Quick overview
Job description
We’re Pentland Brands: a global family business behind some of the world’s most iconic active and lifestyle brands. We bring integrity, energy and ambition to our work, setting high standards and striving to deliver great outcomes without ego.
Design cycling apparel built for movement, endurance and the ride ahead.
At Pentland Brands, every role helps move our brands forward. Whether you’re supporting our people, improving our systems, growing our commercial performance, strengthening operations or shaping better ways of working, your impact reaches across a portfolio of iconic brands used by consumers around the world.
The Head of Management Accounting is a senior member of the Global finance team accountable for accurate, timely, well-controlled and insight-led financial results across EMEA and ANZ. The role owns Management Accounting delivery and the control environment, including regional close, balance sheet integrity, inventory and gross margin accounting, cash and working-capital accounting and the effective operation of financial controls, and turns that foundation into commercial insight for regional Finance and business leaders.
The role builds and leads a high-performing and scalable EMEA and ANZ Management Accounting organisation in the Bangalore GCH, leading regional leaders directly (Senior Manager, EMEA and Manager, ANZ). The role shapes the global Management Accounting operating model, leads automation and AI-enabled transformation, develops a pipeline of future finance leaders and partners with FP&A, commercial finance and business stakeholders. The role establishes clear supervisory accountability, effective technical review, coaching, standard processes and service expectations.
What you’ll be doing:
Financial integrity and Management Accounting leadership
Lead EMEA and ANZ Management Accounting outcomes and establish clear accountability for entity, regional and brand financial records.
Act as the senior accounting voice in Bangalore: apply Group accounting policies consistently, exercise sound judgement, adjudicate complex accounting positions, recommend policy improvements to Group Financial Control and resolve financial reporting or control issues at source.
Set meaningful delivery standards, quality reviews, service expectations and escalation arrangements across the function. Define and track KPIs (close timetable, reconciliation quality, audit findings, manual journal volumes, attrition) and hold regional teams to account for them.
Contribute to the global Management Accounting operating model.
2. Financial close and management accounts
Be accountable for monthly, quarterly and annual regional close performance (timetable, quality and cycle time), setting targets, holding regional teams to account and ensuring accurate preparation, review and submission of management accounts.
Oversee journals, accruals, prepayments, provisions, cut-off and close reconciliations.
Deliver complete and timely consolidation submissions and actuals to Group Reporting and FP&A.
3. Performance insight, forecasting and planning support
Provide timely, insight-led P&L and margin analysis across EMEA and ANZ, challenging variances to forecast, budget and prior year, and ensuring commentary equips regional Finance leaders to take decisions.
Partner with FP&A on forecast, budget and long-range planning cycles, ensuring accounting inputs (accruals, provisions, run-rate and one-off adjustments) are accurate and anticipate known risks and opportunities.
Support cost and margin management by explaining the drivers of cost of sales, freight, duty, overhead absorption and other cost movements, and identifying improvement opportunities with Commercial Finance and Operations.
4. Balance sheet integrity and financial controls
Own regional balance sheet reconciliations, substantiation, ageing, material exposures and corrective action plans.
Ensure effective operation of journals, payments, write-offs, adjustments, segregation of duties and Finance DoA controls.
Implement Group control standards, monitor exceptions and ensure sustainable remediation of findings.
Report balance sheet and control health to senior Finance leadership, escalate material exposures early and work with Internal Audit and Group Risk on control assurance.
5. Inventory and gross margin accounting
Own operational accounting and controls for stock valuation, standard costing, provisions, obsolescence, write-offs, stock in transit and cut-off.
Ensure robust accounting for landed costs, freight, duty, purchase-price variances and other gross-margin drivers.
Reconcile operational inventory systems to the ledger and partner with Supply Chain, Operations and Commercial Finance on risks and judgements.
6. Cash and working-capital accounting
Own accuracy of regional accounting and submissions relating to cash, receivables, payables, inventory, capex and other working-capital drivers.
Explain material balance sheet movements, cash impacts and reconciliation differences; drive resolution of issues within Management Accounting.
Support Group cash performance reviews and Treasury accounting interfaces, supporting Group with cash reporting and forecasting.
7. Statutory reporting and external audit support
Own timely completion and quality of EMEA/ANZ Management Accounting schedules, analysis, reconciliations and evidence for statutory accounts and audits.
Work closely with Global Reporting team on UK statutory audit delivery; coordinate local statutory and audit requirements with relevant owners.
Resolve underlying accounting queries and implement audit findings attributable to regional Management Accounting.
8. GCC delivery, organisation design and capability
Based in Bangalore, lead functional Management Accounting delivery through the Bangalore GCH and coordinate closely with wider UK-based team and regional stakeholders.
Lead the Senior Manager (EMEA) and Manager (ANZ) as direct reports, setting regional accountabilities, coaching their leadership and ensuring consistent standards, quality and ways of working across both regions.
Establish an effective Management Accounting hierarchy within Bangalore, with manageable spans of control, pod leaders, clear technical review and individual line management responsibilities.
Progress the Bangalore GCC from task execution towards greater end-to-end accounting ownership, stronger technical capability and succession depth
Drive standardisation, documentation and cross-training across regions.
9. Transformation, systems, data and automation
Own operational Management Accounting requirements for general ledger, close, inventory accounting, reconciliations and regional controls.
Adopt Group chart of accounts and master-data standards; work with Finance Systems and Group Reporting on data changes and interfaces.
Lead EMEA/ANZ process improvement and the Management Accounting transformation roadmap, owning the business case, sequencing, benefits and adoption, and support delegated business change and systems programmes with well-controlled BAU handover.
Lead the automation and digitisation agenda (reconciliation tool, close orchestration, workflow and data-quality controls), setting measurable targets for close cycle time, manual journals, manual interventions and rework.
Identify and deploy analytics and AI-enabled capabilities (for example anomaly detection, automated variance commentary and intelligent reconciliation) to free capacity for higher-value analysis, with appropriate governance and control.
Foster a continuous improvement mindset and benchmark the function against leading global finance practice.
10. People leadership and development
Lead and develop the Management Accounting team, while maintaining effective functional engagement with EMEA/ANZ stakeholders; set clear objectives, review responsibilities and performance standards.
Build a bench of future leaders in the Bangalore Management Accounting function, with named successors for senior roles and structured development plans.
Lead the team through sustained change, new tools and evolving operating models, maintaining engagement, retention and quality throughout.
Build trusted relationships with senior finance and business leaders (regional Finance Directors, Supply Chain, Commercial and Group Reporting), influencing without authority and representing the Bangalore team at senior forums.
Build a strong culture of integrity, ownership, technical challenge, continuous improvement and inclusive collaboration.
What you’ll bring:
Qualified accountant (Chartered Accountant (ICAI), ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent) with 15+ years of management accounting experience, including substantial senior Management Accounting leadership experience.
Proven delivery of close and management accounts across complex, international, multi-entity and multi-currency organisations, within a multinational group.
Deep balance sheet, accounting policy, inventory and gross-margin accounting, working-capital and financial-control expertise.
Experience delivering audit support, resolving complex accounting judgements and improving control effectiveness.
Leadership of distributed or shared-service finance teams, including managers of managers, including capability development, performance management and scalable operating-model design.
Track record of building talent pipelines and developing future finance leaders.
Strong stakeholder influence, technical judgement, change delivery and ability to establish clear ownership across functions.
Hands-on experience of SAP, One stream and working knowledge of Power BI or equivalent analytics tools, with a track record of driving automation or analytics adoption.
Desirable experience
Consumer brands, retail, wholesale or inventory-intensive businesses.
Finance operating models involving India-based GCC; process transition, automation or finance systems transformation.
Experience with IFRS, statutory requirements and complex international reporting interfaces.
Why Pentland Brands?
Pentland Brands is the name behind some of the world’s best-known sport, outdoor and lifestyle brands, including Speedo, Berghaus, Canterbury, Endura, Ellesse, Kickers and Mitre.
We are a global family business with a clear purpose: pioneering brands that make life better. Across our teams, functions and locations, we work together to create products, experiences and partnerships that help people live more active, confident and positive lives.
Joining Pentland Brands means becoming part of a business where your work can have real reach, across multiple brands, markets, teams and disciplines. It is a place for people who want to contribute, collaborate, improve how things are done and help build the future of brands with heritage, ambition and global impact.
Perks & Benefits
Alongside a competitive salary and discretionary bonus, we offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your wellbeing, flexibility, and life outside work. This includes generous holiday allowance, hybrid and flexible working, employee transportation, pension and gratuity contributions, wellbeing support, medical, personal accident & term life insurance cover.
The Interview Process
We want our interview process to feel clear, straightforward, and supportive. If your experience and expectations look like a strong match for the role, here’s what you can expect next:
Talent Team Intro Call - A 30-minute video call with our Talent Team to get to know each other, talk through the role and your experience, and answer any questions you have.
Experience Interview - A more in-depth interview (usually online) with the hiring manager to explore your skills, experience and approach, and how these align with the role, our principles, and our ways of working.
Final Interview - A final in-person interview at our office, focused on deeper discussion and practical application, giving you the chance to meet more of the team and see Pentland Brands in action.