Divisional Finance Manager

MOTT MACDONALD; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private medical insurance

Employee ownership

Flexible benefits

Annual bonus schemes

Job summary

Mott MacDonald is seeking a Divisional Finance Manager to shape and deliver the financial strategy for the Advisory and Programme Delivery unit. You will partner with leadership to ensure financial health through planning, analysis, and performance management across the business, driving sound decisions and accountability.

Essentially, you will manage budgeting, reporting, and controls, while collaborating with project teams and specialist groups to optimise invoicing, cashflow, and value

Qualifications

• Essential: Professional accounting qualification or equivalent experience
• Essential: Expertise in financial governance, planning, budgeting and forecasting
• Essential: Senior influence with stakeholders and ability to analyse complex financial data
• Proven ability to present actionable insights and to use financial reporting tools

Responsibilities

• Partner with management to prepare and evaluate business plans
• Own finance decision-making, planning and KPI setting
• Review financial performance and drive improvements
• Coordinate with Group/Regional Finance, Treasury, Tax and Shared Service teams
• Attend project control meetings and monitor working capital and cashflow
• Provide finance training and support for project budgets and revenue recognition

Skills

financial governance

planning & budgeting

forecasting

stakeholder influence

financial analysis

financial reporting tools

Education

Professional accounting qualification

Tools

ERP systems

Job description

Location/s: UK-wide; Applicants should be comfortable travelling to Cambridge on an occasional basis

Mott MacDonald is a global engineering, management, and development consultancy with over 20,000 employees across more than 50 countries and 140+ offices.

We work across incredible global industries, delivering exciting work that is defining our future and making an important societal impact in the communities we serve. Our people power our performance – we succeed when they do. With countless opportunities to collaborate, learn, and grow, the possibilities for excellence are as varied as every individual.

Whether you want to grow as a subject matter expert or broaden your experience with roles across our international community, you're surrounded by global specialists who want to combine their expertise and champion you to be your best. As a proudly employee-owned business, we benefit our clients, our communities, and each other, investing in creating the right space for everyone to feel empowered, included, and valued. Whatever your ambition, Mott MacDonald is where people come to be brilliant.

About the business unit

Mott MacDonald's Advisory and Programme Delivery(APD) unit delivers both project, programme & commercial management (PPCM) services and advisory solutions across the built environment, defence, energy, water, environmental, transportation, health and care sectors.

We deliver tailored solutions that directly address our clients' key challenges, combining our world-leading project expertise with unrivalled programme delivery capabilities and advisory services.

APD delivers services to projects ranging in scale and complexity up to £20bn, through the technical disciplines of programme management, project management, project controls, scheduling, cost management, estimating, infrastructure finance, management consulting, digital consulting and education, health and care management.

Overview of the role

We are looking for a Divisional Finance Manager to join our Advisory and Programme Delivery(APD) unit and play a key role in shaping and delivering the business financial strategy. You'll be responsible for ensuring the business financial health through effective planning, analysis, and performance management. Working closely with the leadership team, you'll help drive sound financial decision-making, align finance priorities with business objectives, and foster a culture of collaboration and accountability. Key responsibilities and duties include:

• Management
  • Partner with the management team in preparing and evaluating business plans
  • Accountable for finance decision-making and planning
  • Set objectives and KPIs for performance monitoring and quality measurement
  • Review financial performance, identify opportunities, and direct actions
  • Build strong relationships with project teams and the wider business, sharing best practice and driving a unified culture
  • Attend executive and management board meetings, providing strategic direction for the division/unit
• Projects
  • Review proposals, including assessment of financial aspects of contracts to facilitate invoicing and payments
  • Work with Group/Regional Finance, Treasury, Tax, and Shared Service teams to enhance project delivery
  • Attend monthly project control meetings for major and high-risk projects
  • Drive working capital management: optimise invoicing, collections, cashflow, and remittances
  • Work as a part of finance team and project managers in challenging the status quo and fostering continuous improvement
• Reporting & Compliance
  • Interpret monthly management accounts; control financial performance, profitability, utilisation, overheads, and working capital
  • Support preparation of annual budgets and forecasts aligned with business plans
  • Assure compliance with Group Directives, including insurances, trade licences, registrations, statutory accounts, tax, audits, and internal controls
  • Monitor the financial control environment and ensure completion of annual controls matrices
• Training & Development
  • Support staff in maintaining project control systems and provide finance training to ensure accurate project budgets and revenue recognition
  • Engage in finance improvement projects and build positive relationships across the business
  • Maintain high standards of financial control and professional development

Candidate specification

Essential:

• Professional accounting qualification or equivalent experience
• Comprehensive expertise in financial governance, planning, budgeting, and forecasting
• Experience operating at a senior level and influencing key stakeholders
• Ability to analyse complex financial data and present clear, actionable insights
• Proficiency in financial reporting tools

Desirable:

• Experience leading and developing a team
• A proactive approach to improving financial processes
• Ability to align financial strategies with business objectives
• Cambridge location and willingness to travel, mainly across the UK
• Embraces diverse thinking and lifelong learning

UK Immigration

Mott MacDonald Ltd. are not currently offering sponsorship to candidates under the Skilled Worker visa route in the UK. This decision is as a consequence of the changes made to the Skilled Worker route by the UK Government in April 2024. We continue to welcome applications from candidates who are eligible for alternative immigration routes in the UK, that do not require sponsorship as a Skilled Worker now or in future.

Agile working

At Mott MacDonald, we believe it makes business sense for you and your manager to choose how you can work most effectively to meet your client, team, and personal commitments. We offer a hybrid working policy that embraces your well-being, flexibility, and trust.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion

We put equality, diversity, and inclusion at the heart of our business, seeking to promote fair employment procedures and practices to ensure equal opportunities for all. We encourage individual expression in our workplace and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels they can contribute.

AI Usage

At Mott MacDonald, we see the value AI can bring, but we take a people-first approach to hiring. While AI tools can help candidates prepare and build confidence, every application and hiring decision is reviewed by our recruitment and hiring teams. We encourage the responsible use of AI while ensuring we get to know the real person behind the application.

Accessibility

We want you to feel supported and able to perform at your best throughout our recruitment process. If there is anything we can do to make applying or interviewing with us more accessible, please contact us at [e-mail] and we'll be happy to discuss how we can help.

We offer some fantastic benefits including:

Financial wellbeing

• We match employee pension contributions between 4.5% and 7%.
• Life assurance equal up to 4 x your basic salary, with an option to increase the level of cover to 6 x your salary.
• Our income protection scheme provides a financial benefit, as well as absence and return to work support due to long-term illness or injury.
• Flexible benefits, including increased life assurance cover, critical illness insurance, payroll saving and will writing.
• As an independently owned business we share the financial success of the business with all our colleagues in various ways including annual bonus schemes.

Employee Ownership

• Our employee ownership model means no external investors, just us, creating a culture of shared success.
• Our employees have a stake and a voice in our business, giving them a direct connection to our success through our personal and group performance bonuses.
• As your career grows, so does your stake, recognising your long-term impact and contribution.
• Your voice matters, with the opportunity to connect directly with senior leadership through formal channels to help shape our future.
• For our senior roles you will have a direct pathway towards ownership from day one.

Health and wellbeing

• Private medical insurance for all UK colleagues.
• Health cash plan to support you with every day health costs and treatments.
• Access to Peppy, providing free support from menopause experts for all UK colleagues.
• A variety of wellbeing support is available through our comprehensive wellbeing program, including access for you and your family.
• Ability to flex your salary to opt into a wide range of health benefits, many of which can be extended to your family too.

Lifestyle

• A minimum of 33-35 days holiday each year, inclusive of public holidays and dependent on level, with the ability to buy or sell leave through our flexible benefits programme.
• 10 days additional paid leave for Armed Forces Reservists and Cadet Force Adult Volunteers.
• Holiday entitlement increased to a minimum of 35 days after 5 years' service.
• Variety of employee saving schemes and discounts from high-street retailers.

Enhanced family and carers leave

• Enhanced family leave policies, including 26 weeks paid maternity and adoption leave, and two weeks paid paternity/partner leave.
• Our shared parental leave matches maternity leave meaning we pay up to 24 weeks at full pay.
• Up to five additional days leave are provided for those with significant caring responsibilities, two of which are paid.
• We offer policies and dedicated support to help military families balance service life with career and wellbeing.

Learning and development

• Primary annual professional institution subscription.
• A broad range of opportunities to enhance both technical and soft skills through mentoring, formal training, and self-development options.

Networks, communities, and social outcomes

• Join a wide range of groups including our Advanced Employee Networks which support our LGBTQ+, gender, race and ethnicity, disability, and parents/carers communities