Head of Finance

SUMMARY:
Head of Finance | Johannesburg | Gauteng | Permanent
 
Ready to move from financial oversight into strategic business leadership?
 
A leading, large-scale organisation is seeking an experienced and commercially focused Head of Finance to provide strategic financial leadership across a complex business environment.

POSITION INFO:
This role offers the opportunity to operate at Executive level, partnering with EXCO, MANCO and senior stakeholders to influence strategy, profitability and long-term growth. You'll take ownership of financial planning and performance while driving commercial decision-making across pricing, tenders, contracts and profitability. You'll also lead initiatives focused on cost optimisation, cash flow, finance transformation, automation, governance and risk, while building and developing a high-performing finance team. With broad exposure across Finance, Commercial, Operations and Strategy, your expertise will have a direct and measurable impact on business performance. THE OPPORTUNITY As Head of Finance, you'll lead the financial strategy and performance of a significant business cluster, translating financial data into meaningful commercial insight and supporting senior leadership with informed, strategic decision-making. THIS ROLE IS FOR YOU IF... You're a finance leader who wants to influence the business, not simply report on it. You understand the connection between finance, operations and commercial performance, are confident engaging with senior stakeholders, and are motivated by driving measurable business improvement. If you're ready to shape strategy, improve performance and drive sustainable growth, we'd like to hear from you. Apply now via Salix Recruitment. Only candidates meeting the minimum requirements will be considered. Duties: Lead the divisional financial strategy, long-term planning, budgeting and forecasting. Provide strategic financial insight, scenario modelling and recommendations to EXCO and MANCO. Oversee financial reporting, accounting and controls, ensuring accurate and compliant reporting. Partner with Commercial and Sales teams on pricing, tenders, contract profitability and commercial risk. Take ownership of cash flow, working capital, liquidity and debtor performance. Drive margin optimisation, cost reduction and improved financial performance. Identify and address financial leakage, waste and operational inefficiencies. Lead finance transformation, automation, ERP and BI initiatives to improve efficiency and data quality. Oversee tax, audit, statutory and regulatory compliance, ensuring a strong governance environment. Strengthen financial systems, processes, controls and risk management across the business. Lead, coach and develop the finance team, including performance management and succession planning. Act as a strategic business partner to senior leadership, using financial and commercial insight to support sustainable growth. Job Experience & Skills Required: Qualifications: Matric (Grade 12) BCom Accounting BCom Honours CA(SA) or completed CIMA qualification - essential. Experience: 10+ years' senior financial management experience, including full-cycle accounting. Minimum 5 years' experience in a Senior Leadership \/ Executive Finance role. Proven commercial finance experience, including pricing, tenders and contract profitability. Strong experience in financial risk management, tax, IFRS and compliance. Experience overseeing payroll, audits and statutory reporting. Advanced MS Office, Excel and ERP proficiency. Experience leading cross-functional teams and large improvement projects. Strong leadership, communication, analytical and problem-solving capabilities. Experience in a large, operationally complex environment will be highly advantageous. Project Management certification such as PMI\/PRINCE2 would be advantageous. Lean Six Sigma \/ Business Optimisation experience would be advantageous. Knowledge of AI technologies and their business applications will be advantageous. Skills & Competencies: Strategic financial leadership & commercial acumen Executive stakeholder management & business partnering Financial planning, budgeting & forecasting Advanced financial analysis & scenario modelling Commercial pricing, tender & contract management Profitability, margin optimisation & cost management Financial governance, risk & internal controls IFRS, tax, audit & statutory compliance Cash flow & working capital management Finance transformation, automation & process improvement Leadership, coaching & team development Strong analytical, problem-solving & decision-making skills If you have not had any response in two weeks, please consider the vacancy application unsuccessful. Your profile will be kept on our database for any other suitable roles \/ positions.