Commercial Finance Director

As TV audiences’ fragment across a range of platforms and as viewing behaviours evolve, TV advertisers are grappling with how to continue making best use of their most trusted medium. Finecast was created to help solve this challenge.

Finecast enables advertisers to precision-target viewers across multiple on demand, linear and live streaming TV environments. Finecast gives advertisers the ability to deliver targeted ads to audiences watching TV content across multiple broadcasters, connected devices, set top boxes, over-the-top providers and game consoles – all through a single point of access with standardised measurement.

Finecast optimises delivery across the entire addressable TV marketplace. With access to hundreds of different targeting segments, from socio-economic to life stage, purchase and financial data, advertisers can identify and reach viewers whenever and wherever they are watching.

About GroupM

GroupM is the leading global media investment management operation. It serves as the parent company to WPP media agencies Wavemaker, MediaCom, Mindshare, Essence and m/SIX.

Its primary purpose is to maximise the performance of WPP’s media communications agencies on behalf of our clients, our shareholders and our people by operating as a parent and collaborator in performance-enhancing activities such as trading, content creation, sports, digital, finance, proprietary tool development and other business-critical capabilities. The agencies that comprise GroupM are all global operations in their own right with leading market positions.

The focus of GroupM is the intelligent application of physical and intellectual scale to benefit trading, innovation, and new communication services, to bring a strategic advantage to our clients and our companies.

About the team

Finecast in the UK is made up of an expanding team of 80+ people spanning Engagement, Operations, Client Services, Marketing, Business Operations, Finance and Product, Data & Analytics functions.

Finecast is a team of individuals shaping the future of TV advertising and as such we set high standards for the individuals we hire and the skillsets they bring to our business.

We are a rapidly growing organisation that require a hands-on approach with creative thinking, strong communication skills and a passion for what we do that translates into real energy in our team culture.

Finecast is a supportive, open and honest place to work where we help each other for our mutual success.

The role Objectives

The Finance Director is a key member of the Finecast UK leadership team and will lead and manage all aspects of the Finance team and functions.

Key responsibilities include providing insight, management and refinement of the operational, structural and strategic direction of the business from a financial perspective.

The role reports to the MD of Finecast, and with a dotted line in to the GroupM UK CFO, providing overall commercial and financial guidance, ensuring financial compliance and helping develop the ongoing growth and profitability of Finecast.

Primarily this role will focus on:

• Review and ownership of P&L and balance sheets, Cartesis submission, budget and reforecasts, statutory accounts, nwc and cash flow.
• Financial and commercial compliance.
• Business and management insight.
• Business partnering.
• Change management and process streamlining.
• People and team development.

Responsibilities

Core financial management

• Review details of month end P&L, Balance Sheets, Cartesis submission that are prepared by Senior Financial Analyst/Finance Plus.
• Review and approve cost analysis prepared by GroupM function to ensure all aspects are captured correctly.
• Review budget, re-forecast, statutory accounts preparation, corporation tax pack.
• Oversee UK finance functions billing, clearing media ageing, WIP and debtor ageing to maximise net working capital and cash flow.
• Deliver budget and reforecasts for Management’s review.

Financial and commercial compliance

• Be responsible for the SOX requirements and developing a close relationship with GroupM and WPP compliance teams in order to ensuring Finecast is fully compliant across all departments.
• Manage and ensure client opt-ins and contract status database is maintained and reviewed on a regular basis

Business and management Insight

• Preparing business and management insights by analysing the performance including revenue and margin, modelling opportunities, developing strategies and delivering these to senior management.
• Deliver top-line level P&L with commentary Actual Vs Forecast, growth, margin analysis to Finecast Management.
• Proactively identify insight of gross margin and PBT, cost controls, operational (reconciliation) challenges and flag to management to make strategic decision.
• Prepare and deliver monthly company results presentation.
• Present monthly gross margin meetings with Head of Ops and PDA to maintain and increase margin opportunities as well as identifying threats and risks to net sales.

Business partnering

• Build and maintain positive relationships with Finecast Heads of Department, agencies and GroupM Finance team
• Quarterly meetings with Marketing/Engagement on Cost control, PO review and spend tracking
• Fortnightly meeting with Client Services on reconciliation (billed/unbilled) management
• Partnering with Product, Data and Analytics to develop accurate modelling, tracking margin of the business and explaining variances against forecast
• Carry out finance inductions across the business to ensure all departments fully understand their financial, reconciliation and compliance responsibilities
• Work with GroupM trading team to ensure deals, rates and reconciliations are accurate
• Preparation and maintenance of quarterly staff plans and rationales for new hires, salary reviews, incentives, and severances.

Change management and streamline processes

• Drive of constant review and redesign as necessary commercial finance responsibilities, processes and business partnering, to maintain margin and support sustainable business growth.
• Key stakeholder on Finecast Systems maintenance and involvement in the implementation of adhoc tech projects that impact the business processes.
• Key Driver of research to improve efficiency of business finance functions by implementing spreadsheets tool, modelling, automation process, adopting GroupM’s existing system.

People and team development

• Lead, manage, support, develop and motivate the Finecast Uk Finance team to better fulfil the business requirements, actively train, and improve staff knowledge and experience.

Candidate requirements

• An experienced senior financial manager leader.
• A commercial partner to the business, able to address both the operational aspect of the business as well as the strategic direction.
• Proven ability to lead a team, working effectively with all colleagues.
• Excellent communication skills, presenting financial information in a concise, clear and insightful way, adapting this information for different audiences.
• A keen eye for identifying and analysing opportunities and risks.
• Versatility to adapt skills and behaviours to enable successful working outcomes in unfamiliar environments or with different stakeholders.
• Bring an energy and passion to your work, and be collaborative in style and think outside the box with proactive solutions
• Full understanding of Sarbanes Oxley and compliance policies within the business and ensure these are adhered to
• Fully Qualified in ACA/CIMA/ACCA
• Exceptional Excel and PowerPoint skills.

Finecast team Identity

We believe that brilliant teams attract the next generation of brilliant employees.

Our values matter because they set the tone for the way we behave internally and externally. They are real and lived every day.

Start your Finecast career today: https://jobs.jobvite.com/finecast/

Finecast values

Innovate: Through creativity and vision, we evolve.

Belong: Together we promote a sense of self-worth and fulfilment.

Strive: We support each other’s growth and development, to drive success.

Respect: We earn respect through trust and integrity.