Our client is a well-established Ship Management Company in Limassol and they are looking for a senior, hands-on finance professional to join our the company as a Financial Controller / Head of Finance, with a clear pathway to Chief Financial Officer (CFO) within the next 2–3 years.
This role combines strong technical accounting and controlling responsibilities with strategic finance, leadership, and business partnering exposure. The successful candidate will initially take ownership of the full finance function and progressively evolve into a Group CFO role as the business continues to grow.
Responsibilities:
Core Accounting & Financial Control (Hands On):
- Lead, mentor, and develop the administration and finance team, fostering a high performance and accountable finance function
- Full ownership of all accounting operations, including:
- Billing, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable
- General Ledger and statutory accounting
- Cost and management accounting
- Inventory accounting and revenue recognition (river cruise shipping-specific where applicable)
- Lead month end and year end closing processes, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and timeliness
- Prepare and review monthly management accounts, financial statements, cashflow reports, and variance analyses
- Ensure quality control over all financial transactions and reporting outputs
- Maintain and continuously improve internal controls, policies, and procedures
Planning, Forecasting & Financial Analysis
- Coordinate and lead:
- Annual budgeting
- Rolling forecasts
- Cash flow planning and liquidity management
- Perform financial modelling, scenario analysis, and KPI tracking
- Translate financial results into clear insights for management decision making
- Support investment appraisals, short and long-term investment decisions, group-related financial evaluations, and business expansion initiatives
Tax, Regulatory & Risk Management
- Manage and ensure compliance with:
- EU-wide tax legislation
- VAT and payroll-related filings
- Applicable regulatory and corporate reporting requirements
- Act as key point of contact for:
- External auditors
- Tax advisors
- Banks and financial institutions
- Proactively identify and mitigate:
- Financial risks
- Compliance risks
- Operational finance exposures
Leadership & Business Partnering (CFO Track Focus)
- Work closely with executive management, operations, and crewing/recruitment departments
- Present and explain financial performance to management in a clear, business-oriented manner
- Support strategic planning and align financial planning with long term company goals
- Gradually assume broader CFO responsibilities, including:
- Strategic finance leadership
- Group structuring oversight
- Stakeholder communication
- Long term financial sustainability planning
Requirements:
- Bachelor degree in Accounting, Finance, Economics, or related field
- Minimum 5–8 years’ experience in financial control, finance management, or senior accounting roles
- Previous shipping or maritime experience is a strong advantage
- Solid experience in:
- Bookkeeping and payroll
- Management accounting
- Financial analysis
- Budgeting and forecasting
- Excellent knowledge of:
- Accounting standards
- Tax and regulatory frameworks
- Internal control environments
- CFO mindset: strategic, commercially aware, forward looking
- Strong personality with the ability to challenge constructively
- Hands on, yet able to step back and think strategically
- High integrity, reliability, and confidentiality
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
- Able to perform under pressure and meet strict deadlines
- Proactive, initiative driven, and eager to grow into an executive role
- Team player with proven people-management potential
- Strong IT skills and experience with modern accounting/ERP systems
- Advanced Microsoft Office skills (especially Excel)
- Fluency in English and Greek (Dutch or German is a strong advantage)
- Willingness to travel when required
- EU citizenship
Working Hours:
- Working hours: Monday – Friday from 9am – 5.30 pm daily with half an hour lunch break.
- Overtime will be required from time to time.
- This is an onsite role.
To apply:
Please send your CV to StaffMatters at admin@smstaffmatters.com and mention that you are applying for the vacancy of Financial Controller / Head of Finance with reference number 4275.
Or you can apply directly through your candidate login by hitting the APPLY button.
