Head of Finance – Contracting & Construction

Reporting to:

Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Chief Operating Officer (COO) – Contracting Vertical & Senior Leadership Team

We are looking for an experienced Head of Finance – Contracting & Construction to lead the finance function supporting our growing construction and contracting vertical. This is a senior commercial finance leadership role combining financial leadership, project finance, cost control, business planning, management reporting and strategic business partnering.

Reporting directly to the Group CFO, the role will work closely with the COO and senior leadership team of the contracting vertical, providing timely and commercially focused financial insight to support project delivery, profitability, cash generation, resource allocation and business growth.

The role will operate as an integral part of the Group Finance function, leveraging Group Finance shared services and working closely with Group Treasury, Financial Reporting, Tax, FP&A and other corporate finance teams to ensure strong governance, consistency and integration across the Group.

• Lead the finance function supporting the Group's construction and contracting businesses across multiple legal entities and projects.
• Act as the key finance business partner to the COO and contracting senior leadership team, translating financial information into actionable commercial and operational insights.
• Provide leadership with clear visibility of business performance, profitability, cash flow, financial risks and opportunities.
• Challenge business assumptions and support management in making financially sound operational and strategic decisions.
• Ensure finance is fully integrated into operational and commercial decision‑making rather than operating solely as a reporting function.

• Lead financial oversight of the contracting project portfolio, ensuring robust project accounting, job costing and cost control.
• Establish and maintain effective project financial structures covering budgets, commitments, actual costs, revenue, WIP, accruals, variations, retentions and profitability.
• Monitor project performance against approved budgets, forecasts and cost-to-complete estimates.
• Partner with Project Directors, Project Managers, Commercial, Contracts, Procurement and Operations teams to identify cost overruns, margin erosion and financial risks early.
• Review project cash flows, billing, collections, subcontractor commitments, payment certificates and retention balances.
• Ensure accurate project profitability and timely recognition of revenue and costs in accordance with applicable accounting standards and Group policies.
• Support commercial and project teams on variations, claims, extensions of time and other contractual matters from a financial perspective.

• Lead the annual budgeting and periodic forecasting process for the contracting vertical in alignment with Group Finance requirements.
• Develop project and business‑level financial forecasts, including revenue, gross margin, overheads, cash flow, working capital and capital requirements.
• Establish effective project financial KPIs and performance dashboards.
• Provide monthly management reporting with meaningful variance analysis and clear recommendations for corrective action.
• Support tendering and new project decisions through financial modelling, margin analysis, cash‑flow assessment and commercial evaluation.

• Work closely with Group Treasury to ensure effective cash management across the contracting businesses.
• Develop and maintain accurate project and entity‑level cash‑flow forecasts.
• Monitor working capital, collections, payables, retention, advances and project cash conversion.
• Support the business in optimizing cash generation while maintaining appropriate supplier and subcontractor relationships.
• Provide timely visibility of funding requirements, bank guarantees, bonding and other financial commitments.

• Work closely with Group Finance shared services covering…