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About World Animal Protection

World Animal Protection is a global, non‑profit animal welfare organisation dedicated to ending cruelty and suffering for animals worldwide. It has been active for over 75 years and was formerly known as the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA). It is headquartered in the UK and now operates through a network of international teams and country offices in about 12–14 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North America.

World Animal Protection works across multiple fronts to achieve this, including:

• Advocacy and policy change – influencing governments, intergovernmental bodies, and businesses to improve animal welfare laws, regulations, and corporate practices worldwide.
• Addressing systemic causes of suffering – focusing on industrial farming and the commercial wildlife trade to create humane food systems and protect wild animals from exploitation.
• Research and education – generating evidence and raising awareness about animal sentience, cruelty, and humane alternatives to harmful practices, and campaigning for more ethical treatment in tourism, agriculture, and trade.

With more than 75 years of history, the organisation has a strong track record of global campaigns and measurable impact – from improving farm animal welfare to securing wildlife protections and strengthening the visibility of animal welfare on the international agenda.

About the Role

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at World Animal Protection provides confident, strategic financial leadership to support a globally-connected organisation. In addition to managing finances, the role is about building trust, ensuring transparency, and enabling the global network to succeed.

Reporting to the Global CEO and working closely with the Audit and Finance Committee and the Board, the CFO is the lead voice on financial strategy. They set direction for financial planning, investment, risk management, and compliance, ensuring decisions are mission-aligned and grounded in financial discipline.

Operating in a constrained and high-demand environment, the CFO will bring creativity and foresight to maximise impact while balancing ambition with financial realism. They will strengthen global financial systems, ensure the highest standards of charity compliance, and raise the quality of financial management across the organisation.

The CFO will lead a newly restructured finance team, building capability and confidence to deliver a trusted, high-performing function. By connecting Finance with the wider organisation, they will ensure it is aligned, valued, and impactful.

This role works closely with other Global Leadership Team members, particularly the Chief Strategy and Impact Officer, Chief Growth and Engagement Officer, and Chief Transformation and Culture Officer, to ensure delivery is efficient, evidence-led, and transformative, with clear measurement of impact and return on investment. Together, the team ensures the organisation focuses not just on doing good work, but on doing the right work, in the best way, for the greatest possible impact.

Reports to: Global CEO
Grade: Global Leadership Team (13)
Reportees: Head of Financial Planning and Analysis, Financial Controller
Budget holder: Yes
Global/Local role: Global

Duties and Responsibilities

As a member of the Global Leadership Team:

• Take shared responsibility for the whole organisation, placing animal welfare at the heart of every decision, representing their mission internally and externally while driving their global priorities across brand, engagement, fundraising, people and resource management, and beyond.
• Provide enabling leadership that strengthens the organisation’s global network and supports distributed decision-making. Role model the organisation’s values and ways of working, champion equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging, and lead with a culture of collaboration and accountability that ensures they work as one.

Strategic Leadership, Vision, and Financial Stewardship

• Lead the organisation’s global financial strategy to ensure sustainability, growth, and maximum impact for animals worldwide.
• Align financial planning, resourcing, and investment decisions with strategic priorities to drive innovation and long-term organisational transformation.

Governance, Insight, and Accountability

• Provide the Global CEO, Audit and Finance Committee, and Board with clear financial insight, analysis, and foresight to inform strategic decision-making and organisational direction.
• Ensure world-class financial governance, delivering high-quality audits, budgets, forecasts, and management accounts that uphold integrity, transparency, and compliance across all jurisdictions.
• Lead effective risk management to safeguard assets, maintain regulatory excellence, and strengthen organisational resilience.

Global Collaboration and Capability

• Champion collaboration across the network, building financial capability and accountability across the organisation, and ensuring consistent standards, shared systems, and a unified financial culture.
• Balance ambition with financial discipline, navigating complex funding environments with creativity and strategic foresight to ensure every investment delivers measurable impact.

Leadership and Organisational Enablement

• Lead and develop the Finance team, building confidence, clarity, and capability, supporting them to become a trusted, high-performing function which delivers high-quality, compliant financial management and analysis.
• Support the Finance team in placing themselves at the heart of organisational decision-making and ensuring they are fully integrated as enablers of performance, innovation, and mission delivery.

Culture and Integrity

• Model transparent, trusted leadership that builds confidence, fosters collaboration, and strengthens a culture of accountability, inclusion, and shared purpose across the organisation.

Leadership Responsibilities:

• Foster a culture of empowerment, collaboration, and innovation.
• Delegate effectively, remove barriers, and ensure optimal outcomes.
• Address conflicts, obstacles, and performance gaps constructively.
• Translate global strategies into clear deliverables aligned with the mission.
• Prioritise actions using evidence-based decisions and manage risks.
• Navigate ambiguity, drive growth, and push boundaries responsibly.
• Build authentic relationships and recognise organisational dynamics.
• Align team energy with goals, maintaining momentum in uncertainty.
• Set ambitious, collaborative goals while fostering continuous improvement.
• Value diversity and foster an environment where everyone feels empowered and included.

Skills and Experience

Essential

• Significant senior finance leadership experience, ideally as CFO or equivalent, with a track record within a complex or networked organisation.
• Experience of working in a financially-regulated environment with a good understanding of UK charity regulations, including charity accounting, regulatory compliance, and governance requirements.
• Strong leadership and people management skills, with experience leading diverse, multi-location teams, with a proven track record of inspiring, motivating, and guiding diverse teams to achieve ambitious goals.
• Strategic thinker with strong analytical skills and the ability to analyse complex financial data and make informed decisions.
• Experience in managing, forecasting, and controlling costs of significant budgets.
• Ability to develop and implement financial strategies which align with World Animal Protection’s organisational goals.
• Proven experience in identifying, assessing, and mitigating financial risks.
• Experience communicating financial information to the C-Suite, Board, and other stakeholders in a clear, accessible way.
• Knowledge of international financial regulations and experience managing multi-currency operations.
• Collaborative and inclusive, promoting a culture of trust, respect, and continuous improvement.
• Adept at driving change, improving processes, and embedding best practices in finance.

Desirable:

• Experience in leading work in animal welfare, environmental, humanitarian, or other mission-driven sectors.
• Experience in organisational growth or expansion into new territories.

World Animal Protection cherishes diversity and inclusion. The organisation understands that varied backgrounds, identities, and perspectives drive innovation and resilience in its pursuit of global animal welfare. World Animal Protection is committed to creating a workplace where every individual is valued, respected, and empowered to contribute their unique strengths, especially welcoming those from underrepresented communities.

At World Animal Protection, there is a strong emphasis on integrating core values into every aspect of work and conduct. These values are expected to be reflected not only in day-to-day activities but also consistently embedded into all relevant policies and procedures. Below is a list of these values and behaviours, exemplifying the expectations set forth for the team:

• Global: They make decisions and act with an international mindset.
• Diverse and Inclusive: They actively encourage and promote diversity, ensure all voices are heard and included, and are committed to equal opportunities for all.
• Collaborative: They work together and co-create to achieve lasting change.
• Agile: They make change happen in a fast-moving world.
• Growing People: They continually learn and develop.
• Accountable: They are role models. They take responsibility for their actions and encourage others to do the same.
• Courageous: They push boundaries, take risks, and set ambitious targets.