Chief Operating Officer

About the role

Strata Financial is scaling rapidly across Ireland and needs a hands‑on Chief Operating Officer to build a unified operational engine. You will own the day‑to‑day agenda, create systems and controls that support profitable growth, and ensure every new acquisition integrates smoothly into the group.

Key responsibilities

• Design and embed a consistent group‑wide operating model for compliance, audit, accounting, tax, advisory, bookkeeping, payroll and client onboarding.
• Create clear workflows, file structures, review points, SLAs, quality controls, KPIs, dashboards and management rhythms for all offices and service lines.
• Improve utilisation, recovery, WIP, lock‑up, write‑offs, client throughput and overall performance through stronger accountability and data‑driven insights.
• Eliminate duplication and manual processes, replacing them with shared services and technology.
• Own and rationalise the practice technology stack covering practice management, document management, workflow, time‑and‑billing, payroll, ID/AML and client portals.
• Lead post‑acquisition integration using a repeatable 30/60/90/180‑day playbook.
• Manage end‑to‑end system migrations without service disruption.
• Collaborate with HR, IT, Finance, Marketing, technical and risk teams to align contracts, roles, benefits, performance frameworks and regulatory standards.
• Track integration milestones, cost‑to‑serve gains, system savings and synergies, reporting to the CEO, CFO and board.
• Support M&A diligence by assessing systems debt, process maturity, staffing dependencies, client concentration, operational risk and integration cost.
• Chair integration governance and advise leadership on capacity, pricing, service‑line growth and capital deployment.

Required profile

• Proven experience as a COO, Operations Director, Head of Integration, Head of Transformation or similar in accountancy, professional services, legal, consulting, wealth management or another fee‑earning environment.
• Direct buy‑and‑build or roll‑up experience, ideally PE‑backed, with hands‑on involvement in at least three completed integrations.
• Strong knowledge of accountancy practice operations and regulatory requirements (ICAEW, ACCA, AAT).

Required skills