly credible communicator, confident presenting complex information to Boards, Executives, regulators and external stakeholders.
• Commercially astute, with the ability to understand and influence operational as well as financial decision making.
• Experienced in producing high-quality management reporting, governance papers and strategic recommendations within demanding timescales.
• Naturally analytical, with strong problem-solving skills and the ability to bring clarity to complex and ambiguous challenges.
• Resilient, adaptable and comfortable making recommendations with significant commercial impact.

Experience within infrastructure, utilities, energy, rail, defence, nuclear or other regulated industries would be advantageous.

Why Apply?

This is a rare opportunity to join a nationally significant organisation in a pivotal leadership role, influencing strategy, performance, regulation and investment decisions that will have a lasting impact on the future direction of the business.

The successful candidate will join an organisation with a strong sense of purpose, an ambitious long-term agenda and a commitment to operational excellence, innovation and continuous improvement.

In return, the organisation offers a highly competitive reward package alongside a flexible agile working environment, providing the opportunity to combine meaningful work with excellent career development and work-life flexibility.

The organisation is committed to building an inclusive workplace where diverse perspectives, experiences and backgrounds are valued and encouraged.

Confidentiality & Application Information

All enquiries will be handled in the strictest confidence.

Applicants are encouraged to include their current location, or intended relocation plans, on their CV to support the recruitment process.

Please only apply for this position if you have a current Right to Work status in the UK, as unfortunately the employer is not able to support Work Visas or Sponsorship.

CMA Recruitment Group is acting as a recruitment agency in relation to this role. CMA complies with all relevant UK legislation and does not discriminate on any protected characteristics. By completing the application process, you agree to the terms outlined in our Privacy Notice and that CMA may contact you in connection with your application in relation to CMA providing you with work finding services. Our Privacy Notice can be viewed under the privacy tab on our website.