Financial Operations Manager

Simbec-Orion; Merthyr Tydfil; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading contract research organization in the UK is looking for a Financial Operations Manager to oversee accounts payable, receivable, and credit control. In this role, you will ensure timely processing of transactions, manage a finance team, and enhance service delivery. The successful candidate should have experience in multi-currency environments, strong Excel skills, and excellent communication abilities. This position offers the chance to influence financial operations and support departmental performance.

Qualifications

• Experience in a multi-country/multi-entity/multi-currency finance environment.
• Prior experience of accounts payable.
• Strong interpersonal skills for negotiation.

Responsibilities

• Manage accounts payable, receivable, credit control, and invoicing.
• Monitor approvals of Purchase Requisitions (PRs) and Invoices (PIs).
• Support month-end close process with reconciliations and reports.

Skills

Multi-country/multi-entity/multi-currency finance experience

Accounts payable

Interpersonal skills

Excellent communication skills

Excel skills

Line management experience

Education

ACA, ACCA or CIMA qualification

Tools

Microsoft Dynamics 365

Excel

Job description

Our Mission

Our passion for improving patients’ lives motivates us to apply our skills, experience and knowledge to advance medicine.

We achieve this through flexible, innovative, high-quality solutions for our clients, delivered with integrity.

The Role

We are seeking a Financial Operations Manager to join our Group Finance Department. In this role, you will report to the Group Financial Controller and play a crucial part in ensuring the timely and accurate processing of transactions in the finance system. You will work closely with the wider Group Finance Team, overseeing Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, and Payroll activities to ensure reliable service delivery. You will also uphold high standards in transaction processing and provide efficient and high-quality service to both internal and external stakeholders, with clear KPIs to monitor departmental performance.

Key Accountabilities

• Manage a team responsible for accounts payable, accounts receivable, credit control and passthrough invoicing.
• Ensure the Vendor ledgers are well maintained, payments are correctly allocated, all paperwork is correct, there are no debit balances and payments are processed according to payment terms or as advised.
• Monitor approvals of Purchase Requisitions (PRs) and Purchase Invoices (PIs), identifying ways to improve overall compliance across the company.
• Undertake regular reviews of PRs, Purchase Orders (POs) and approval workflows within Exflow.
• Liaise with vendors to resolve queries and issues quickly and maintain good relations.
• Support with the 13-week cashflow forecast process each month, utilising the latest information to actively contribute to Company cashflow management.
• Produce payment plan proposals that meet the company's cash flow needs while ensuring that vendors are managed according to priority.
• Manage the Passthrough Costs process from end-to-end, continually assessing opportunities to improve overall passthrough management for our Clients and the Company.
• Support with Credit Control activities to minimise overdue balances.
• Ensure that processes around sales invoicing are robust and invoices are issued promptly.
• Maintain strong processes to ensure that financial and contractual clauses are enforced appropriately, e.g. enforcing sales inflation, administrative charges, etc.
• Manage reporting in relation to Debtors and Creditors for various internal stakeholders, identifying further opportunities to improve transparency and support the business.
• Support the month‑end close process with all appropriate reconciliations, supporting documentation, reports, etc.
• Work closely with other teams within Group Finance to identify opportunities for process improvements and minimise risk.
• Assist the contracts team in reviewing relevant supplier and client contract clauses. Support the annual Financial Audit process as the primary contact for the Vendor Ledger, Sales Ledger and Payroll data.

Skills Required

ESSENTIAL:

• Experience in multi-country/multi-entity/multi-currency finance environment
• Prior experience of accounts payable
• Sound systems knowledge
• Strong interpersonal skills, used to negotiation and/or managing difficult situations
• Excellent communication skills both verbal and written
• Excellent Excel skills, ability to work efficiently with data using formulas and pivot tables
• Previous Line management experience

DESIRABLE:

• Qualified Accountant - ACA, ACCA or CIMA
• Experience with Microsoft Dynamics 365 or other similar system (e.g. NetSuite, JDE, etc.)

About Us

Simbec‑Orion is a responsive and agile full‑service CRO, delivering studies from first in man through to Phase III. Our experts leverage wide therapeutic experience and specialist expertise to execute a comprehensive portfolio of trials. We are perfectly structured to provide full‑service clinical development solutions for small and mid‑size drug developers, headed up by a centralised leadership team.

With a focus on tailormade and scalable solutions, we adapt our delivery style, communications and operations to suit the demands of the project, helping clients achieve their clinical and commercial objectives. Because our goal is the same as theirs; to improve patients’ lives.