The Financial Director will provide strategic and operational financial leadership for the organization's international food and restaurant business. The role will oversee financial planning, reporting, budgeting, controls, commercial finance, and risk management across multiple markets.
The ideal candidate brings strong experience in the food, restaurant, hospitality, FMCG, or consumer-facing industry, with a proven track record of managing finance functions across international or multi-country operations.
The Financial Director will partner closely with the CEO, Executive Leadership Team, Operations, Commercial, Supply Chain, and other key stakeholders to drive sustainable growth, profitability, and financial discipline.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Financial Leadership:
- Develop and execute the company's financial strategy in support of international business objectives.
- Provide financial insights and recommendations to the CEO and Executive Leadership Team.
- Evaluate business performance, growth opportunities, investments, and expansion plans.
- Lead financial planning and decision-making across multiple countries or business units.
- Establish financial targets, KPIs, and performance measures aligned with business objectives.
Financial Planning & Analysis:
- Lead the annual budgeting, forecasting, and long-range financial planning processes.
- Monitor actual performance against budget and forecast, identifying key variances and corrective actions.
- Develop financial models and scenario analyses to support strategic and operational decisions.
- Provide profitability analysis by country, market, store, product, channel, and business segment.
- Identify opportunities to improve margins, reduce costs, and optimize operating expenses.
International Finance & Business Operations:
- Oversee financial management across international markets and ensure consistency of financial practices.
- Partner with country and regional leadership teams to drive financial performance.
- Support market entry, new store openings, acquisitions, partnerships, and other expansion initiatives.
- Assess country-specific financial risks, foreign exchange exposure, taxation considerations, and regulatory requirements.
- Ensure effective cash flow and working capital management across markets.
Food & Restaurant Finance:
- Provide financial oversight of restaurant/store operations, including:
- Sales and revenue performance
- Food and labor costs
- Store-level profitability
- Gross margin
- Inventory and wastage
- Supply chain costs
- Rent and occupancy costs
- Store operating expenses
- Establish financial benchmarks and KPIs to improve restaurant/store profitability.
- Partner with Operations and Supply Chain teams to identify cost-saving and efficiency opportunities.
- Support pricing, menu/product profitability, promotions, and other commercial decisions.
Financial Reporting & Controls:
- Oversee timely and accurate monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reporting.
- Ensure financial statements and management reports comply with applicable accounting standards and company requirements.
- Strengthen internal controls, financial governance, and risk management frameworks.
- Ensure compliance with statutory, tax, audit, and regulatory requirements across applicable markets.
- Coordinate with external auditors, tax advisors, banks, and other financial partners.
Commercial Finance:
- Provide financial guidance on pricing, promotions, product launches, and business initiatives.
- Analyze customer, product, channel, and market profitability.
- Evaluate capital investments and return on investment.
- Support negotiations with suppliers, landlords, franchise partners, and other commercial stakeholders.
- Develop business cases for new initiatives and expansion opportunities.
Leadership & Team Development:
- Lead, develop, and mentor the Finance team across relevant markets.
- Establish clear objectives, performance standards, and development plans for finance leaders and team members.
- Build a high-performing, commercially oriented Finance organization.
- Promote strong financial discipline and accountability across the business.
- Develop finance capabilities that support the organization's international growth strategy.
Key Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, Economics, or a related field.
- CPA, ACCA, CA, CMA, or equivalent professional qualification is highly preferred.
- 12+ years of progressive Finance/Accounting experience, including significant leadership experience.
- Proven experience as a Finance Director, Financial Controller, Regional Finance Director, CFO, or equivalent senior finance leadership role.
- Strong experience in an international or multi-country organization.
- Food industry experience is highly preferred, particularly in:
- Restaurants
- Quick-Service Restaurants (QSR)
- Food & Beverage
- FMCG
- Hospitality
- Retail food operations
- Franchise operations
- Experience managing financial operations across multiple countries, business units, or markets.
- Strong understanding of P&L management, budgeting, forecasting, cash flow, working capital, and financial controls.
- Experience supporting business expansion, new market entry, acquisitions, or large-scale growth initiatives.
- Strong commercial and strategic finance capabilities.
Preferred Experience:
The ideal candidate should have experience in a high-volume, multi-site, and fast-paced food or consumer business, preferably within an international organization.
Experience with franchise models, restaurant chains, multi-country operations, store-level P&L management, and international expansion will be a strong advantage.
Core Competencies
- Strategic Financial Leadership
- International Finance Management
- Commercial Finance
- P&L Management
- Financial Planning & Analysis
- Budgeting & Forecasting
- Cash Flow & Working Capital Management
- Business Performance Management
- Risk Management & Internal Controls
- M&A / Investment Analysis
- Cost Optimization
- Stakeholder Management
- Executive Communication
- Leadership & People Development
- Strategic Decision-Making
Key Performance Indicators
- Revenue and profitability growth
- EBITDA and margin improvement
- Budget and forecast accuracy
- Store/business unit profitability
- Working capital and cash flow performance
- Cost optimization and productivity improvement
- Financial reporting accuracy and timeliness
- Internal control and audit compliance
- ROI of investments and expansion initiatives
- Successful financial support of international growth
Reporting Relationship
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer / Group Chief Financial Officer
Key Stakeholders: Executive Leadership Team, Country/Regional Heads, Operations, Commercial, Supply Chain, HR, Legal, Tax, Audit, and Finance teams.
Work Environment
The role operates in a fast-paced international food business and may require regular interaction with country leadership teams and travel to different markets, restaurants, stores, offices, and business locations as required.
