Finance Business Partner

Location: Either Birmingham or London

Salary for Birmingham: Base salary: £47450pa to c.£59300pa depending on skills and experience. In addition, we offer flexible benefits fund of 20% which is paid on top base salary and is fully pensionable, as well as a range of competitive benefits - check them out in the Benefits section on our website.

Salary for London: Base salary: £53850 pa to c.£67300pa depending on skills and experience. In addition, we offer flexible benefits fund of 20% which is paid on top base salary and is fully pensionable, as well as a range of competitive benefits - check them out in the Benefits section on our website.

HS2 Ltd endeavours to ensure everyone working for us and with us feels included, thrives and achieves their full potential. In practice, this means we are positive and inclusive about making adjustments, providing flexible working, encouraging our staff networks to flourish and providing personal and professional development opportunities.

As a Finance Business Partner you will provide assurance and challenge, driving accountability and focus on cost control throughout the directorates you support. Provide oversight, control and direction to your team (if applicable) and ensure appropriate Finance support to promote effective decision making and performance management of Direct and Indirect Costs.

About The role:

Duties and responsibilities as below but not limited to:

Corporate Governance/ Managing Public Money

• Provides guidance on the application of governance within area
• Acting as the Chief Financial Officer’s (CFO) representative at monthly review meetings
• Review and financial endorsement of Change and Investment Papers, challenging all risks/ opportunities/ ensuring programme impacts are clearly identified and any associated costs recorded
• Representative on investment change panels
• Providing assurance to senior management that reported expenditure and contract payments are appropriate.

IFRS Accounting / National Audit Office (NAO)

• Provides input to development of policies and Enterprise reporting and planning development
• Provides guidance on appropriate IFRS accounting treatment of transactions (prepayment / accruals/ liabilities)
• Provides justification and supporting evidence of accounting adjustments to NAO Auditors as required.

Financial Reporting/ Month/ Year end

• Oversee the month end financial accounts close
• Prepare the accounts and plan for year-end audit

Complete monthly analytics of contract spend and accruals held and challenge budget holders

• Provide budget variance commentary
• Review and assure Programme Board Packs.

Funding/Cash Flow

• Review and challenge emerging forecasts and monitor against Spending Review (SR) funding
• Propose remedial actions to business as required
• Work with supply chain finance leads and HS2 commercial to improve Actual Cost of Work Performed (ACWP) and cash flow data
• Develop Cashflow forecast reporting for DfT, challenge the supply chain submissions.

Business Planning/Forecast

• Support and maintain the Business Planning and forecasting process, providing guidance on planning principles and expectations as provided by HS2 business planning
• Provides assurance to the business that data provided by cost management / commercial is reliable.

Budget Management

• Supports business in determining the appropriate disaggregation and delegations
• Facilitate system changes required and reporting requirements for budget management.

Workforce Costs & Indirects

• Provide Workforce Actual costs and forecast information to inform programme cost estimates
• Challenge budget holders to achieve workforce objectives and optimise resources.

EDI

• Actively promote and embed Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in all your work and support and comply with all organisational initiatives, policies and procedures on EDI.

About You:

Skills:

• Communication skills: ability to interpret and communicate complex financial issues to non-financial colleagues and to secure compliance with Managing Public Money.
• Stakeholder management skills, with the ability to engage, communicate and develop consensus with both internal and external stakeholders up to Executive level.
• Influencing skills: ability to influence key decisions.
• Ability to critically review and challenge forecasts, assessing them for their affordability, value for money, timing and impact on programme delivery.
• Ability to use ERP systems, utilising data analytics software and complex Excel models.
• Ability to ensure effective financial controls within a major project.

Knowledge:

• Qualified Accountant with experience of operating at in a complex environment.
• Knowledge of Government accounting requirements (DEL/AME funding) to ensure compliance of business plans within delegated authority.
• Knowledge of accounting systems and the ability to develop and manage off-system analyses and records.

Type of experience:

• Experience of driving output focussed, activity-based budgets and forecasts.
• Supporting the process for development of the annual business plan and budget setting processes within funding caps set by the Spending Review.
• Qualified Accountant with experience of operating in a complex environment which may include infrastructure projects.
• Part of a team delivering finance business support to the programme teams and HS2 Ltd directorates.

The post-holder is expected to behave at all times in a manner consistent with the HS2 values of Safety, Leadership, Integrity and Respect

It is expected that you will actively promote and embed Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in all your work and support and comply with all organisational initiatives, policies and procedures on EDI.

We ask for a variety of detail in your online application, however we perform the first assessment of suitability for a role based solely on the information in your CV. In a further development of our efforts to create a more diverse workforce, your CV will be anonymised and personal information will be removed during the first stage of the application review. This removes bias from the process and makes it even more important that you attach an updated word version of your CV for each new application ensuring you include evidence directly related to the criteria in the job advert. Watch this video on how we remove bias in the recruitment process: Removing bias in the recruitment process (youtube.com)

Any applications received after the closing date will not be considered.