Chief Financial Officer

Hand in Hand International is partnering exclusively with Robertson Bell to recruit a Financial Accountant on a permanent, part-time basis.   

This role offers a rare opportunity to work for a charity that helps millions of women in some of the world’s poorest countries succeed as entrepreneurs and work their way out of poverty.  The role also offers the possibility for international travel, excellent benefits, being a part of a passionate and high performing team, as well as definitive room for growth and development, e.g. 3 staff members were promoted internally at the start of this financial year.

Hand in Hand International is a growing charity that is increasing its reach geographically.  Current areas being supported includes Eastern Africa and Afghanistan.  The current strategic plan to 2026 has an ambitious target to increase income by 15% each year and expand reach by launching programmes in Zimbabwe and Uganda in the next year. 

The Organisation

At Hand in Hand, we help women beat the odds and succeed as entrepreneurs. The money they earn and the confidence they gain changes everything. Whole families and communities rise with them.

Since 2003, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, we’ve helped more than 5 million women launch small businesses that can stand the test of time. Some are smallholder farmers learning to stand up to climate change. Some are refugees starting a new life after running from conflict. Others are young women and girls with few opportunities, starting to dream – and plan – for the future.

Hand in Hand International is based in Baker Street, central London, with a hybrid working policy. Our team works with partners throughout the global Hand in Hand network, specialising in fundraising, strategic and programmes advice, and donor relations.

Why Work at Hand in Hand International?

• Work-life balance (Hybrid)
  We offer a hybrid working model, with staff working from home on Mondays and Fridays and from our Baker Street office Tuesday-Thursday. Flexible working requests (including compressed hours) will be considered for this role.
• Positive, inclusive culture
  Being an employer of choice is one of Hand in Hand's six strategic goals. We aim to have an 80% recommender score (measured via our yearly staff survey). We believe diversity drives innovation and excellence and aim to recruit 33% of all new roles from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the charity sector. 
• Sector-best parental leave
  We offer employees parental leave at 20 weeks’ full pay or equivalent to new mothers or primary caregivers and 13 weeks’ full pay or equivalent to new fathers or secondary caregivers (this also applies for adoption and surrogacy). We also offer five days paid dependents’ leave per year.
• International travel
  In this role you will have the opportunity to travel to Kenya and Tanzania and meet the entrepreneurs we support.
• Employer pension contributions
  6.5% 
• Working from home stipend
  We provide a monthly contribution towards working from home. 
• Professional development
  As part of a growing team, you will have opportunities to progress and develop in your role and access external training if required.
• Cycle to Work scheme
  Receive a bicycle worth up to £1,000 tax-free, repaid over 12 months by means of salary sacrifice.

Role and Responsibilities

Reporting directly to the Director of Finance and working closely with the Senior Programme Finance Officer, the primary objective of the role is to manage the monthly and annual accounts, prepare for and lead the end-to-end statutory audit and support the wider organisation with financial insight and guidance.

• Monthly accounts: maintain financial records and produce monthly management reports. Prepare financial reports for quarterly board meetings.
• Annual accounts: prepare the annual financial accounts, including the Trustees’ Annual Report.
• Lead the audit process: manage the audit process and be the key contact for the auditor during the audit fieldwork and follow up.
• Organisational budget: support the Director of Finance with development of the annual organisational budget. Liaise with budget holders across the organisation (fundraising, programmes, communications, office management and CEO) on a regular basis to manage spend against the annual organisational budget.
• Support the wider team with financial information and insights: provide financial information or conduct analysis to support the activities of the wider organisation, including due diligence information required for proposals for funding opportunities.
• Provide guidance to our network partners’ finance teams: for example, reviewing our overseas network partners’ annual accounts and finance policies. Liaise with the Treasurer of Friends of Hand in Hand in New York to manage donations from the US.
• Compliance: support the Director of Finance with the reviewing and updating organisational policies, including risk, governance and the Finance Manual. Ensure that regulatory requirements for staff training are met, such as anti-bribery, cyber security and data protection.
• Manage invoices and purchase orders: manage the invoices tracker and purchase orders system to ensure that the appropriate approvals are obtained, and suppliers are paid on time. Support with payments and monitor bank income for the fundraising team.
• Manage trademarks: work with the CEO to maintain global trademarks for the Hand in Hand network.
• Gift aid: ensure that gift aid is claimed on all eligible donations in a timely manner.
• Staff timesheets: monitor monthly staff timesheets for projects that require them. Manage analysis of staff time across projects and provide actual spend for project reports. In time, we would like to implement a more sophisticated timesheet system and the Financial Accountant could take the lead on this project.

Person Specification

Skills and Knowledge

• Accountancy qualification required (ACA/ACCA/CIMA).
• Experience and up-to-date knowledge of SORP accounting.
• Experience of preparing accounts under the charity SORP.
• Experience of QuickBooks and/or Sage accounting systems.
• Experience working in the non-profit sector.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills.
• Strong attention to detail, with good analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Structured and organised - with the ability to prioritise a variety of tasks in line with team needs.
• Excellent cross-cultural awareness and sensitivity.

Desirable

• An understanding of the charity sector, women’s rights, climate, or international development.
• Educated to degree level or equivalent relevant work experience.

We treat all applications equally, however we actively encourage applications from people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, people who identify as LGBT+, who have a disability, as well as those from a working-class background, as these groups are currently under-represented in the charity sector. Our aim is to become a truly inclusive organisation, with a workforce as diverse as the communities we serve.