P

Pencil

AI-driven platform for scalable ad creation

Financial Controller - AI Enabled Finance Operations

Full-TimePosted on 10/20/2026
No salary listed
Senior
Remote in UK
RemoteRemote work is available from within the United Kingdom; candidates must be UK-based. Candidates must be based in the United Kingdom.
AccountingFinancial Accounting

About the job

Requirements
  • Qualified accountant with ACCA, ACA, or CIMA, and UK experience.
  • At least 5 years of finance experience, including 2 years of industry experience.
  • Experience owning financial controls and processes in a fast-paced scaling business, ideally in SaaS or technology.
  • Ability to manage cash flow independently, including bank payment sign-off.
  • Track record of making and standing behind senior judgment calls on accruals, revenue treatment, and risk rather than only reviewing others' work.
  • Confidence using modern finance tools such as Xero, ApprovalMax, Maxio, or equivalent.
  • Demonstrable ability to use AI to optimize finance workflows.
Responsibilities
  • Own and continuously strengthen internal controls across procure-to-pay, order-to-cash, payroll, and expenses, and conduct a recurring monthly operational hygiene review.
  • Give final review to management accounts, revenue recognition, and accounts payable runs prepared by the Finance Manager and Senior Management Accountant; conduct the first review of monthly payroll before Head of Finance approval.
  • Own monthly workings for internally developed costs and ensure appropriate audit controls.
  • Own cash flow forecasting and treasury, including final sign-off on bank payments.
  • Provide senior judgment and support to the Senior Management Accountant on complex revenue recognition questions and to the Finance Manager on accounts payable and cost management.
  • Own escalation relationships for banking queries, calls, vendor and software ownership, and the finance function's AI usage policy.
  • Streamline finance operations using AI.
  • Complete the monthly close to a consistent timetable and sign off accurate management accounts on time.
  • Deliver timely cash flow forecasts, optimize working capital, and prevent unauthorized payments.
  • Reduce audit findings and control exceptions quarter over quarter.
  • Provide timely, high-quality senior support and sign-off to the Finance Manager and Senior Management Accountant.
  • Keep accounts payable and revenue recognition processes running without a backlog.
  • Optimize and operate the capital expenditure process.
  • Automate finance workflows with AI and demonstrate efficiency or speed gains without reducing quality.
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience in SaaS or technology is preferred.

About the company

Pencil provides a SaaS platform that automates generation of digital ad content and copy using generative AI models like GPT, Stable Diffusion, and Runway. The platform analyzes brand objectives and assets to produce channel-ready ads at scale and includes a predictive metric to estimate each creative's performance. It serves small-to-mid-sized businesses and large enterprises, with clients such as Unilever, Bayer, and Google, and was acquired by The Brandtech Group in 2023, which led to Pencil Pro for enterprise needs. Pencil builds its predictive dataset from over $1 billion in real media spend across about 4,000 brands since 2018 to improve efficiency and effectiveness of ad creation.

Company Size

201-500

Company Stage

Seed

Total Funding

$3.9M

Headquarters

London, United Kingdom

Founded

2018

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Coty will embed Pencil teams from July 1, 2026, locking in enterprise usage.
  • BCG’s May 20, 2025 partnership gives Pencil a consulting-led enterprise sales channel.
  • Pencil’s May 2026 agent launches and Fast Company 2024 recognition reinforce category leadership.

What critics are saying

  • AdCreative.ai, Superscale, and Segwise undercut Pencil on price and workflow breadth in 2026.
  • Coty’s strategic review of Rimmel and Max Factor threatens budget disruption after July 2026.
  • Google, Meta, and Adobe can bundle native ad generation, making Pencil interchangeable by 2027.

What makes Pencil unique

  • Pencil’s May 2026 GWI Insights Agent embeds audience intelligence inside creative workflows.
  • Coty’s May 4, 2026 rollout uses Pencil across global Consumer Beauty brands.
  • Pencil pairs generative creation with predictive scoring from over $4 billion media spend.

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Benefits

  • Health Insurance
  • Paid Vacation
  • Flexible Work Hours
  • Remote Work Options
  • Paid Holidays
  • Parental Leave
  • Wellness Program
  • Professional Development Budget

Growth & Insights and Company News

6 month growth

34%

1 year growth

34%

2 year growth

34%
UTI World
May 5th, 2026
Coty partners with Pencil to scale ai-driven content creation across Consumer Beauty.

Coty partners with Pencil to scale ai-driven content creation across Consumer Beauty. Beauty giant Coty has entered into a strategic partnership with Pencil to integrate real-time, AI-powered content creation across its Consumer Beauty division. The collaboration will embed Pencil's end-to-end generative AI platform across Coty's mass-market brands, including CoverGirl, Rimmel, Sally Hansen, and Max Factor. The platform is designed to help marketing teams produce, deploy, and optimize content at scale while maintaining brand consistency and governance. "Our brands operate in a high-velocity consumer environment, but speed without control doesn't scale," said Gordon von Bretten, president of consumer beauty at Coty. He emphasized that the partnership will enable faster and higher-volume content creation without compromising brand integrity or data ownership. As part of the next phase, Pencil will deploy a dedicated embedded team within Coty starting July 1, working directly across campaign workflows in global markets. Founded by Will Hanschell, Pencil has generated over 10 million ads and processed more than $4 billion in media spend using generative and predictive AI technologies. Hanschell noted that brands leveraging AI effectively will shape the future of marketing. The move comes as Coty, under interim CEO Markus Strobel, sharpens its focus on core brands following a strategic review of its consumer cosmetics division, including evaluating partnerships, divestitures, and potential spin-offs for brands such as Rimmel and Max Factor.

AIJourn
May 4th, 2026
Coty partners with Pencil to build end-to-end Gen AI content system.

Coty partners with Pencil to build end-to-end Gen AI content system. 2 minutes read NEW YORK-(BUSINESS WIRE)-Coty, one of the world's largest beauty companies, and Pencil, the world's #1 generative AI marketing platform, today announced a partnership to put real-time, AI-powered content creation at the heart of Coty's Consumer Beauty division. With a transformation and creative team led by sister company Jellyfish, Pencil's end-to-end content platform will be embedded across Coty's Consumer Beauty brands, enabling creative and marketing teams to generate, deploy, and optimize images and videos with greater speed, scale, and efficiency. This marks the next phase of the collaboration, with Pencil establishing a dedicated, embedded team at Coty from July 1, fully integrated into campaign workflows across brands and markets globally. Coty Consumer brands include CoverGirl, Rimmel, Sally Hansen, and Max Factor, among others. Gordon von Bretten, President of Consumer Beauty at Coty, said: "Our brands operate in a high-velocity consumer environment, but speed without control doesn't scale. This partnership allows us to increase the pace and volume of content creation while maintaining governance, brand integrity, and data ownership. It's a step change in how we operationalize creativity across Consumer Beauty." Pencil supports the full content workflow, from ideation and copywriting through to image and video production, while meeting enterprise standards for governance, security, and IP ownership. The platform will ensure Coty has full ownership of its brands, assets, and data throughout. Since 2018, Pencil has made 10 million ads and has processed more than $4BN in media spend, which gives it a proven ability to predict content performance before it runs meaning it uses both generative AI and predictive AI. Pencil co-founder and CEO, Will Hanschell, said: "The brands who win in the future will be those who are best at leveraging Gen AI. Coty has really leaned into how transformative AI can be for marketing when deployed with clarity and intent. This focus on end-to-end application at scale means the opportunity to extract value from AI and drive growth is huge." For Coty, the partnership sits at the center of a broader content transformation, alongside initiatives including new digital set management capabilities, Digital Twins, and Virtual Production. Together, these investments reflect a shared ambition to scale creativity responsibly, improve efficiency, and build a marketing ecosystem fit for the pace of modern consumers. About Pencil Pencil is the world's leading Gen AI marketing platform. Its unique, end-to-end capabilities mean it covers the full content workflow, from insight and ideation through creative production, performance prediction, and then media deployment. It has made more than 10 million ads since 2018, and in excess of $4BN in media spend has flowed through it. The data from this spend allows Pencil to power its predictive AI capabilities. Pencil was named a Most Innovative Company 2024 by Fast Company, the only Gen AI marketing company on the list. trypencil.com About Coty Inc. Founded in Paris in 1904, Coty is one of the world's largest beauty companies, with a portfolio of beloved brands across fragrance, color cosmetics, and skin and body care. Coty serves consumers around the world, selling prestige and mass-market products in over 120 countries and territories. Together with its brands, Coty empowers people to express the beauty of their individuality - and is committed to transforming the beauty industry to become more sustainable and inclusive through its Beauty That Lasts strategy. Learn more at coty.com or on LinkedIn and Instagram. 5 minutes ago 22 minutes ago

Financial Post
May 4th, 2026
Coty partners with Pencil to build end-to-end Gen AI content system.

Coty partners with Pencil to build end-to-end Gen AI content system. Business Wire Published May 04, 2026 Article content NEW YORK - Coty, one of the world's largest beauty companies, and Pencil, the world's #1 generative AI marketing platform, today announced a partnership to put real-time, AI-powered content creation at the heart of Coty's Consumer Beauty division. Article content With a transformation and creative team led by sister company Jellyfish, Pencil's end-to-end content platform will be embedded across Coty's Consumer Beauty brands, enabling creative and marketing teams to generate, deploy, and optimize images and videos with greater speed, scale, and efficiency. This marks the next phase of the collaboration, with Pencil establishing a dedicated, embedded team at Coty from July 1, fully integrated into campaign workflows across brands and markets globally. Article content Advertisement 1 Story continues below Article content Coty Consumer brands include CoverGirl, Rimmel, Sally Hansen, and Max Factor, among others. Article content Top Stories Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Article content Gordon von Bretten, President of Consumer Beauty at Coty, said: "Our brands operate in a high-velocity consumer environment, but speed without control doesn't scale. This partnership allows us to increase the pace and volume of content creation while maintaining governance, brand integrity, and data ownership. It's a step change in how we operationalize creativity across Consumer Beauty." Article content Pencil supports the full content workflow, from ideation and copywriting through to image and video production, while meeting enterprise standards for governance, security, and IP ownership. The platform will ensure Coty has full ownership of its brands, assets, and data throughout. Article content Since 2018, Pencil has made 10 million ads and has processed more than $4BN in media spend, which gives it a proven ability to predict content performance before it runs meaning it uses both generative AI and predictive AI. Article content Pencil co-founder and CEO, Will Hanschell, said: "The brands who win in the future will be those who are best at leveraging Gen AI. Coty has really leaned into how transformative AI can be for marketing when deployed with clarity and intent. This focus on end-to-end application at scale means the opportunity to extract value from AI and drive growth is huge." Article content For Coty, the partnership sits at the center of a broader content transformation, alongside initiatives including new digital set management capabilities, Digital Twins, and Virtual Production. Together, these investments reflect a shared ambition to scale creativity responsibly, improve efficiency, and build a marketing ecosystem fit for the pace of modern consumers. Article content About Pencil Article content Pencil is the world's leading Gen AI marketing platform. Its unique, end-to-end capabilities mean it covers the full content workflow, from insight and ideation through creative production, performance prediction, and then media deployment. It has made more than 10 million ads since 2018, and in excess of $4BN in media spend has flowed through it. The data from this spend allows Pencil to power its predictive AI capabilities. Pencil was named a Most Innovative Company 2024 by Fast Company, the only Gen AI marketing company on the list. Article content About Coty Inc. Article content Founded in Paris in 1904, Coty is one of the world's largest beauty companies, with a portfolio of beloved brands across fragrance, color cosmetics, and skin and body care. Coty serves consumers around the world, selling prestige and mass-market products in over 120 countries and territories. Together with its brands, Coty empowers people to express the beauty of their individuality - and is committed to transforming the beauty industry to become more sustainable and inclusive through its Beauty That Lasts strategy. Learn more at Article content View source version on businesswire.com: Article content Advertisement 1 How my job helps me win at work and at home"I can make an impact at a Fortune 100 company."Liberty Mutual | Sponsored Join the Conversation Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information. Conversation | All Comments Start the conversation Advertisement Powered by Let ADT set up security while you settle inMaking your new house a home can be hectic. Let us give you a hand. Our pros can install a system with tech designed to help keep you safe.ADT | Sponsored

Consulting.us
May 29th, 2025
BCG partners with Pencil to help companies make AI ads

BCG partners with Pencil to help companies make AI ads.

Business Insider
May 20th, 2024
Check out the latest example of Apple's crazy attention to detail

The Pencil Pro launched May 7 alongside the new M4 iPad.