FP&A Accountant

freshfields; Manchester; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Professional development

Global exposure

Job summary

Freshfields is seeking an FP&A Accountant to join our Global Finance team in Manchester. You will partner with budget holders, analyse financial performance, and support forecasting, month-end activities, and management reporting to drive informed decision-making.

In this role you will champion automation, work with international colleagues, and contribute to continuous improvement of processes and controls in a fast-paced professional services environment.

Qualifications

• ACA/ACCA/CIMA or equivalent professional accounting qualification.
• Strong finance business partnering and stakeholder management.
• Excellent communication of complex financial information.
• Advanced Excel and analytical capability.
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, or management reporting.

Responsibilities

• Partner with budget holders to understand financial performance.
• Lead monthly cost reviews and provide variance analysis.
• Support annual budgeting, forecasting, and reporting cycles.
• Assist month-end close and ensure data integrity.
• Drive automation and improvements in reporting processes.

Skills

Finance partnering

Stakeholder mgmt

Advanced Excel

Analytical skills

Clear communication

Prioritisation

Education

ACA/ACCA/CIMA equivalent

Tools

Power BI

Workday Adaptive Planning

Elite 3E

Job description

Are you a commercially minded finance professional who enjoys turning financial data into meaningful business insight? Do you thrive on partnering with stakeholders, influencing decision-making, and driving continuous improvement?

We're looking for an FP&A Accountant to join our Global Finance team and play a key role in supporting strategic decision-making across an international business. This is an exciting opportunity to combine financial expertise, business partnering, analysis, and innovation in a highly collaborative and forward-thinking environment.

About the Role

As an FP&A Accountant, you'll act as a trusted partner to stakeholders across the business, helping them understand financial performance, manage costs, identify opportunities, and make informed decisions. Working within a global finance function, you'll contribute to budgeting, forecasting, month-end activities, management reporting, and financial analysis, while helping to drive process improvements and greater automation across the team. This is a highly visible role offering exposure to senior stakeholders and the opportunity to influence business outcomes on a global scale.

What You'll Be Doing

Business Partnering & Financial Insight

• Build trusted relationships with budget holders across the business.
• Lead monthly cost review meetings and support stakeholders in understanding financial performance.
• Deliver insightful variance analysis, trend reporting, and performance commentary.
• Identify key risks, opportunities, and cost drivers to support decision-making.

Budgeting & Forecasting

• Support the annual global budgeting process.
• Produce analysis and reporting on budget submissions and business forecasts.
• Work closely with stakeholders to ensure accurate and efficient forecasting.

Financial Reporting & Month End

• Support month-end close activities and ensure financial data integrity.
• Prepare and review accruals across multiple cost categories.
• Investigate variances and communicate meaningful explanations to stakeholders.
• Collaborate with international finance teams to ensure timely and accurate reporting.

Continuous Improvement & Innovation

• Champion automation, process improvements, and efficiencies.
• Leverage technology to enhance financial reporting and controls.
• Contribute to the ongoing evolution of finance systems and ways of working.

What We're Looking For

We're interested in the skills, experience, and mindset you can bring to the role.

Essential Skills & Experience

• ACA, CIMA, ACCA, or equivalent professional accounting qualification.
• Strong finance business partnering and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to communicate complex financial information clearly and confidently.
• Advanced Excel skills and strong analytical capability.
• Excellent attention to detail with a commercial mindset.
• Proven ability to manage priorities and deliver high-quality work to deadlines.
• Experience producing financial analysis, forecasting, budgeting, or management reporting.

Desirable

• Experience within professional services or legal environments.
• Exposure to financial planning systems such as Workday Adaptive Planning.
• Knowledge of Elite 3E or similar finance systems.
• Power BI experience and a passion for data visualisation.

Why Join Us?

You'll be joining a collaborative, inclusive, and people-focused organisation where finance is recognised as a strategic partner to the business.

We offer:

• The opportunity to work with and influence stakeholders across a global organisation.
• Exposure to strategic finance activities and senior decision-makers.
• A supportive and inclusive culture where diverse perspectives are valued.
• Opportunities for professional development, continuous learning, and career progression.
• A collaborative team environment built on knowledge sharing and mutual support.
• The chance to contribute to innovation, automation, and transformation initiatives that create real business impact.
• Flexible and modern ways of working that support wellbeing and work-life balance.

If you're an analytical, commercially aware finance professional looking to make a visible impact within a global organisation, we'd love to hear from you.

Inclusion

Freshfields is an equal opportunities employer and all applications received by the firm will be considered by the firm on the basis of their merit alone and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals regardless of background. All offers of employment will be conditional on the candidate having/securing the right to work in the UK and providing the firm with evidence of that right (as required by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006) prior to employment commencing.

Freshfields is a Ban the Box employer. We ask applicants to disclose criminal convictions only when a conditional job offer is made. A conviction does not automatically lead to withdrawal of the offer: we make decisions on a case by case basis and take a number of factors into accou