Finance Process Transformation Lead

Cognizant; Coventry; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Cognizant is seeking a finance process expert to lead the design and improvement of finance processes across a major transformation programme. This business-facing role focuses on end-to-end finance operations and shaping processes in an ERP landscape.

You will own finance process design and collaborate with SAP/ERP delivery teams, while not configuring systems directly. The role requires strong finance domain background, experience in Water/Utilities sector, and ERP-savvy with stakeholder

Qualifications

• Finance domain experience leading or working in finance functions.
• Deep understanding of core financial and management accounting processes.
• Experience in water/utility sector regulatory and operational finance context.
• Ability to translate business needs into process requirements for delivery teams.
• Proven ability to lead finance decision-making across diverse stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Own the design of finance processes across record-to-report, procure-to-pay, order-to-cash, planning and control.
• Translate business needs into clear process and functional requirements for delivery teams.
• Act as the finance authority on the programme, resolving trade-offs to reflect real-world operations.
• Partner with SAP/ERP teams to ensure finance intent is met in design.
• Lead process validation, UAT, and adoption from the business side.
• Drive continuous improvement in finance ways of working.

Skills

Finance domain

Water Utilities sector

ERP-savvy

Stakeholder management

Education

ACA/ACCA/CIMA

Tools

SAP

Job description

We are seeking a finance process expert to lead the design and improvement of finance processes across a major transformation programme. This is a business-facing role for someone who understands finance operations end-to-end and can shape how those processes work in a modern ERP landscape. You will own the finance process design, working closely with SAP / ERP delivery teams — but this is a process and domain leadership role, not a system configuration one.

Responsibilities

• Own the design of finance processes (record-to-report, procure-to-pay, order-to-cash, planning and control) and how they should operate in the target ERP.
• Translate finance business needs into clear process and functional requirements for delivery teams to build.
• Act as the finance authority on the programme — making process decisions, resolving trade-offs, and ensuring the solution reflects real-world finance operations.
• Partner with SAP / ERP functional and technical teams, reviewing and challenging their design to ensure it meets finance intent.
• Lead process validation, user acceptance testing, and adoption from the business side.
• Drive continuous improvement in finance ways of working.

Essential Experience

• finance domain background — you have worked in or led finance functions and understand core financial and management accounting processes deeply.
• Experience in the Water / Utilities sector and its regulatory and operational finance context.
• ERP-savvy: you have delivered or supported finance change on SAP or comparable ERP programmes and can speak the language of system delivery — but your strength is process and finance, not configuration.
• Excellent stakeholder management, able to lead finance decision-making and bridge business and technical teams.

Desirable

• Finance qualification (ACA, ACCA, CIMA) or a background as a finance process / transformation consultant.
• Experience on large-scale finance transformation or ERP-enabled change programmes.