Rutherford Cross is delighted to be working in partnership with an ambitious, Lanarkshire based business to appoint a Finance Business Partner.

The company is looking to appoint an ambitious Finance Business Partner to ensure commercial/financial expertise is instilled and maintained within all areas of the business to maximise growth opportunities and profits in line with the business plan. The post-holder will be an ongoing advisor for all profit/cost centres for support, analysis and decision making. They will analyse financial information and implement effective strategies to enhance overall business performance.

This is an exceptional opportunity for a motivated, qualified accountant to join a business with ambitious growth plans, where the appointed candidate will play a key role in its journey.

In addition, the business will provide a firm career platform with good opportunity for personal and professional development as well as the mandate to shape and define how the role evolves. It is envisaged that over time this role will develop and grow and therefore it is key that applicants are flexible and adaptable to those changes. There is a real possibility that this individual will have the opportunity to step up to Financial Controller level over a period of time, once established and proving their ability.

The main duties and responsibilities will involve:

• Produce monthly management accounts working towards a timeous close of monthly accounts on working day 7 alongside annual management and statutory accounts (including a YTD position) to assist with key decision making

• Establish and manage financial timetable for adhering to cut-off’s, deadlines and reporting

• Annual budget and quarterly forecast preparation liaising with all department and function heads, challenging and testing projections

• Full cost centre management linked to production of management accounts and commentaries working with P&L responsible leaders/managers to support them in understanding and improving performance and cash flows

• Administer and produce HS2 (open book) reporting to meet any applicable contractual requirements

• Implement and report on weekly/monthly KPI’s in areas to be agreed with senior management

• Monthly forecasting covering sales pipeline, order intake, turnover, direct cost, gross margin, gross profit, Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (SG&A) costs and EBITDA etc.

• Commercial review meetings with the relevant department heads assessing all areas of WIP (Applications for Payment, Deferred Income, Accrued Income, Un-invoiced Production, Retentions, Stock etc.). Report on WIP (Work In Progress) movement month to month for management accounts and balance sheet

• Work in partnership with the business development team (pre-sales) to assess bids / tenders / quotes / contract pricing and associated margins

• Engage with the operational team (post sales) to assess margin performance in both a supporting/challenging capacity

• Ongoing cost analysis on all areas of expenditure, taking timeous remedial action and escalation reporting to mitigate cost over-runs (e.g. fuel, travel, overtime, telephony etc.)

• Supporting the CEO with MIS, KPI’s, reports and managing capital expenditure

• Capital project appraisal and monitoring

• Year end audit preparation, co-ordination and support

• Establish and maintain files and records for management review

• Evaluation of stock for slow movement, write-down and depreciation

• Support the CFO and CEO in the development and delivery of the company strategy / business plan

• Monitoring business performance against forecast / budget for all cost/profit centres in line with standard quarterly / annual cycles

• Review accounting processes and practices and improve where necessary to ensure efficient financial operations

• Development of Key Performance Indicators and continual tracking and reporting

• Creation of monthly and periodic reports for operating board

• Provide ongoing support to the CFO / CEO on a range of Finance related projects

The Finance Business Partner will be a pivotal member of the finance team in Airdrie and will report directly into the Financial Controller. As the business continues to grow and diversify so too does the need of the individual as the role will progress and widen.

It is critical that the post-holder can establish, manage and maintain robust processes to ensure total transparency and end-to-end measurement of all commercially linked financial activities. This covers all company functions and departments, to allow the business to measure, monitor and report on costs, revenue and profit. The principal objective being to provide timeous, structured financial management information to allow the business to make strategic decisions and continued efficiency drives for sustainable growth and profitability.

A summary of the key candidate requirements are as follows:

• CA, ACCA or CIMA Qualified

• Ability to simplify commercial/financial terminology and concepts into simple and easy to understand language

• Proven track record of communicating and influencing commercial/financial performance initiatives to a range of senior management and stakeholders

• Demonstrable record of working with senior managers to ensure reduction in costs / profit maximisation

• Experience in modelling costs associated with new business (parts, labour, fuel etc.) in order to ensure forecast profits are achieved

• Experience of designing systems / chairing contract reviews to ensure cashflow is maximised for reoccurring revenue contracts

• Knowledge of all relevant reporting requirements in line with UK GAAP

• Knowledge of the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS)

• Preparation of budgets and associated monitoring of performance via production of KPI’s from MI systems

• Providing support to the FC and CFO re: creation of fiscal strategy / business plans

• Ability to work flexibly to meet deadlines/respond to unplanned situations

• Ability to prioritise/organise workloads as well as stakeholder management at a senior level

• Good working knowledge of Sage 200

• Fully conversant with all relevant Microsoft Office products, including Excel, Word and PowerPoint

Salary:                    £40,000 - £48,000 (depending on experience)

Bonus:           Discretionary based on company performance

Pension:                  5% employee/employer contribution

Holidays:                 25 days plus 8 stats