Director, Finance Business Partnering
Pleo · London +3 · 1d ago
About Pleo
Messy spend management is tricky business. And tedious processes are a lose-lose situation for all involved, not just finance. At Pleo, we're changing that. We build spend solutions that make managing money seamless, empowering, and surprisingly effective for finance teams and employees alike - with a vision to help all businesses ‘go beyond’.
The word ‘Pleo’ actually means ‘more than you’d expect’, and living by that mantra has been the secret to our success over the last 10 years.
Now, we’re at a pivotal moment in our journey; every move we make has a direct impact on our 40,000+ customers, our business, and our collective success. We need people who take pride in uncovering customer needs, who turn complex problems into simple solutions, challenge the way things are done (respectfully), and always aim high. With great ambitions driving us forward, we can’t say we’ve got this whole thing figured out. And frankly, that’s half the fun! What we can say is that we’re a driven, progressive, and, importantly, a kind bunch of 850+ people from over 100 nationalities, all committed to delivering the future of business spending, together.
About the role
We're looking for a Director of Finance Business Partnering to join us at Pleo. In this role, you'll lead our entire Finance Business Partnering (FBP) team, driving strategic decisions, financial performance, and resource allocation across our entire business - connecting Go-To-Market (GTM), Product & Offering, and Enablement into one coherent financial lens. As we scale, you will establish a new standard for strategic finance, balancing rigorous challenges with valued operational support to the business.
If you're excited about bringing commercial and strategic insight to high-growth teams, developing a talented finance team, and leveraging modern data and AI workflows to transform decision-making, then this is the opportunity for you!
Who you’ll be working with and reporting to
You’ll report to our CFO and work closely with C-suite and senior leaders across the entire organization (including the Chief Revenue Officer, Chief Product & Technology Officer and Chief People Officer and their respective leadership teams). You will directly lead and develop our team of Finance Business Partners, fostering a culture of ownership and strategic impact.
You’ll also operate as a close partner to the Director of Finance Platform to ensure Business Finance and Finance Platform operate with unified standards, zero friction, and one coherent voice.
What you’ll be doing
As Director of Finance Business Partnering, you will:
Drive Strategic Finance Partnering Across All Functions: Serve as a trusted strategic peer to C-level executives, translating operational and commercial realities into robust financial plans.
Bridge Product, Monetization & GTM: Connect product roadmap investments and feature choices directly to monetization, commercial deal structures, and go-to-market execution.
Lead Financial Planning & Performance Support: Drive annual budgeting, scenario modeling, resource allocation, and forecasting cycles across all business areas, shifting conversations from backward-looking reporting to forward-looking, decision-oriented action.
Lead & Evolve the FBP Team: Coach, mentor, and elevate a well-performing team of Finance Business Partners, setting clear capability standards, and fostering a curious, data- and impact-driven culture.
Leverage Data & Modern Workflows: Practical application of modern BI, analytics, and available AI tools to enhance and streamline commercial modeling, reduce manual work, and deliver faster insights.
To put things into context, we are actively focusing on rapid and sustainable topline growth, efficiency, and connecting product investment directly to bottom-line growth. You can expect to work with modern commercial data, BI, and AI-driven workflows alongside standard ERP, CRM, and FP&A tools.
What you bring
You’ll thrive in this role if you have:
Broad Finance Business Partnering Leadership: Senior experience leading finance business partnering across multiple major functions (GTM, Product, and/or central enablement functions) within a SaaS or scale-up environment.
Proven Finance Business Partner excellence: Proven track record designing and implementing best-in-class FBP frameworks across SaaS/scale-up environments. You know how to best define end-to-end partnerships across GTM, Product, and Enablement, establishing clear financial insights, decision-making, and accountability while leveraging modern data and AI workflows to elevate team output.
SaaS & Subscription Economics Fluency: Deep fluency in recurring revenue drivers, growth/efficiency trade-offs, and core SaaS metrics (ARR, CAC/LTV, retention, payback, sales capacity, pipeline, and product margin economics).
C-Suite Influence & Communication: Proven ability to partner with and challenge executive leadership, framing choices clearly and turning complex data into structured, actionable guidance.
People Leadership & Capability Building: A track record of assessing, coaching, and developing an existing finance team, helping individuals elevate their strategic impact through organizational change.
Strategic Planning & Commercial Judgment: High proficiency in budgeting, forecasting, scenario modeling, and business case development in fast-paced, ambiguous scale-up environments.
Why is this role a good fit for you
This role is a good fit for you if:
You want to lead end-to-end finance business partnering with senior business leaders, directly shaping how product, commercial, and operational strategy translate into resource allocation and growth.
You enjoy building and mentoring teams, establishing high standards, and helping finance professionals grow into strategic business partners.
You thrive in fast-paced scale-up environments, turning ambiguity into structured, data-led choices without needing rigid enterprise playbooks.
How do you drive impact:
In your first 6-12 months at Pleo, you will step in to stabilize and elevate our entire Finance Business Partnering function. You’ll start building trust across C-level leadership, and establishing a seamless interface with Finance Platform. As you’ll settle, you’ll connect our product roadmap decisions to commercial execution, will drive higher standards for executive decision-making and lastly, you’ll build a high-performing FBP team equipped for Pleo’s next stage of international scale.
The location
Please note: We can hire on hybrid or in-person set-up in any of the locations listed on the advert (Denmark, United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal) but you will need to be physically based in the country of your choice with a valid right to work. We are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role in any of the listed locations.
Show me the benefits!
Your own Pleo card (no more out-of-pocket spending!)
Lunch is on us for your work days - enjoy catered meals or receive a lunch allowance based on your local office
We offer 25 days of annual leave + public holidays (additional days may apply in select countries based on local standards)
Comprehensive private healthcare - depending on your location, coverage options include Vitality, Alan or Médis
We use MyndUp to give our employees access to free mental health and well-being support with great success so far
Paid parental leave - we want to make sure that we're supportive of families and help you feel that you don't have to compromise your family due to work
The interview process
We want to ensure you are set-up for success and understand what will be expected of you. If your application is successful, our interview process is as follows:
Intro call: A 30-minute chat with our Talent Partner to discuss the role and your background.
Hiring Manager: A 45-minute chat with our CFO about the role and needs.
Pleo Peer Interviews: Two separated 60-minute Peer chats with our Senior stakeholders with some real life case scenarios.
Final Stage: A 30-minute chat with our CRO and our CPO.
Transparency is important to us so we also wanted to share some insights about what we’re looking for in applications to ensure you can set yourself up for success!
Last time we hired a senior Finance leader, we received a high volume of applications, but only a selective group were invited to an intro call. Some of the key reasons why previous candidates didn’t make it past the application screening stage include:
CV writing and content: We receive a lot of CVs, and many of them are AI-generated. We love seeing people leverage AI, it’s a big focus for us internally too - but without human intervention, these CVs can sometimes become generic and fail to show a candidate in the best light. What we're really looking for is the specific details of real impact that only you know from your previous experience. A top tip from us is to use the “Achieved X, as measured by Y, by doing Z” formula to give a really clear picture of what you’ve worked on. Including links to your previous companies' websites is also a huge help!
Application care: Every single application we receive is reviewed by a human because we believe that candidates' efforts should be matched by an equal level of human care. Take time to tailor your responses to show how your experience specifically intersects with broad business finance, commercial operations, product economics, and team development.
Profile to role fit: For this role specifically, candidates who lack experience partnering across multiple business functions, or who are narrow functional specialists without SaaS unit economics fluency, often miss the mark. We need someone who can lead across GTM, Product, and Enablement, challenging executives and elevating business decisions, not just traditional P&L oversight.
About your application
English first. Since it's our company language, please submit your application in English. You’ll be using it a lot if you join us.
A fair look for everyone. Our talent team reads every single application to ensure the process is fair. To keep things running smoothly, we only accept applications through our system—our support team can’t pass on calls or emails.
Diversity drives us. We can only reach our goals if our team reflects the world around us. That starts with you hitting apply, even if you don't tick every single box. We encourage people from all backgrounds and experiences to join us.
Interview at your best. We want you to feel comfortable throughout the process. If you have any accessibility requirements or need a specific format, email belonging@pleo.io. We’ll design a process that works for you.
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Applying for multiple roles? Nothing is stopping you, and we assess every role independently. However, we do look for alignment, so make sure you can explain why your interest and experience are right for each specific role.
Reapplying. If you’re applying for the same role again, please wait six months from your last decision before hitting submit.