Finance Business Partner

Finance Business Partner - Manchester     

Brand Addition is a global leader in the creative promotional merchandise area and one of the largest promotional product suppliers in the world. Our reputation for creativity, service, customer satisfaction and quality is second to none and our impressive client list includes Michelin, Google, ABB, Diageo, L’Oreal, Nissan and RBS to name a few. Brand Addition employs over 370 staff in operations in Manchester, London, Germany, Ireland, USA, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

The role will be reporting to the Commercial Director and providing Finance & Commercial support  to the relevant site MD and Senior Management Team. You will have responsibility for all Commercial financial aspects of your relevant area and you are expected to analyse figures and terms, implement recommendations based on these findings, producing the most profitable outcomes.  You will have excellent communication skills with all levels of staff, often having to work with various departments to help them plan and manage their own budgets and costs.

Responsibilities:

You will have overall responsibility for the Commercial areas of financial performance and need to integrate the areas you are responsible for with the wider finance team. This includes but is not limited to:

• Be part of and drive an exceptional business partnering finance culture, using trends to spot opportunities & risks, ensuring these are communicated to the right people at the right time.  Challenging the wider business on any areas for commercial improvement, to include but not limited to sales support, IT, warehouse and logistics, marketing.
• Overseeing the monthly preparation of sales and margin reporting packs across the relevant site, working and developing the rest of the team, ensuring results are to expectation.
• Providing review and challenge of the monthly outputs prepared by the management accountants.
• Being the principle contact for commercial finance support for the site Managing Director and Senior Management Team.
• Ownership of monthly results down to EBITDA, with full understanding & ability to measure against latest expectation, and historic performance.
• Attendance & pro active lead at monthly site specific Account Group meetings, as finance lead and representative.
• Working with the Financial Accounts & Transactional teams to drive improvements in working capital for your relevant area. 
• Ownership of site sales and margin budgets and quarterly reforecasts, working in conjunction with the site MD, sales teams, and Management Accountants.  Ensuring that appropriate commercial pressure is applied at all times before the numbers are submitted to the Commercial Director.
• Responsible for the site annual commission scheme, ongoing measurement of performance and subsequent communication.
• Support of new & existing projects within your area, (this includes new business tenders as well as new projects on existing clients) collating all financial information and ensuring the best possible commercial outcome for the business as a whole.
• Completion of monthly site information & MD presentation in preparation for the Operating Board Meeting
• Management & development of growing team, currently consisting of 1 direct & 2 indirect reports.
• Continuous investigation & challenge for your relevant area on cost control & optimum gross margin.  Working closely with all departments making sure that necessary information is shared proactively to make this happen. 
• Responsibility for monthly customer reporting to the Account Management teams. Particular emphasis on support for business objective of optimizing investment in working capital.
• Use skills, knowledge, and experience to add value within the Finance department and across the business, by suggesting improvements to processes and procedures, and where appropriate implementing those suggestions.
• Perform the role with a customer-focused outlook, always aware of who our internal customers are and striving to provide the best possible service to them.

Ideal candidates will preferably be CIMA qualified but more importantly have the right level of commercial attributes to deliver the role requirements.  You will need to be confident and assertive with the ability to build rapport and effectively communicate with people at all levels. You will be determined to go the extra mile, enjoying the satisfaction you get when results are achieved through this!

The position requires someone who is highly computer literate, with excellent Excel skills. Effective organizational ability and time management skills are crucial, and you must be able to work to tight deadlines.

Teamwork is essential in this role therefore you must be team orientated and able to maintain positive and supportive relationships with your colleagues at all times.  It is important that you are able to get the best out of others, and that you are confident in delegating and empowering others.

Previous experience in a fast-moving finance environment is essential.

What you can expect from us:

Culture:

Brand Addition may be fast paced but it’s a fun and friendly place to work. We have a big footprint globally but remain personal and transparent with an adult led culture.  You can expect quality and value to be built in to everything we do. You’ll have the support of a close network of colleagues and managers, and every day is different here!  We want you to bring your personality to work and we love our diversity.
 

 Reward and recognition:

It’s not just our customers we want to wake up with a smile on their face. As well as a competitive salary, we also offer:  Global Development and Secondment Opportunities - Flexible Working - Early Finish Friday - Finish Early On Your Birthday - Contributory Pension Scheme - Life Assurance - Great Holiday Scheme - Bonus Scheme - Sickness Scheme - Fruity Friday - Monthly Get-Togethers -Cycle to Work Scheme - Maternity Incentives to name a few.
 

Career and development:

We want you to develop your career with us and we’ll support you every step of the way to help you reach your goals.   You can expect to have full induction and training relevant to your role as well as a mentor within the team to help you along the way.   We advertise all our vacancies internally and there are lots of ad hoc project opportunities to get involved in locally and globally too!