Finance and Operations Manager

The Role

Job Description: Finance & Operations Manager (Middle East) Role Overview Department: Finance Location: Dubai, UAE (with regional oversight across GCC and Philippines) Reports to: Group Finance Director Our client, an international design studio, is seeking a high-caliber Finance & Ope...

The Role
Job Description: Finance & Operations Manager (Middle East) Role Overview Department: Finance Location: Dubai, UAE (with regional oversight across GCC and Philippines) Reports to: Group Finance Director Our client, an international design studio, is seeking a high-caliber Finance & Operations Manager to lead the finance function across their GCC and Philippines studios. This is a pivotal role that blends financial leadership, operational rigour, and strategic business partnering. The successful candidate will navigate the unique commercial dynamics of a project-based design business-including WIP management, utilisation tracking, and resource-led revenue models-while ensuring regional compliance and driving operational excellence to support our continued growth. Key Responsibilities Financial Leadership & Reporting * Team Management: Lead and mentor a 4-person Finance & Operations team, fostering a culture of high performance, professional development, and technical excellence. * Management Accounts: Oversee the timely preparation of accurate monthly management accounts (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow), ensuring strong month-end controls and full IFRS compliance. * Consolidation: Manage the consolidation of financial reporting across UAE and KSA entities, delivering actionable insights for Board-level reporting. * Budgeting & Strategy: Lead the budgeting, forecasting, and rolling forecast processes, ensuring they are tightly aligned with pipeline activity and workforce planning. * Commercial Analysis: Provide sophisticated financial modelling and commercial analysis to support strategic decision-making by the Group FD, CFO, and Principal. Project & Operational Oversight * Project Financials: Take full ownership of project-based financial management, including WIP, utilisation tracking, recovery rates, margin analysis, and revenue recognition. * Commercial Partnering: Proactively support project review meetings to identify and mitigate financial risks, such as margin erosion, scope creep, and delayed billing. * Operational Integrity: Ensure the accuracy of timesheets, cost allocations, and milestone-based invoicing in strict alignment with contract terms. * Systems Optimization: Partner with the Group Finance Systems & Process Manager to drive the adoption, automation, and standardization of systems (including Deltek) across regional offices. Compliance & Governance * Regulatory Adherence: Lead statutory accounting, corporate tax, VAT, and Zakat compliance (including specific ZATCA requirements in KSA). Ensure adherence to FTA, FATCA, and other relevant regional regulations. * Audit Management: Lead the annual audit process, acting as the primary point of contact for external auditors and tax advisors. * Treasury & Payroll: Oversee regional payroll, pension schemes, and partner drawings; manage cash flow, treasury functions, and banking relationships to maintain strong AR performance.

Requirements
Qualifications, Experience & Skills * Professional Qualification: ACA, ACCA, CPA, or equivalent international accounting qualification. * Industry Experience: Proven experience in a project-based environment, ideally within architecture, design, engineering, or professional services. * Technical Expertise: * Deep knowledge of statutory accounting, audit management, and regional tax compliance. * Advanced proficiency in Excel and financial systems (experience with Deltek is highly preferred). * Operational Mindset: Strong understanding of internal controls, with a "hands-on" approach to process improvement and systems automation. * Leadership: Demonstrated experience in managing, mentoring, and developing small teams. * Communication: Exceptional ability to communicate complex financial concepts to non-financial senior stakeholders and leadership teams. * Personal Attributes: Proactive, solutions-oriented, and highly organized. Must be comfortable operating within a fast-paced, creative, and design-led studio environment.

About the company
Blake Anderson is a boutique consultancy based in the UK, with a satellite office in Dubai. Specialising in Technical and Construction Recruitment, Blake Anderson provides a superior service to clients and candidates within the construction and technical sectors. We concentrate on placing professionals throughout the world, focusing mainly on the Middle East and Asia, drawing on both the global and local markets for highly qualified professionals. In order to attract the best talent, we invest in various high-end advertising mediums. With a database of 1,000s of candidates, our experienced consultants have a wealth of recruitment knowledge and have a consultative approach at all times, ensuring a second to none service.