Finance Business Partner

wpp; Greater London; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

WPP is seeking a commercially minded Finance Business Partner to join our HQ Finance team, partnering closely with Finance and People leaders to provide financial insight, robust reporting, and informed decision support.

You will analyse financial performance, challenge stakeholders, and shape budgeting and forecasting across key corporate functions. This role supports transformation initiatives across WPP in a complex global organisation.

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant with international experience.
• Strong Excel and PowerPoint; ability to translate data into insights.
• Proven Finance Business Partnering in a complex, international organisation.

Responsibilities

• Partner with HQ Finance and People leaders to provide financial insight and analysis, including tracking actual performance against budgets and forecasts.
• Act as the primary finance contact for budget holders and department leads, supporting development of budgets and forecasts.
• Lead month-end performance reporting, including cost actualisation, variance analysis, risk and opportunity assessment, and mitigating actions.
• Support management accountants through the month-end close by providing information for journal entries.
• Maintain integrity and accuracy of budget and forecast data in financial systems.
• Partner with Finance Director, GBS, Finance and People to support business cases and cost-saving initiatives.
• Analyse key cost drivers with business leaders to identify efficiencies for transformation and cost optimisation targets.
• Work with FP&A, Controllership, Tax and other Finance teams to ensure aligned reporting and analysis.
• Own and manage calculations underpinning the Finance and People recharge process across WPP.

Skills

Finance partnering

Excel

PowerPoint

Stakeholder influence

Financial analysis

Cross-functional

Education

ACCA/ACA/CIMA or equivalent

Tools

Power BI

ERP systems

Job description

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world's leading brands.

We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company - powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth.

We work with the world's most valuable brands and have global reach across 100+ markets, with deep local expertise.

Our people are the key to our success. We're committed to fostering a culture of creativity, belonging and continuous learning, attracting and developing the brightest talent, and providing exciting career opportunities that help our people grow.

For more information, visit WPP.com.

Why we're hiring:

We're looking for a commercially minded Finance Business Partner to join our HQ Finance team, partnering closely with Finance and People leaders to provide meaningful financial insight, robust reporting, and informed decision support.

In this role, you'll analyse financial performance, challenge and influence stakeholders, and help shape budgeting and forecasting processes across key corporate functions. You'll play a critical role in understanding business performance through detailed variance analysis, identifying opportunities for improvement, and supporting strategic decision-making.

This is also an exciting opportunity to contribute to broader transformation initiatives across WPP, working with senior stakeholders to drive efficiency, deliver business insight, and support change at scale in a complex global organisation.

What you'll be doing:

• Partner with HQ Finance and People leaders to provide financial insight and analysis, including tracking actual performance against budgets and forecasts.
• Act as the primary finance contact for budget holders and department leads, supporting the development of accurate, transparent, and robust budgets and forecasts.
• Lead month-end performance reporting, including cost actualisation, variance analysis, risk and opportunity assessment, and the identification of mitigating actions.
• Support management accountants through the month-end close process by providing information required for journal preparation and posting.
• Maintain the integrity and accuracy of budget and forecast data within WPP's financial systems.
• Partner with the Finance Director, GBS, Finance and People to support business cases, cost-saving initiatives, and transformation programmes.
• Analyse key cost drivers and collaborate with business leaders to identify efficiencies and opportunities that contribute to transformation and cost optimisation targets.
• Work closely with FP&A, Controllership, Tax and other Finance teams to ensure consistent, accurate, and aligned reporting and analysis.
• Own and manage the calculations that underpin the Finance and People recharge process across WPP.

What you'll need:

Essential

• Qualified accountant (ACCA, ACA, CPA, CIMA or equivalent).
• Proven Finance Business Partnering experience within a complex, international organisation.
• Advanced Excel and PowerPoint skills.
• Strong influencing skills with the confidence to provide constructive challenge to senior finance and non-finance stakeholders.
• Ability to translate complex financial information into clear, actionable insights.
• Excellent organisational and execution skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience working effectively across large, diverse, and international teams.
• A proactive, commercial mindset with a continuous improvement approach.

Desirable

• Experience with enterprise financial systems and data visualisation tools, such as Power BI.
• A proven track record of driving process improvements through automation, standardisation, and the effective use of data.

Who you are:

You're open : We are inclusive and collaborative; we encourage the free exchange of ideas; we respect and celebrate diverse views. We are open-minded: to new ideas, new partnerships, new ways of working.

You're optimistic : We believe in the power of creativity, technology and talent to create brighter futures or our people, our clients and our communities. We approach all that we do with conviction: to try the new and to seek the unexpected.

You're extraordinary: we are stronger together: through collaboration we achieve the amazing. We are creative leaders and pioneers of our industry; we provide extraordinary every day.

What we'll give you:

Passionate, inspired people - We aim to create a culture in which people can do extraordinary work.

Scale and opportunity - We offer the opportunity to create, influence and complete projects at a scale that is unparalleled in the industry.

Challenging and stimulating work - Unique work and the opportunity to join a group of creative problem solvers. Are you up for the challenge?