FINANCE BUSINESS PARTNER

Finance Business Partner

Department Finance

Reports to Finance Director

Usual office base London (Office Based)

Contract Permanent, Full Time

The Finance Business Partner will provide enhanced finance to the Senior Management and to the Board. The purpose of this role to support the organisation by working closely as business partner with the other teams on improving the impact, and understanding of financial reporting/analysis on business performance. This role is to provide 'real time' support and analysis and to add value that will assist in decision-making.

Job Purpose

Job Summary

The post holder will be responsible for the provision of high quality financial management information and provide professional advice to senior managers and all budget managers within Lumos. Work with the Financial Accountant to produce monthly financial statements for budget holders that ensure the organisation has an up-to-date position with the finances to support decision making. To contribute to the overall corporate reporting of the organisation’s financial position and the reasons behind the more substantial variations to the corporate business/strategic plan. The post holder will proactively work with budget holders and other part of the business to resolve any concerns or difficulties with their financial performance and will assist in the preparation of the annual budget and long financial planning

Job Objectives

To lead on production of monthly management accounts/information in line with the organisations deadlines, ensuring all accrual and prepayments are made in line with financial procedures.
To investigate and report on significant month end financial position and budgetary variances, identifying any remedial action that needs to be taken in line with internal procedures
To meet regularly with budget holders to assess financial performance and to provide financial management information, analysis and advice
To support the preparation of regular and ad hoc financial statements, variance analysis and to produce a forecast out-turn position on a monthly basis for management review.
To assist in the preparation of future year budgets taking into account relevant activity data, cost pressures and programme developments and working with programme Directors/Country Heads to establish budgetary submissions
Develop robust income plans in conjunction with Programme & Fundraising Director ensuring that opportunities are explored and risks are quantified.
To ensure that budgetary information in Lumos budget system is kept up-to-date and is a reliable source of information
Develop short to medium term cash flow planning in multi-currency to improve cash management and reduce FX
Introduce overhead and staff allocation process across organisation to ensure accurate cost is recognised for each business unit and international office
To contribute numerical and/ or graphical information that will form part of Management/Board Dashboards or information showing progress on the Corporate Strategy
To work with senior managers and programme leads to prepare business cases and bids for new business and/ or programme re-design.
Support year-end financial management and reporting including assisting with the
completion of the annual accounts.
Support System accountant with the new finance system implementation

Scope

This role would assume Finance Business Partnering responsibilities with greater emphasis placed on the growing international dimensions of that role.
This is very much an operational and strategic role. Information and reporting are just the tip of the iceberg. Role requires the post holder to have an ability to see the value in the information they are providing and to inspire others to make use of it.
This is a new role and flexibility will be required to meet changing priorities.
This role will require provide support to the System accountant with the new Finance System.

Person Specification

Qualifications and skills required for the Finance Business Partner

The role of a finance business partner requires a different set of skills to the traditional finance back office function.

The role will require the candidate to be a qualified accountant, either ACA, ACCA or CIMA, but it will also need candidate to demonstrate specific soft skills (see below).

This is very much a strategic role. Information and reporting are just the tip of the iceberg. What really matters is candidate ability to see the value in the information they provide and to inspire others to make use of it.

It calls for someone who is used to working in a rapidly changing environment and who is comfortable proposing, justifying, initiating and implementing change.

To achieve this the candidate will need a strong set of ‘soft’ skills, including:

Presentation
Relationship building
Negotiation
Facilitation and conflict resolution

A finance business partner will need to be an excellent project manager as well as a creative thinker. This is a role that calls for both a starter and a coordinator.

Candidate must be able to apply your analytical skills beyond the traditional functions of finance and to bring them to bear on a broad range of commercial issues.

These issues must then be effectively brought to life for senior management teams. This is why the ability to listen, interpret, influence, negotiate, inspire and challenge are all vital to the role.

They must be able to always see the big picture whilst helping implement procedural change.

The technical skills required for the role is fairly commonplace within finance teams. It is the interpersonal qualities and dynamism required in finance business partner jobs that will set the candidate apart.

Other Skills, Knowledge and Experience

Able to represent Lumos credibly in relationships with external contacts
Projects a confident and professional manner
Highly organised, with an aptitude in planning effectively to meet deadlines, and an ability to work on multiple tasks at the same time
Ability to work independently and on own initiative, and as part of a team working on a larger project
Intermediate Excel skills (Pivot tables, mapping, sum if etc.)
Ability to be self-motivated, flexible and effective
Good interpersonal and communication skills, and ability to work with a wide variety of contacts
Hands on approach

Knowledge:

Demonstrable evidence of strong financial and commercial understanding of managing large contracts and budgets and the business acumen to monitor financial performance and achieve efficiencies
Key people management processes including performance and competency assessment
Sound ICT skills

Experience:

3 years’ experience of working as a Finance Business Partner
Extensive experience in financial operational management both on a day to day level and at strategic level
System change