Financial Planning Analyst

Gulftainer; Sharjah; On-site; AED 250,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

Gulftainer in the UAE seeks an FP&A Lead Specialist to drive financial planning, performance management and executive reporting. You will build analytical dashboards (Power BI) and forecast cash flow to support strategic decisions in the port and logistics businesses.

Responsibilities include monthly/quarterly reviews, profitability analysis, KPI tracking, and partnering with commercial and operations teams to provide actionable insights. Prior experience in logistics is preferred.

Qualifications

• Strong financial analysis and modeling capabilities.
• Ability to develop executive-level financial insights.
• Experience with dashboards and KPIs for decision-making.
• Professional certification is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Support strategic financial planning and forecasting.
• Prepare monthly/quarterly/annual performance reviews.
• Develop executive dashboards and management reporting.
• Analyze supply chain and logistics financial drivers.
• Collaborate with commercial and operations teams for data-driven insights.
• Automate reporting and improve data visualization.

Skills

Advanced Excel

Financial analysis

Data visualization

Stakeholder management

Communication skills

Presentation skills

Education

Bachelor or Master in Commerce/Accounting/Finance/Investment/Taxation/Risk

Tools

Power BI

ERP (SAP/Oracle/Microsoft Dynamics)

Job description

The FP&A Lead Specialist will support financial planning, performance management, management reporting, dashboard development, cash flow forecasting, and business analytics. The role requires developing insightful financial analyses, preparing executive reports, and building analytical dashboards to support strategic decision-making.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Strategic Financial Planning

• Assist in periodic forecasting processes.
• Develop long-term financial plans and business cases.
• Provide recommendations to improve profitability, efficiency, and cash generation.
• dSupport corporate strategy through financial analysis and scenario planning.

Financial Performance Analysis

• Perform monthly, quarterly, and annual financial performance reviews.
• Analyze revenue, costs, profitability, operational KPIs, and business drivers.
• Conduct variance analysis against budget, forecast, and prior periods.
• Analyze capital expenditure requirements and funding needs.
• Monitor liquidity requirements and working capital performance.
• Identify financial risks, opportunities, and improvement initiatives.
• Prepare comprehensive management commentaries explaining business performance.

Management Reporting

• Prepare monthly management reports, Board reports, and executive dashboards.
• Develop financial presentations for senior management and stakeholders.
• Ensure timely and accurate reporting of key financial and operational metrics.
• Provide strategic insights on business trends and risks.
• Design and maintain financial and operational dashboards using Power BI or similar tools.
• Automate reporting processes and improve data visualization.
• Develop KPI monitoring tools for senior management.
• Integrate operational and financial data to provide actionable insights.

Supply Chain and Logistics Industry Analysis

• Analyze port, terminal, logistics, shipping, maritime services, contract logistics, warehousing, and supply chain performance indicators.
• Provide profitability and cost analysis by customer, trade lane, terminal, or service offering.
• Support commercial and operational teams with data-driven insights.

Qualifications:

Educational Background

Graduate or post‑graduate or equivalent degree in the field of Commerce/ Accounting / Finance / Investment / Taxation / Risk.

Technical Qualification / Certification

• Professional certification such as (CA, CFA, CRM, MBA in Finance) from a recognized institution in the field of Commerce/ Accounting / Finance / Investment / Tax / Risk.
• Member of a professional body, institution, or Chapter from the field of Accounting, Investments, Risks, Portfolio Management, Tax.

Related Work Experience

5+ Years of experience in FP&A role, preferably in the logistics sector

Technical/Functional Competency

• Advanced Excel and financial analysis.
• Advanced Power BI, or equivalent dashboarding tools.
• ERP experience (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, or similar).
• Strong analytical and data visualization skills.
• Understanding of financial statements and cash flow management.
• Experience in Ports and Logistic Business will be an advantage.
• Business partnering and stakeholder management.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills.