Finance Manager
Role - Finance Manager
Reporting to - Client Director
Salary (dependant on experience & qualifications) - £45,000 to £60,000
Location - Working from Home (UK)
Overview of the Role
The UK tech sector is growing rapidly and becoming an increasingly important part of the economy. At Onside, we’ve built a genuinely differentiated way to support tech-led businesses, combining premium client service with modern systems, automation and commercial thinking.
We believe the strongest professional services firms of the future will be technology-led by design, with automation and data removing low-value work so people can focus on judgement, relationships and impact. Onside is being built deliberately around that belief. We are not just users of technology; we are, in part, a technology company ourselves, backed by Multiplier, a San Francisco–based, AI-native professional services company designed to transform our industry.
As a Finance Manager, you’ll run clients day-to-day, acting as a trusted point of delivery while working closely with a Client Director who retains overall responsibility for client service and commercial outcomes. Strong performers in this role are given meaningful autonomy and responsibility. You’ll support high-growth, VC-backed clients with their growth challenges, including systems and process evolution, investor reporting and fundraising considerations. This role suits people who take ownership, work well at pace and want exposure to modern finance in a high-growth, tech-led environment.
You must be confident managing priorities, delivering work independently and collaborating effectively in a remote environment, including throughout the initial training and induction period.
This role requires substantial experience of long-term homeworking within a UK accounting practice. Remote working experience gained solely during Covid-19 restrictions will not be considered. Applicants from formal hybrid arrangements may be considered, provided homeworking was a long-term, contracted arrangement involving typically two to three days per week working from home.
Key Responsibilities
Finance Managers are responsible for:
- Ownership, including preparation and review of year-end accounts, corporation tax returns and management reporting.
- Leading client communication and relationship management across their portfolio.
- Reviewing and approving VAT returns (complex cases escalated to the Client Director).
- Overseeing accounts payable processes and outsourced bookkeeping providers.
- Reviewing outsourced bookkeeping work and ensuring accuracy of reconciliations and records.
- Completing hands-on accounting and reconciliation work when required to maintain quality and meet deadlines.
- Monitoring time, overruns and recoveries, escalating scope drift appropriately.
- Supporting clients to follow efficient processes and improving workflows.
- Implementing and refining financial controls and processes, feeding improvements back into systems.
- Championing technology, automation and system improvements to improve accuracy and scalability.
- Monitoring KPIs and portfolio profitability, escalating concerns to the Client Director.
- Identifying and driving opportunities for upsells and cross-sells (Onside Tax, US services, CFO services etc).
Essential Criteria
The essential criteria are non-negotiable and reflect the level of autonomy, accountability and remote-working maturity required for this role. Applications that do not clearly demonstrate these will not be progressed.
- ACA / ACCA qualified (or equivalent) OR AAT qualified and studying towards ACA / ACCA (or equivalent)
- 5+ years’ experience in a UK accounting practice (VAT, month-end and year-end experience is vital)
- Experience of owning a defined client portfolio of 10+ clients and working in a fast-paced environment, including experience of onboarding new clients
- Strong technical accounting capability (statutory accounts, VAT and corporation tax), including strong Xero experience
- Experience reviewing others’ work and owning quality.
- Extensive structured home-working experience (non-covid) – as a minimum, contractually agreed hybrid homeworking at least two days each week
Residency Requirements
This is a home-working role with all staff at Onside working from home across in the UK, therefore at the time of application, you must be resident in and have a legal right to work in the UK.
You will be expected and required to undertake and complete any other duties as deemed relevant to position and the business needs of the company.
This job description will be subject to periodic review and amendment in consultation with the post-holder(s).