Finance Manager - Distribution Rail and Third Party

Tesco; Welwyn Garden City; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading UK retailer is seeking a financial strategy lead to oversee Rail network and third-party transport operations. The ideal candidate will drive performance through strategic planning and stakeholder engagement. With a focus on sustainability, you will manage budgets, foster collaboration, and deliver insights for data-driven decisions. The role requires strong analytical skills and a professional accountancy qualification, with benefits including a substantial bonus scheme and comprehensive health coverage.

Benefits

Annual bonus scheme of up to 20% of base salary

Holiday starting at 25 days plus a personal day

Private medical insurance

Maternity and adoption leave at full pay

Employee Assistance Programme

Free access to virtual GP service

Qualifications

• Proven financial analysis experience is desirable.
• Experienced in change management.

Responsibilities

• Lead financial strategy and business partnering across Rail network.
• Manage commercial relationships with third-party transport operations.
• Deliver data-driven insights to guide commercial decisions.
• Lead budgeting and forecasting processes.
• Foster collaboration with Bengaluru team.
• Enhance KPI analysis tools.

Skills

Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills

Ability to engage and challenge senior stakeholders

Peer-to-peer leadership

Highly numerate with problem-solving skills

Proficient in Excel

Education

Professional accountancy qualification (ACA, ACCA, CIMA)

Job description

About the role

Lead financial strategy and business partnering across our Rail network and Third-Party Secondary Transport operations. You’ll work with Transport Managers and senior leaders to drive in‑year performance and shape long‑term plans under our Save to Invest framework.

With nine daily trains from London to Scotland and ambitions to expand, plus ten Third-Party sites with upcoming retenders, this role is key to improving efficiency and sustainability. You’ll build robust business cases to optimise the Rail network, reduce carbon footprint, and influence decisions that deliver operational excellence and strategic impact.

You will be responsible for

• Partner with the Head of Rail and Regional Transport Manager, providing additional support to the Transport Director to drive operational and strategic outcomes.
• Manage commercial relationships with third‑party transport operations, ensuring alignment with business objectives and contractual obligations.
• Deliver data‑driven insights to guide commercial decisions throughout the tender process, working collaboratively with Procurement and Operations teams.
• Lead budgeting and forecasting processes, maintaining integrity across the P&L and providing performance analysis, with regular presentations at weekly and periodic finance reviews to the Transport Director and UK Distribution Director.
• Foster collaboration with the Bengaluru team, building strong relationships that enable knowledge sharing and continuous improvement in reporting and support processes.
• Provide financial expertise to business teams for end‑to‑end planning, including investment committee papers and Save to Invest initiatives.
• Enhance KPI analysis tools, simplifying and improving reporting to support informed decision‑making.

You will need

Essential

• Ability to proactively engage and challenge both finance and non‑finance senior stakeholders
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to see both detail and the bigger picture
• Peer‑to‑peer leadership: building relationships and providing constructive challenge to drive the best outcomes
• Experienced in change management
• Highly numerate with strong problem‑solving skills
• Proficient in Excel

Desirable

• Proven financial analysis experience
• Professional accountancy qualification (ACA, ACCA, CIMA)

What’s in it for you

We’re all about the little helps. That’s why we make sure our Tesco colleague benefits package takes care of you – both in and out of work. Click Here to find out more!

• Annual bonus scheme of up to 20% of base salary
• Holiday starting at 25 days plus a personal day (plus Bank holidays)
• Private medical insurance
• 26 weeks maternity and adoption leave (after 1 year’s service) at full pay, followed by 13 weeks of Statutory Maternity Pay or Statutory Adoption Pay, we also offer 6 weeks fully paid paternity leave
• Free 24/7 virtual GP service, Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for you and your family, free access to a range of experts to support your mental wellbeing

About us

Tesco has become a market leader by doing the little things that really matter for our customers and colleagues.

It’s part of what makes Tesco such a great place to work, and we’re proud to have been accredited as one of Britain’s Top Employers again this year.

We’re the UK's number one retailer and we pride ourselves on offering a great shopping experience. We are passionate about our food, merchandise and services and will always try to get things right for our customers.

But did you know we also offer great job opportunities? With stores, distribution centres and offices across the UK, and a vast variety of roles, we are always looking for people who have a hunger to work with customers and colleagues across our exciting business.

We believe in treating each other with respect and giving everyone an equal opportunity to get on. It's our people that make the difference every day - helping us make a difference for our customers.

Should you be successful in your application, your offer will be subject to and conditional upon you providing your bank account details before your agreed start date.

For more information about us please visit www.tescoplc.com