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Your new company

Hays are currently working in exclusive partnership with a leading insurance business to recruit a senior finance professional to lead the company's expense base management. This company is an international, specialist insurance provider and broker who have been well-established for many years, with a great reputation. They look for people who can lead, engage and adapt, and who seek innovation, collaboration and inclusivity. They aim to build lasting partnerships with customers that share their values.

Your new role

You will be responsible for managing the organisation's cost base, including all activities relating to expense accounting, expense reporting, procurement cost, and investment analysis. You will be supported by a small team but will have significant interaction with the wider team and drive collaboration between the senior leaders of different divisions.

You will have a wide scope of responsibility that will include accountability for expense reporting, budgeting, investment analysis and project outcome tracking. You will work with centralised finance teams and business unit leaders, as well as leading on local aspects of procurement and ensuring compliance with company policy and procedure. Specific responsibilities include:

• Working closely with the centralised Procurement team in the US, taking responsibility for the local effectiveness of the procurement process and disciplines.
• Builds a collaborative communication process around procurement that involves executives, stakeholders and vendors of the organisation.
• Ensures compliance with procurement processes by local stakeholders and provides training and reporting to meet that objective.
• Manages the local control and configuration needs for procurement processes and ensures that all governance and regulatory requirements are met.
• Develops metrics aligned to stakeholder objectives and utilises them to continually improve, and add value to procurement disciplines.
• Plays a key role in monitoring the pipeline of transactions related to procurement activities and liaises between relevant stakeholders.
• Manages the process to approve contracts and subsequent spend in line with budgets.
• Engages with procurement colleagues, where relevant, on vendor proposals, negotiations and onboarding.
• Engages in the identification and delivery of vendor savings.

• Ensures organisational needs are met by centralised Accounts Payable services.
• Tracks the accuracy and efficiency of the Accounts Payable process and provides appropriate reports on performance, including those for regulatory purposes.
• Ensures the expense team help to manage an effective interaction between business operations and the Accounts Payable team.
• Manages monthly expense accounting processes to ensure the accurate and complete recording of accrual/prepayment and capital/depreciation transactions.
• Ensures appropriate expense reconciliation controls are in place.
• Manages and records expense allocation rules and their application and ensures they are updated regularly to reflect business changes.
• Works closely with the other Finance teams in the effectiveness and timeliness of the financial close process with regard to expense balances.
• Ensures external audit queries related to expenses are promptly addressed.

• Develops and provides monthly expense management reports to senior management.
• Develops and provides cost centre reports to track spend and compare to budgets and collaborates with cost centre owners on spend performance and drives actions that arise from those interactions.
• Reports on, and analyses, Travel & Entertainment spend and ensures relevant variances and issues are identified and addressed.
• Develops and provides reports analysing the expense ratio of business lines and platforms and provides insight as to the underlying business model.
• Manages the budget process and collaborates closely with relevant business functions (notably Operations and IT) on granular levels of spend.
• Throughout the planning cycle works closely with the Strategic Planning & Analysis team on overall expense outcomes.

• Reviews the framework for cost benefit analyses and benefit delivery tracking and provides relevant feedback throughout project lifecycles.
• Works closely with IT colleagues on the reconciliation and tracking of IT Transformation project spend and its presentation to relevant committees and forums.
• Participates in project steering committees and forums as the expense management lead.
• Engages in cross-functional projects and initiatives and provides expertise on expense management discipline.
• Maintains a view of long-term expense strategy that feeds into multi-year plans and demonstrates growth versus investment trade-offs.
• Undertakes ad-hoc analyses and supports real estate and other infrastructure initiatives.

• Operates as a key manager within the Finance function, working closely with colleagues in the Finance teams.
• Manages effective relationships, across all expense matters, with other business functions and business leaders.
• Closely collaborates with colleagues and providers delivering centralised services from other locations.
• Undertakes other tasks and responsibilities as required.

This is a full-time role, working 40 hours per week between Monday and Friday, but the exact working pattern can be flexible to suit the right candidate.

What you'll need to succeed

• Significant experience of procurement and expense management.
• Qualified Accountant (CIMA. ACCA, ACA) (desirable).
• Experience of multi-functional collaboration in a relatively large organisation.
• A proven problem-solver with strong analytical experience.
• A confident individual with the ability to manage the expectations of senior management.
• Self-starter, proactive work ethic with a willingness to provide support where required.
• Advanced Excel user skills and strong application usage experience (required).
• Strong organisation and time management skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively and explain technical issues.
• Ability to build relationships with other functional areas of the business.

What you'll get in return

You will receive a highly competitive salary, 36 days annual leave (including bank holidays), discretionary annual bonus, a 10% minimum employer pension contribution, season ticket loans, private medical insurance, life assurance and income protection, free health assessment, health cash plan, access to a leading 24-hour EAP, wellbeing fund and free eye test and glasses contribution.

What you need to do now

If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV, or call us now.

If this job isn't quite right for you, but you are looking for a new position, please contact us for a confidential discussion about your career.