Finance Business Partner

Cooper Parry; Haddington; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A financial recruitment agency is collaborating with ESG Drysdale to find a Finance Business Partner based in Haddington. This role involves providing strategic financial insights and analysis to drive performance across commercial and operational teams. The ideal candidate has significant experience in financial reporting, budgeting, and possesses strong Excel skills. A competitive financial package is on offer, making this an exciting opportunity for finance professionals to make a substantial impact in the business.

Benefits

Competitive financial package

Qualifications

• Experience as a finance business partner, ideally in FMCG, food manufacturing, agriculture, or fresh produce.
• High level of competence in Excel.
• Strong understanding of budgeting and financial control.

Responsibilities

• Act as a trusted partner to commercial and operational leaders.
• Analyse performance and provide actionable standard costing analysis.
• Lead budgeting and forecasting for business units.
• Monitor KPIs including stock losses and logistics performance.
• Drive continuous improvement in financial processes and reporting tools.

Skills

Excel proficiency

Group or intercompany accounting

Budgeting processes understanding

Financial reporting tools experience

Commercial awareness

Margin management understanding

Power Query experience

Power BI experience

Education

ACCA, CIMA, CA or equivalent

Job description

Overview

Cooper Parry Finance Recruitment is delighted to be exclusively working with ESG Drysdale again for the appointment of a newly created role, Finance Business Partner, based at their Cockburnspath site, easily commutable from East Lothian & parts of the Scottish Borders.

ESG Drysdale is the United Kingdom's only brassica-focused producer organisation and one of just three vegetable producer organisations nationwide. In 2023, R & K Drysdale merged with East of Scotland Growers, creating a combined commercial success that reached circa £55m turnover. With 18 dedicated farmers based in a region spanning 200 miles of rich coastline, ESG Drysdale maintains an integrated grower network to ensure a resilient and regionally diverse supply chain. Their customers include supermarkets, B2B and foodservice markets nationwide, working with some large national brands.

As Finance Business Partner, you will play a key strategic and commercial role within ESG Drysdale. You will work closely with operational, commercial, and supply chain teams to drive performance, improve decision-making, and enhance financial understanding across the business. Your insights will support profitable growth, cost control, and investment decisions in a fast-moving environment with tight margins and perishable products. This is a newly created position for an exciting time to join the business.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as a trusted business partner to commercial, operational, and supply chain leaders, providing financial insights and strategic support
• Analyse weekly and monthly performance (volume, margin, yield, waste) and provide detailed & actionable standard costing analysis, commentary and recommendations
• Lead the budgeting and forecasting process for your business units, including scenario planning and sensitivity analysis
• Raising and reconciling self-bill invoices within the group
• Partner with commercial teams on B2B profitability analysis, pricing models, and contract negotiations
• Support supply chain efficiency projects and capital investment appraisals
• Monitor KPIs including stock losses, waste levels, cost-to-serve, and logistics performance
• Translate complex financial data into understandable reports and presentations for non-financial stakeholders
• Collaborate with the central finance team on month-end reporting, accruals, and variance analysis
• Drive continuous improvement in financial processes, systems, and reporting tools
• Ensure compliance with relevant financial controls, audit requirements, and company policies

Desirable Skills and Experience

• Experience in group or intercompany accounting
• Strong understanding of budgeting processes and financial control
• High level of competence in Excel and experience with financial reporting tools
• Qualifications: ACCA, CIMA, CA or equivalent level/experience
• Suitable for a first time move from an Accountancy Practice
• Previous experience as a finance business partner, ideally in FMCG, food manufacturing, agriculture, or fresh produce
• Strong commercial awareness and understanding of margin management and cost drivers in a low-margin, high-volume environment
• Power Query experience/Power BI experience

An attractive & competitive financial package is on offer for this fantastic opportunity.

Cooper Parry Finance Recruitment are working as retained recruitment partners on this great opportunity and we welcome all interested parties to apply now or contact Craig Sinclair, Recruitment Manager at Cooper Parry Finance Recruitment for further information. Please note that all third-party applications, enquiries and direct approaches will be referred to Cooper Parry Finance Recruitment for consideration & review.