EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP | TRANSFORMATION | TECHNOLOGY
CFO/CFOO leadership and consultancy for Boards and executive teams, combining finance expertise, operational understanding, transformation and technology.
Helping academy trusts, public bodies, partnerships and commercial organisations understand complexity, make better decisions and deliver practical change.
SERVICES
Senior judgement grounded in finance, data, technology and operational understanding — turning clear decisions into practical delivery.
Senior finance and operational leadership through complexity, growth and change. Financial strategy, Board advice, year-end and audit oversight, and decision-focused management information that strengthen accountability.
Interim, fractional, project-based and transformation leadership.
Budgets, forecasts, reserves and cash flow, with scenario and growth modelling, integrated financial planning and clear advice on sustainability and affordability.
Bringing the data together to tell the real story.
Connecting finance, workforce, pupil numbers, curriculum, operational information, KPIs and forward projections so academy trust leaders can see what is really driving performance.
Integrated curriculum and financial planning is an important starting point. AJ Accounting goes beyond traditional ICFP analysis to understand the relationships between the numbers: cost drivers, capacity, staffing needs, affordable growth and emerging risks to sustainability.
This helps Boards and executive teams understand what happened, why it happened, what is likely to happen next and where action is required.
Financial clarity for executive decisions.
Restructuring, operating models, shared services and centralisation. Organisational and service redesign, process improvement, change management and practical implementation through transition.
Turning plans into sustainable ways of working.
Management reporting, executive and Board dashboards, KPIs and management information. Finance-system and ERP implementation, workflow improvement and automation that connect operational and financial data.
Streamlined reporting with fewer manual spreadsheets.
Client-side executive and financial leadership for refurbishment, expansion and new-build projects. Business cases, affordability, budgets, cash flow, procurement, contractor liaison, programme reporting, change control and project risk.
Capital project experience: c. £100k to £10m
Strategic, financial, operational and project risk: clear registers, ownership, mitigation and escalation. Business continuity, resilience and reporting for Boards and executive teams that turn risk information into action.
Turning risk information into management action.
Risk → Ownership → Mitigation → Action → Executive decision-making
DUE DILIGENCE & TRANSITION SUPPORT
Supporting organisations through growth, integration, restructuring and complex structural change.
Support for mergers, academy transfers, entity closure and integration across organisational boundaries.
Financial and operational due diligence connects modelling, affordability and risk with transition planning, governance and implementation — helping Boards and executive teams make informed decisions and deliver workable change.
Relevant experience spans academy trust growth and transfers, integration, restructuring, entity closure and wind-down, and cross-organisational public-service change.
Capital assignments connect leadership teams, finance, estates teams, professional advisers, consultants and contractors. Specialist architectural, surveying, engineering, quantity-surveying and Principal Designer services remain with appropriately appointed professionals.
SELECTED IMPACT
Across academy trusts, schools, public services and commercial organisations, the work has ranged from financial recovery and executive leadership to systems implementation, reporting transformation and organisational change.
Financial recovery
Multi-academy trust
Led recovery from an in-year deficit of around £400k, combining integrated financial planning, stronger forecasting and clearer accountability while protecting targeted investment.
Impact Restored the organisation to a balanced financial position and provided a more sustainable basis for future planning.
School turnaround
Education organisation
Helped move the organisation from a cumulative deficit of around £300k to a forecast surplus of approximately £90k, combining stronger budget ownership, financial planning and operational challenge.
Impact Restored financial resilience and strengthened management accountability.
Reporting transformation
Multi-site organisation
Redesigned management reporting, strengthened reconciliation and improved financial visibility while identifying approximately £70k of recurring annual efficiencies.
Impact Better management information alongside sustainable annual savings.
Systems & technology
Multi-site organisation
Led implementation of a trust-wide ERP/finance system within approximately two months, alongside process redesign and exit from a legacy contract worth around £90k.
Impact Improved financial processes, reporting and organisational control while reducing reliance on legacy systems.
CFO / CFOO & executive leadership
Multi-academy trust / complex organisation
Provided CFO/CFOO-level leadership across financial strategy, organisational change, year-end and audit, financial modelling and statutory reporting. Clearer KPIs, dashboards and reporting helped Boards and executive teams address immediate priorities and plan for longer-term sustainability.
Impact Greater financial visibility, stronger executive assurance and clearer information for strategic decision-making.
Public-service transformation
NHS / public-service partnership environment
Provided senior finance support across transformation and collaborative programmes within a wider healthcare allocation environment of approximately £900m. This reflects the programme environment, not a personally managed budget. Work included financial modelling, programme finance, staffing and establishment budgets, cross-organisational reporting and approximately £4m of Sustainability and Transformation Plan expenditure.
Impact Clearer cross-organisational reporting and executive decision support across NHS and local-authority partners, helping leaders assess programme and service implications.
Need senior finance or executive capacity?
Discuss an assignmentSECTORS
Supporting academy trusts, public bodies, partnerships and commercial organisations through growth, complexity and change.
Deep experience across academy trusts, schools and multi-site education organisations, connecting finance, workforce, pupil numbers, curriculum and operational capacity with sustainable growth and better decisions.
Experience across education, the NHS and public-service partnerships, combining financial stewardship, operational understanding and transformation across complex organisational boundaries.
Executive and advisory support for commercial and other organisations navigating growth, restructuring, leadership transition, systems change or financial transformation.
Commercial experience also spans insurance, healthcare, property, construction and media, bringing commercial discipline alongside extensive public-service leadership experience.
TECHNOLOGY & INSIGHT
Finance, data and operational understanding give Boards and executive teams clearer insight, stronger control and better decisions.
Bringing finance, workforce and operational data together so reporting tells the real story — not just the financial result. In education, that includes pupil numbers and curriculum. Streamlined reporting supports visibility, assurance and challenge, helping leaders connect current performance with future sustainability.
Areas of development
Technology should support professional judgement — not replace it.
Want reporting that explains the real story behind performance?
Discuss your reporting needsABOUT ALEX
Strong finance functions should do more than explain what has already happened.
They should give decision-makers the insight and foresight to act.
AJ Accounting provides executive leadership and consultancy for organisations needing additional capacity, specialist expertise or a fresh perspective.
I bring finance expertise, operational understanding and technology together to strengthen financial control, explain performance and turn strategy into practical delivery.
Across executive assignments, financial modelling and organisational change, the focus is the same:
clarity, better decisions and sustainable improvement.
Planning, financial strategy and reporting, with advice, challenge and leadership for Boards and executive teams.
Redesigning finance processes, services and ways of working, with clear ownership and a practical handover.
Implementation experience includes IRIS Financials and Deskpro, with workflow improvement and reporting automation that connect financial insight to operational decisions.
HOW I WORK
WAYS TO WORK TOGETHER
AJ Accounting works flexibly depending on the organisation, challenge and delivery model.
Direct with organisations
CFO/CFOO, executive leadership, transformation and project assignments commissioned directly by clients. Interim and fractional support can be shaped around the organisation’s needs.
Through consultancy & interim partners
AJ Accounting also works with consultancies, associate networks, recruiters and interim providers where experienced finance, transformation or executive delivery capability is required.
Collaborative delivery
AJ Accounting can work alongside internal teams, advisers, project managers, estates specialists, contractors, technology providers and other consultants, bringing executive finance leadership and practical transformation experience into the wider programme.
Not sure which route fits? Start with a conversation.
CONTACT
Briefly outline the challenge, assignment or change you are considering. I’ll come back to you to discuss what you need and whether AJ Accounting is the right fit.
LET’S TALK
Whether you need senior CFO/CFOO leadership, support through organisational change, stronger management information, financial modelling or help turning complex data into clearer decisions, start with a conversation.
No generic sales pitch — just an initial discussion about the challenge, what good looks like and whether AJ Accounting can help.