Job Title - Senior Principal, Finance Strategy
Description - Lead enterprise-wide finance transformation at Pearson, shaping strategy, operating model, and digital evolution to enable a more agile, insight-led, and AI-enabled finance function.
About the role
This is a high-impact, enterprise-critical role at the centre of Pearson's finance transformation agenda. As Senior Principal, Finance Strategy, you will partner closely with the Group Finance Officer to define and deliver the finance strategy and operating model, ensuring finance evolves into a more agile, insight-led, and digitally enabled function.
Combining strategic leadership with hands-on program delivery, you will drive step-change improvements in how finance supports business performance, allocates capital, and enables decision-making across the organisation. This includes accelerating the adoption of automation, AI, and modern finance systems, while embedding a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and value creation.
Operating at the top of the finance agenda, you will act as both a trusted advisor and an execution lead-mobilising senior stakeholders, aligning priorities across functions, and ensuring transformation initiatives deliver measurable business impact.
What you'll do
Partner with the Group Finance Officer to define, refine, and operationalise the finance strategy in alignment with broader corporate and business unit priorities
Translate strategic vision into a clear, executable finance operating model, including defined accountabilities across global, business unit, and functional finance teams
Drive alignment between financial planning, performance management, and value creation priorities across the organisation
Clarify the role of finance as both an owner and enabler of performance, embedding best-in-class principles for accountability and decision support
Lead a portfolio of enterprise finance transformation initiatives spanning global processes, systems, data governance, and business assurance
Establish and run a structured program governance model, with clear milestones, delivery plans, and value realisation tracking
Identify and remove barriers to execution, ensuring transformation initiatives deliver at pace and with measurable impact
Act as the integrator across initiatives, ensuring a connected, end-to-end transformation rather than fragmented delivery
Drive the adoption of automation, advanced analytics, and AI across finance to improve efficiency, forecasting, and decision support
Partner with Technology and Data teams to prioritise finance system investments aligned to strategic outcomes
Champion the shift toward real-time, data-driven finance capabilities, reducing manual processes and enhancing predictive insight
Ensure digital initiatives are embedded into day-to-day ways of working, not just deployed as standalone tools
Act as a key interface between finance leadership, business unit leaders, and central functions to align priorities and drive trade-offs
Influence executive-level stakeholders to prioritise transformation initiatives and commit the necessary resources
Provide strategic insight and challenge, positioning finance as a proactive partner in enterprise performance
Build strong cross-functional relationships to enable faster, more effective decision-making
Lead the overall change narrative for finance transformation, translating strategy into a clear, compelling story for the organisation
Design and deliver structured change management approaches to ensure adoption of new processes, tools, and behaviours
Engage and mobilise the finance community, building momentum and commitment to transformation goals
Ensure communication is consistent, outcome-focused, and reinforces accountability and progress
Build and develop capability across the finance organisation in program delivery, digital finance, and strategic partnering
Foster a culture of innovation, ownership, and continuous improvement across teams
What we're looking for
Proven experience in transformation, strategy, or operating model design within a large, complex organisation
Demonstrated track record of delivering enterprise-wide transformation programmes with measurable business impact
Strong strategic leadership capability, with the ability to link finance strategy to enterprise value creation
Experience leading complex, multi-year programmes across systems, processes, and organisational structures
Deep understanding of financial performance, profitability drivers, and capital allocation principles
Expertise in operating model design, including governance, processes, and accountability frameworks
Exceptional ability to influence and align executive stakeholders across functions
Strong change leadership capability, with experience driving behavioural as well as structural change
Experience working with enterprise systems, data transformation, and digital finance capabilities
Excellent communication and storytelling skills, with the ability to translate complex strategy into clear, actionable narratives
Location & working pattern
This role operates at a global, enterprise level, with collaboration required across international teams.
Flexible working arrangements are available depending on location and business needs.
Compensation:
Compensation at Pearson is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and specific location. As required by the California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York State, New York City, Vermont, Washington State, and Washington DC laws, the pay range for this position is as follows:
The minimum full-time salary range is between $175,000 - $250,000.
This position is eligible to participate in an annual incentive program, and information on benefits offered is here.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates are invited to submit their resume and a cover letter outlining their qualifications and experience to https://pearson.jobs/.
Pearson is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.
Application Deadline:
Applications will be accepted through July 3rd, 2026 . This window may be extended depending on business needs.
Who we are:
At Pearson, our purpose is simple: to help people realize the life they imagine through learning. We believe that every learning opportunity is a chance for a personal breakthrough. We are the world's lifelong learning company. For us, learning isn't just what we do. It's who we are. To learn more: We are Pearson.
Pearson is an Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit and business need. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other group protected by law. We actively seek qualified candidates who are protected veterans and individuals with disabilities as defined under VEVRAA and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act.
If you are an individual with a disability and are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our career site as a result of your disability, you may request reasonable accommodations by emailing TalentExperienceGlobalTeam@grp.pearson.com.
Job: Program Management
Job Family: ENTERPRISE
Organization: Corporate Finance
Schedule: FULL_TIME
Workplace Type: Remote
Req ID: 24605
LI-REMOTE
