Finance Operations Manager

National Physical Laboratory; Greater London; Sur place; GBP 60 000 - 85 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

National Physical Laboratory in London is seeking a Finance Manager responsible for AP/AR, ensuring accurate ledgers, timely supplier payments and customer invoicing. You will deliver performance metrics to monitor efficiency and compliance and support business continuity.

You will coach the AP/AR team, drive process improvements, and produce cash flow forecasts and external reporting using D365 Finance and Excel for KPI insights and decision support.

Qualifications

• ACCA or CIMA or CICM/ILM/CMI qualifications with strong AP/AR knowledge.
• Experience leading AP/AR, transactional finance or finance operations teams.
• Experience managing payment cycles, supplier accounts, customer billing and aged debt.
• Intermediate Excel skills with formulas, lookups and pivots for reporting.
• Experience using D365 Finance to manage AP/AR processes and controls.

Responsabilités

• Lead, coach and develop the AP/AR team to maximise performance and development.
• Provide technical accounting system expertise and short-term cash flow forecasting.
• Report on AP/AR performance, payment practices, reconciliations and KPIs.
• Ensure timely external reporting of payments and cash flow forecasts.
• Maintain internal controls, governance, anti-fraud practices and compliance.
• Identify process improvements to enhance efficiency across AP/AR/Treasury.

Connaissances

Leadership

Communication

Excel skills

Process improvement

Formation

ACCA or CIMA or CICM/ILM/CMI

Outils

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance

Description du poste

About the Role

Amember of the Finance management team responsible for the effective managementof AP and AR activities, ensuring ledgers are accurately maintained andreconciled in line with financial reporting timetables. The role supportsbusiness continuity through the timely payment of suppliers, accurate invoicingof customers, and the delivery of performance metrics to monitor teamefficiency and compliance. Maintains strong financial controls, governance andanti-fraud practices across all processes

Thiskey role enables NPL operations to continue by ensuring supplier invoices arepaid on time and NPL invoices can be raised to customers. The role alsooversees the production of cash flow reporting and forecasts, for internal andDSIT Treasury shared services purposes. Accurate performance metrics should beproduced to monitor and report on the compliance and efficiency of the team'swork. The role ensures that internal control and anti-fraud practices aremaintained to a high standard.

What you'll be doing:

• Lead,coach and develop the AP/AR team, driving the performance and potential ofyour team, building a highly motivated, customer focused and highperforming team. Ensure team members are gaining professional developmentthrough growth of their skills and experience
• Providetechnical expertise and knowledge of accounting systems, payments andreceipts and to produce shorter term (up to 3 months) cash flowforecasting and reporting, both internally and externally
• Accountablefor reporting on AP/AR performance, delivering clear analysis of paymentpractices, debtor and creditor positions, cash collection performance,reconciliations, KPIs and short-term cash flow forecasts
• Responsiblefor timely production of external performance reporting, including paymentpractices
• Ensurebanking facilities and processes are in place to support efficientbusiness operations
• UtiliseMicrosoft Excel and D365 reporting outputs to analyse trends, identifyexceptions, support decision-making and improve operational performance
• Identifyand implement process improvements and innovative solutions to enhanceefficiency, automation and service performance across AP, AR and Treasuryactivities
• Ensurecompliance with appropriate internal and external governance includingquality, health, safety, security and environmental legislation minimisingrisk to the business and enhancing NPL’s reputation
• Monitorand report on internal control processes and procedures, including fraudawareness, to maintain a well-controlled and efficient workflow
• Buildand maintain supplier, customer and stakeholder relationships that willsupport NPL’s ability to deliver its mission, its reputation and remainsustainable
• Manageand maintain relationships with internal stakeholders, suppliers andcustomers to ensure that queries and problems are dealt with by the teamefficiently and effectively

About You

What you can bring to the role:

Essential Criteria:

• ACCA or CIMA qualified or alternatively CICM, ILM or CMI qualified, with strong knowledge of AP, AR, reconciliations, cashflow and financial controls.

• Proven experience leading AP/AR, transactional finance or finance operations teams, with the ability to coach, develop and motivate colleagues.

• Experience managing payment cycles, supplier accounts, customer billing, credit control, aged debt and accounts receivable activity.

• Intermediate Microsoft Excel skills, including use of formulas, lookups, pivot tables, filtering and reconciliations to analyse data and produce reporting.

• Experience using Microsoft D365 Finance, or a comparable ERP system, to manage AP/AR processes, reporting, reconciliations and controls.

• Strong reporting and analytical capability, with the ability to produce accurate KPIs, explain trends and identify areas for improvement.

• Confident communicator with the ability to engage suppliers, customers and stakeholders across Finance and the wider business.

• A continuous improvement mindset, with enthusiasm for developing processes, reporting, controls and team capability under the new system.

We actively recruit citizens of all backgrounds, but the nature of our work in specific departments means that nationality, residency and security requirements can be more tightly defined than others. You will be asked about this throughout the recruitment process. To work at NPL, you will need to obtain BPSS security clearance.

About Us

The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is aworld-leading centre of excellence that provides cutting-edge measurementscience, engineering and technology to underpin prosperity and quality of lifein the UK. Find out more about what it is like working here - The measure of us - Overview NPL and DSIT have strong commitments to diversity and equality of opportunity,and welcome applications from candidates irrespective of their background,gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, or age, providing they meet the requiredcriteria. Applications from women, disabled and black, Asian and minorityethnic candidates in particular are encouraged. All disabled candidates (asdefinedby the Equality Act 2010) who satisfy the minimum criteria for the rolewill be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme. At NPL, we believe our success is a result of the diversity and talent of ourpeople.We strive to nurture and respect individuals to ensure everyonefeels valued by treating everyone on the basis of their own individual meritsand abilities regardless of their own or perceived identity, as part of ourcommitment to diversity & inclusion, we ensure we’re creating anenvironment where all our colleagues feel supported and welcome. More aboutthis on our Diversity & Inclusion page. We are committed to the health and well-being of our employees. Flexibleworking and social activities are embedded in our culture to create a positivework-life balance, along with a broad range of rewards, benefits and recognition. Our values areat the heart of what we do, and they shape the way we interact, develop ourpeople and celebrate success.To ensure everyone has an equal chance,we’re always willing to make reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process.If you would like to discuss, please contact us.