Finance Manager

Own end-to-end financial management for a growing events business.

Wildkind is scaling from three events to seven over the next three years, and we need someone to own our finances completely. You will be the sole finance person in the business, responsible for everything from bookkeeping and payroll through to management accounts, budgeting, forecasting and cash flow planning. You will build the financial systems and controls a growing company needs, and your work will directly shape how we invest, spend and grow.

If that is the kind of ownership you want, this could be the position for you. You'll build something real, and see the difference it makes to people's lives.

About Wildkind

Wildkind is primarily an events business, with two market-leading outdoor events: Camp Wildfire and Camp Kindling. Founded in 2015 and growing rapidly, we aim to take our events worldwide to inspire, challenge and entertain over 1 million customers.

Our mission: To spark curiosity, encourage endeavour and create joy.

Our culture: We are ambitious and hard working, with a supportive, growth-focussed culture that invests in education and experimentation to push your abilities. We champion diverse skill sets, perspectives and discussion; everyone is encouraged to be themselves and input at all levels. We care deeply about our impact on customers, colleagues, communities and the environment, and we promote creativity and adventure in everything we do.

Key Information

• Salary: £56,000 - £68,000 FTE (£44,800 - £54,400 for 4 days per week)
• Working pattern: 4 days per week, hybrid, minimum 2 days in the office
• Location: Larcom House, 9 Larcom St, London SE17 1RT
• Application deadline: 18th May 2026
• Working hours: Starting between 09:00 and 10:00 each day
• Annual leave: 30 days (including public holidays), pro-rated for 4 days per week
• Benefits: Bupa health and dental, £1,000 learning budget, profit share, monthly team socials, Wild Working, Cycle to Work and industry perks. Full details on our careers page.
• Start date: July or August 2026

We publish the full hiring range. We benchmark pay at the 60th percentile of the market using independent salary data, and we don't negotiate above the top of the range. Where you land reflects the experience you bring on day one.

Your Mission

Own Wildkind's financial management end to end, from day-to-day bookkeeping, bank reconciliations and payroll through to management accounts, budgeting, forecasting and cash flow planning. Ensure the business has accurate, timely financial information to make good decisions, and build the financial controls and processes that will support the company as it scales its events portfolio.

Your Objectives

By the end of your first year:

1. Full ownership of financial operations, with bank accounts reconciled weekly, month-end close running smoothly, and the relationship with our external accountants managed so they handle only year-end accounts and VAT return sign-off.
2. Management accounts produced regularly with clear commentary, and event-level profitability reporting in place so the team can see performance per event and per attendee.
3. A rolling cash flow forecast that accounts for seasonal revenue patterns, with the company's cash holdings actively managed to generate better returns within an agreed approval framework.
4. Payroll, pensions and employee benefits running accurately and on time, with you as the single point of contact for all team financial queries.
5. Financial policies, approval workflows and system integrations defined and documented, so that processes are scalable and not dependent on one person.

Your Responsibilities

As a company we focus on objectives and results, with individuals driving the decisions on the best ways to achieve them. The list below is a starting point; you will shape it.

• Take over day-to-day bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, payment runs and expense processing in Xero within your first month.
• Produce management accounts with variance commentary and present them to the leadership team.
• Build and maintain event-level profitability models covering revenue, cost and margin per event and per attendee.
• Own the annual budgeting process, working with department leads to set realistic budgets for each event and business area.
• Maintain a rolling cash flow forecast and actively manage the company's cash balances, including placing funds in higher-yield accounts where appropriate.
• Process payroll, manage pension contributions and handle all employee tax obligations accurately and on time.
• Establish expense policies, credit card limits and the double-verification payment process where you raise payments and the Managing Director approves.
• Define how Xero, Stripe and the ecommerce platform should be connected and document the requirements for the technical team to build.
• Identify and manage R&D tax credit claims and other available tax reliefs.

Your Experience

Must-haves:

• You have owned end-to-end financial operations in a small or medium-sized business, including bookkeeping, management accounts and cash flow management.
• You have produced management accounts independently and presented them to senior stakeholders who are not finance specialists.
• You are experienced with Xero and comfortable defining how integrations between financial systems should work.
• You have managed payroll end to end, including PAYE, NI, pensions auto-enrolment and employee queries.
• You have built or significantly improved financial processes, controls or policies in a growing business.

Nice-to-haves:

• You hold or are working towards a professional qualification (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent).
• You have experience reconciling high volumes of small transactions from payment processors like Stripe.
• You have worked in a seasonal business where revenue is concentrated in specific periods and costs are spread year-round.
• You have managed R&D tax credit claims or other specialist tax reliefs.
• You have experience with budgeting and forecasting for events, hospitality or experience-led businesses.

We don't require a degree; we care about what you can do.

Research shows that strong candidates, particularly women and people from underrepresented groups, often only apply when they meet every criterion. If you meet the must-haves and the role excites you, we would love you to apply even if you don't tick every nice-to-have.

This role is probably not for you if.....

• You want a finance team around you from day one. You will be the only finance person in a team of ten.
• You prefer established systems and processes. Much of this role is building them from scratch.
• You want to stay in the numbers and not talk to anyone. You will need to explain budgets, spending and financial performance to non-finance colleagues regularly.
• You prefer fully remote work. The role requires at least two days per week in the London office.

How to apply

Submit your CV and answer five application questions via our application form.

Please don't send a cover letter. The five application questions are how we assess you; we read them all, and a strong answer beats a polished cover letter.

Using AI to help you draft is acceptable; it won't put you ahead or behind. We score on specific, personal examples, so the best answers come from your own experience either way.

Application Process

1. Screening interview
2. Experience and values interview
3. Role-relevant task
4. References and offer

We aim to complete the process within 4 weeks of the application deadline.

We use AI to process applications efficiently; a human reviews every one before any decision is made.

Equal Opportunities & Accessibility

• Wildkind is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome and encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds, and we know diverse teams make better decisions. If you need adjustments to the application or interview process, for any reason, tell us when you apply and we will make it work. We review every application personally.