Your new company
Hays are currently partnered exclusively with a specialist manufacturing business, who are one of the leading brands in their market, to recruit their new Finance Director & General Manager. This company is a family-owned and operated business that has built a strong reputation on delivery, quality and innovation.
This role will be pivotal in the leadership of that growth and be instrumental in the development of operations.
Your new role
You will report directly to the owners of the business and oversee the senior leadership team. You will work with the various Heads of departments to identify areas of continuous improvement, develop commercial, financial and operational goals, and drive the outcomes of those decisions.
The role will be 100% office based between 2 sites in South Norfolk (4 days) and Lincolnshire (1 day).

Leadership Context
*Acts as the day - to - day leadership anchor within the business
*Drives accountability and execution across all functions
*Connects Managing Director direction to delivery

Your responsibilities will include:Financial Performance & Commercial Control
*Lead and oversee the Finance function (reporting to the GM), with full accountability for overall P&L performance.
*Maintain a strong focus on margin, cost control, and cash discipline
*In conjunction with the Head of Finance, bring rigour and consistency to financial reporting and operational KPI tracking.
*Ensure financial insight is embedded in operational and commercial decision - making
*Ensure clear ownership of financial performance across functions, not just within Finance
*Challenge performance where required -this role demands commercial rigour alongside strong operational understanding.

Systems, Structure & Process
*Partner with the Managing Director to lead the full adoption and effective use of a new system as the core operating platform across all departments.
*Drive alignment in how systems are used across the business, eliminating duplication, manual work, and disconnected processes
*Ensure the business operates in a joined - up system environment, reducing reliance on manual workarounds
*Develop and deliver a systems and process strategy that supports growth without adding unnecessary complexity
*Strengthen reporting, communication, and management cadence
*Build scalable systems that support efficiency, control, and performance

People & Culture Leadership
*Be a visible, high - energy leadership presence across both sites
*Build trust and credibility at all levels
*Drive a culture of accountability, ownership, and delivery
*Develop leadership capability across site and functional teams
*Maintain the strengths of each site’s culture while strengthening overall cohesion

Operational Leadership
*Partner with the Managing Directors, Heads of Functions, Site and Plant Managers to drive manufacturing performance across both sites.
*Drive pace and discipline in performance management, ensuring issues are surfaced, owned, and resolved quickly.
*Establish clear operational standards and ensure consistent execution across both sites
*Support site leadership teams to improve output, efficiency, and cost control through challenge, support, and shared best practice.
*Leverage group scale in procurement, supplier management, and cost control to improve performance
*Champion continuous improvement, ensuring ideas and efficiencies move across sites -not remain isolated

People & Culture Leadership
*Be a visible, high - energy leadership presence across both sites
*Build trust and credibility at all levels
*Drive a culture of accountability, ownership, and delivery
*Develop leadership capability across site and functional teams
*Maintain the strengths of each site’s culture while strengthening overall cohesion

Growth & Business Delivery
*Drive momentum behind the next phase of growth, particularly at the Lound site
*Ensure successful ramp - up and integration of the new carousel facility
*Identify and remove constraints to growth -operational, structural, or cultural
*Support commercial teams in aligning capacity with demand

What you’ll need to succeed
You will:
*Be a fully qualified accountant with strong commercial acumen.
*Have a proven track record of delivering systems change, streamlining and efficiency
*Be able to connect operational change to financial outcomes
*Be comfortable making tough, commercially driven decisions
*Have strong experience operating in a demanding and fast-paced manufacturing environment
*Be comfortable working with factory operations on the shop floor and in meetings to effectively business partner.
*Possess exemplary stakeholder management skills, being able to communicate and influence others to achieve common goals
*Be able to build trust with colleagues at all levels.

What you’ll get in return
This role offers a highly competitive salary of c£ + company car, pension and 31 days annual leave as standard. This is an office-based role - primarily at their South Norfolk location but with travel required to Lincolnshire to work closely with the newly created operation.


Hays EA is a trading division of Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited and acts as an employment agency for permanent recruitment and employment business for the supply of temporary workers. By applying for this job you accept the T&C’s, Privacy Policy and Disclaimers which can be found at hays.co.uk