Commercial Finance Manager - Projects

Description:

Marc Daniels Specialist Recruitment is partnering with a growing and highly successful organisation to recruit a Commercial Finance Manager. This is an exciting opportunity for a commercially focused finance professional to take ownership of financial performance across a significant portfolio of projects and business activities, while acting as a key business partner to senior operational and commercial stakeholders.

Reporting to the Commercial Director, the Commercial Finance Manager will play a pivotal role in driving financial discipline, providing commercial challenge, enhancing forecasting accuracy, and ensuring robust financial governance across a complex operational environment. The role combines strategic business partnering with hands-on ownership of project and portfolio financial performance.

Key Responsibilities:

Take ownership of portfolio financial reporting processes, ensuring accurate and timely project performance tracking.
Consolidate portfolio-level reporting and provide clear visibility of financial performance, risks and opportunities.
Monitor project profitability and identify areas of margin improvement or erosion.
Ensure financial information supports effective operational and commercial decision-making.
Oversee the quality and integrity of project financial data and reporting processes.
Lead the assessment and monitoring of working capital requirements across the portfolio.
Identify potential funding gaps and work proactively with stakeholders to mitigate risks.
Review and approve inputs into cash forecasting processes, ensuring accuracy and transparency.
Drive improvements in cash visibility and forecasting reliability.
Act as the primary finance partner to operational teams for forecasting and budgeting activities.
Translate operational plans and assumptions into accurate financial forecasts.
Challenge assumptions and identify risks within forecasts and business plans.
Support the delivery of annual budgets, periodic forecasts and longer-term planning activities.
Lead project financial close-out activities, ensuring balance sheet positions are appropriately reviewed and resolved.
Support evolving reporting and compliance requirements across the business.
Act as the primary finance contact for a designated business area.
Develop strong relationships with senior operational and commercial stakeholders.
Provide constructive challenge and commercial insight to support business performance.
Participate in project and performance reviews, bringing a financial perspective to key decisions.
Drive financial literacy and understanding across operational teams.
Collaborate closely with wider finance teams to ensure consistency of reporting, processes and controls.
Manage, coach and develop a Commercial Finance Analyst.
Drive process improvements, automation opportunities and reporting enhancements.

Requirements:

Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent).
Strong background in commercial finance, project accounting, FP&A or business partnering.
Experience supporting large and complex project-based or operational environments.
Strong understanding of forecasting, budgeting, financial analysis and working capital management.
Advanced Excel and financial modelling skills.
Experience of ERP systems and reporting tools would be advantageous.
Proven ability to influence senior non-finance stakeholders and provide commercial challenge.
A proactive, commercially minded and solutions-focused approach