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Senior Accounting Manager - Charles Hurst

Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

About us: We are one of the top three automotive retailers in the UK, proudly representing 32 manufacturer brands, selling a huge range of new and used vehicles from over 150 dealerships across the UK and Ireland.  

We believe our people are our greatest asset, and we’re committed to recognising the valuable contribution each person makes. That’s why we continue to invest in a leading rewards and benefits package designed to support your career, wellbeing, and life outside of work.

 

Location: Northern Ireland, Belfast
Reporting To: Head of Commercial and Operational Finance
Salary: Competitive basic salary + bonus up to 10% + Company Car / Car Allowance

The Senior Accounting Manager is a strategic and leadership position within the Finance department, responsible for the accounting cycle and financial performance of the Charles Hurst Division. The role requires a combination of an accounting skillset to ensure financial control and commercial acumen to partner with the Heads of Business and Operational Teams to drive business performance.

Key Responsibilities:

Financial Controllership

  • Complete final reviews, commentary and sign-off of the Division P&L and Balance Sheet; and embed a rigorous and consistent balance sheet process across dealerships
  • Embed strong financial controls and compliance processes to safeguard the business, ensuring consistency across the division

Leadership and Team Development

  • Lead, coach, and develop the Divisional Accounting team, fostering a high-performance culture
  • Complete performance appraisals and manage the career development of the team
  • Drive accounting agenda ins with the Heads of Business and Operations Teams to discuss the Division’s financial performance and plan, ensuring we are focusing on the right metrics and being led by current business strategy and performance

Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting

  • Collaborate with Finance Business Partners to deliver accurate forecasts and financial plans (profit, cash flow, costs)
  • Work with finance business partners and Heads of Finance to deliver a robust budgeting process

Performance Insights & Analysis

  • Working with the Business Partners to provide analysis of the Division’s financial performance and KPIs to Heads of Business and Operations Teams
  • Influence operational decisions through data-driven insights

Audit Preparation

  • Coordinate the preparation of all necessary documentation for internal and external auditors and ensure internal policies are relevant and complied with

Management Accounts and Reporting

  • Provide final analysis and executive commentary on Divisional reporting sent to the Group’s Leadership Team

Working Capital Control

  • Oversee working capital performance across the Division and ensure there is necessary cash flow to meet obligations under Financial Controllership
  • Ensure vehicle funding positions are maintained, stock targets understood and a key KPI in divisions; and debt is proactively reduced

Composite Reporting

  • Complete final reviews, commentary and sign-off of the composite reports, ensuring consistency across the division

 

What We’re Looking For:

  • Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA) preferable
  • Proven track record in senior accounting roles within automotive, retail, or multi-site environments
  • Strong technical expertise combined with commercial awareness
  • Advanced MS Excel skills and experience with Dealer Management Systems (Keyloop, Pinewood)
  • Detail-oriented, proactive, and passionate about process improvement and system optimisation
  • Experience of people management

Why Join Us?

  • A strategic leadership role with real impact on business performance and the opportunity to lead and shape the finance function
  • Competitive package including bonus and car allowance
  • Opportunity to pursue a broad finance career within Lookers
  • Training and development support
  • Hybrid working model with flexibility and autonomy

Core Benefits:

  • Competitive salaries with structured pay scales and progression as you grow within the business
  • Generous annual leave that increases with your length of service
  • Enhanced family leave, including 6 months’ full pay for maternity and adoption leave, and 2 weeks’ full pay for paternity leave
  • Access to Techscheme for discounted technology purchases with flexible payments

Health & Wellbeing:

  • Eyecare vouchers to help cover vision care needs
  • Smart Health – 24/7 access to GP services to support your mental and physical wellbeing
  • Dental insurance for everyday dental care and unexpected treatments
  • Optional critical illness cover for peace of mind during life's most challenging moments

Financial Wellbeing:

  • MyView PayNow – access a portion of your pay as you earn, with features to stream, save, and track your money through a user-friendly app
  • Free will writing services to help plan for the future
  • Flexible life assurance options and partner life assurance for added protection

Leisure & Lifestyle:

  • Discounted gym memberships to support an active lifestyle
  • Travel insurance to help you explore with confidence
  • Access to home and technology vouchers
  • bYond card and a wide range of exclusive retail and lifestyle discounts

We strongly believe in nurturing and providing our people with specific manufacturer brand and management training to enhance career development opportunities. We have a great bunch of people, and we like to celebrate and encourage success at all levels.

Lookers and Charles Hurst are an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to a working environment that is free from discrimination, is inclusive, and empowers our people to bring their whole self to work and reach their full potential. 

If your application is successful, we will conduct relevant employment checks prior to you commencing employment with us. These will include verifying your recent employment, address, credit history and a standard criminal record check. For roles that require you to drive, a driving licence check will also be carried out. Please note, all offers of employment are made subject to a 6 month probation period commencing from your start date.

We take our data protection responsibilities very seriously and are committed to upholding and respecting your privacy rights. Information about how we will process your data including the types of data we collect, the purposes for which we use it, who we may share it with and how long we keep it are set out in our privacy notice. It also includes information about your individual privacy rights. Please make sure you read our Privacy Notice so that you understand how we may collect and use your data.

 

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Diversity & Inclusion

We are an Equal Opportunities Employer. We do not discriminate against our job applicants or employees and we aim to select the best person for the job. We monitor the community background and sex of our job applicants and employees in order to demonstrate our commitment to promoting equality of opportunity in employment and to comply with our duties under the Fair Employment & Treatment (NI) Order 1998.

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