Rutherford Cross is delighted to be retained by Klarent Hospitality to appoint a Head of Finance to be based at their Head Office in Glasgow.

Klarent Hospitality are the market leaders in hotel investment and management. They currently manage a portfolio of 27 hotels in the UK and Ireland, trading under prestigious, international brands such as Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, DoubleTree by Hilton, Mercure and Ibis Styles.

Rebranded in 2021, Klarent’s predecessor Amaris Hospitality was created under LoneStar ownership in 2015. In the last eight years, the Klarent team has developed a proven track record in delivering operational excellence, exceptional customer experiences and superior service and shareholder returns through people development, active operational management and smart capital investment.

The business currently has circa 3,000 employees and a hotel portfolio covering Scotland, England and Ireland. Klarent Hospitality is owned by Henderson Park Capital Partners, a private equity real estate firm headquartered in London that has clocked up over $13bn in real estate investment deals since 2019.

The Head of Finance role is a newly formed position for the company, which will report directly to the Chief Financial Officer who sits on the Board alongside the CEO, Chair and Shareholder Group. This role will act as a key advisor to the CFO and the Senior Management Team and is a pivotal hire for the company as they continue to scale, supporting the business with its strategic plans for future growth.

The Head of Finance will be accountable for owning all day-to-day activity for key aspects of the CFO’s broad remit, running and driving areas of delegated authority. Subject to performance, the intention is that the Head of Finance role will be rapidly expanded to cover an increasingly broad remit. The CFO role is a Board level position with responsibility across all core Finance areas plus IT, Payroll, Procurement, and many strategic areas, including acquisitions and disposals. With the CFO demands being at this level, a highly capable Head of Finance is needed to support the organisation and play a key role in their upwards trajectory.

With Klarent’s current growth plans, the Head of Finance will require an individual capable of performing the role as it stands today but also in the future as the business scales in size and complexity and the remit of the role broadens.

Key Activities and Responsibilities:

Role growth and title change will depend on capability and consistent successful delivery of each area taken-on until critical mass is achieved within the Head of Finance role.

It is envisaged that the initial areas of ownership day 1 will include:

• Overall responsibility for the operational finance function, including overseeing production of the monthly management accounts, accounts payable, banking and related systems and controls
• Capital funding and lender engagement
• Capex monitoring and reporting
• Corporate Insurance suite management
• Ownership of 5-year planning and modelling

In time the role is then expected to progress to cover additional areas including:

• Accounts receivable department (complex yet significantly automated given nature of business). To be placed within wider team but requires regular senior oversight
• Payroll department for c2,000 staff
• Procurement for a significant proportion of the total business spend
• Significant areas of the financial control environment
• Cashflow and Treasury management

Qualifications and Experience:

• Qualified Accountant (ICAS / CIMA / ACCA or equivalent) with appropriate post qualification experience
• Previous experience operating at a senior level within a fast-moving business
• Experienced finance professional with a proven track record of success within a similar, challenging role
• Experienced people leader, able to develop and lead teams
• Willing to take ownership for driving performance across the business, seeking involvement and engagement in all value drivers appropriately
• A strong relationship builder who will challenge and collaborate internally and externally
• Keen eye for detail; able to review processes, suggest and drive improvements
• Significant technical skills across a broad range of financial disciplines
• A good strategic thinker who can execute key decisions in a balanced way, effectively assessing the risk versus opportunity equation
• Commercial mindset, able to support growth activities

A significant salary is available commensurate with the background and experience required for the role along with a generous bonus scheme designed to reward exceptional operators.

Additional benefits include matched pension contributions to 10% of pensionable salary, personal BUPA cover and various industry-specific offers and discounts.