Finance Business Partner

Overview

• Act as a trusted partner and advisor to the business area and client group supported and drive business performance by providing detailed and insightful analysis, commentary, advice, challenge and decision support
• Provide key support in either customer or supplier meetings and negotiations, by providing insights, analysis, challenge and recommendations

Responsibilities

• Develop an in depth understanding of the business area/client group supported together with its results and the key levers that influence P& L performance for that area/group
• Understand the drivers of historic, current and forecast performance for client group/business area and provide monthly financial analysis, insight and explanation of performance, highlighting emerging issues or trends and making recommendations on corrective actions
• Interpret, explain and drive performance within the business
• Support and influence key operational and strategic decisions by providing insight and challenge
• Translate operational targets into executable in-year plans
• Partner with client group to drive actions to meet targets (pricing, promo ROI, sales, margin, variable costs, overheads, EBITDA, working capital, ROI etc)
• Advise on key business planning assumptions, trade-offs and opportunities.
• Review actual performance (pricing, promo ROI, sales, margin, variable costs, overheads, EBITDA, working capital, ROI etc) with a view to making recommendations and provoking interventions required to drive down costs, improve margins and convert P&L into cash
• Own and drive initiatives focused on closing variances with the business
• Ensure business understands and delivers against KPIs
• Facilitate ad-hoc analysis and insights on specific issues at a strategic level
• Support strategy development by providing financial performance insights and recommendations to client group, identifying potential opportunities and/or risks through scenario and sensitivity analysis
• Evaluate investment options from a financial perspective to provide a long term view of the impact on key KPIs for client group/business area (e.g. pricing, mix, sales, margin, variable costs, media costs, working capital, ROI etc)
• Support the management of the capex budgeting process. Accurately forecast capital spending and depreciation for the development of budgets and long term plans for capital commitments. Create multi-party reviews of proposals, ROI analysis, cash flow analysis etc
• Identify and provide financial implications for all projects / business initiatives, contributing to business cases and ensuring the most profitable allocation of resources through financial insights and constructive challenge
• Leverage analyses provided by FP&A to drive business choices, by overlaying the commercial acumen and insight
• Provide insight into competitor landscape to business and FP&A teams
• Work with the management team to define planning assumptions, risks and investment opportunities and ensure this is fed into a high quality and credible IBP
• Provide support and challenge to ensure the quality of data, working closely with other functions to improve accuracy and timeliness
• Regularly attend meetings with customers, key suppliers, external partners and work closely with other functions to formulate action plans which address performance gaps
• Recognise the importance of business and financial controls and work closely with the management team to instil accountability & culture
• Provide expert opinion on key accounting judgements to help ensure the integrity of financial statements, leverage network (e.g. financial controllers, business controllers, project accountants) as required
• Review the CSR and other management reports produced by the SSC, and provide additional insights on Review the CSR and other management reports produced by the SSC, and provide additional insights on performance and risks management

Qualifications

Essential

• University degree or equivalent
• Part qualified accountant (e.g. ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent) in those countries where this is applicable

Desirable

• MBA or Advanced Business degree desired
• FMCG experience
• Business and financial analysis experience
• Microsoft Project skills, Word, PowerPoint and Excel skills

Competencies

• Good communication and written skills with the ability to engage people at all levels both internally and externally
• Ability to influence business and finance colleagues
• Ability to bring multiple stakeholders and conflicting viewpoints to an objective resolution
• Ability to constructively challenge assumptions and thinking
• Good report writing and presentation skills