Head of Finance Integration

Manchester Arndale; Ipswich; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a Head of Finance Integration to oversee financial integration for acquisitions and reorganizations. In this pivotal role, you will lead cross-functional teams to ensure smooth transitions and compliance with accounting standards. Your expertise in finance management and mergers will be crucial as you drive strategic initiatives and provide insights to the board. This role offers a blend of independent decision-making and collaborative teamwork, perfect for someone passionate about making a significant impact in a dynamic environment.

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant ACA/ACCA/CIMA minimum required.
• Experience in finance, mergers, and acquisitions or integration projects essential.

Responsibilities

• Lead integration work streams for existing businesses and acquisitions.
• Collaborate with legal, operations, and IT to harmonize financial processes.

Skills

Finance Management

Mergers and Acquisitions

Analytical Skills

Problem-solving

Interpersonal Skills

Education

Qualified Accountant (ACA/ACCA/CIMA)

Tools

Microsoft Dynamics

ERP Software

Job description

About The Company:

OCS UK & Ireland is a leading facilities management company with 50,000+ colleagues and a turnover in excess of £2bn. We deliver innovative, award-winning services within facilities management, hard services, cleaning, security and catering.

Our mission is to make people and places the best they can be for our colleagues, customers and the communities we serve. Our commitment to doing business the right way is rooted in our TRUE values - Trust, Respect, Unity, and Empowerment.

About The Role:

Introduction and overall purpose of the role

As Head of Finance Integration, you will own the finance workstream for the integration of external acquisitions and internal reorganisations from a finance perspective becoming the "hive up" expert. Your responsibilities will span various areas, and you'll collaborate closely with cross-functional teams to drive successful financial integration efforts.

You will report to the Finance Director, however will work closely with the integration leads of each of the business departments, you will need to work independently and proactively. You'll need to make informed decisions, prioritise tasks, and manage your workload effectively, live managing one other finance integration post.

Main Duties & Responsibilities of the Role

• Lead integration work streams for existing businesses and acquisitions. This involves coordinating financial activities, aligning processes, and ensuring smooth transitions.
• Provide strategic progress updates to the board on the status of Integration activities, addressing risks and dependencies.
• Collaborate with other functional teams (such as legal, operations, and IT) to harmonize financial processes during integration.
• Act as the finance representative on integration projects. You'll be the point person for financial matters, providing insights, analysis, and recommendations. Taking ownership of financial integration initiatives and drive them forward.
• Ensure financial compliance and adherence to accounting standards throughout the integration process.
• Produce detailed hive-up workings. This will include any additional steps required as part of the re-organisational steps plan. Collaborate with legal and tax teams to ensure accuracy of hive-up calculations.
• Work on mapping the chart of accounts for the newly integrated entities to our group's consolidated Trial Balance (TB). Ensure consistency, accuracy, and alignment with reporting requirements.
• Map Customer, supplier, purchase orders and other sub ledgers from existing finance systems into the Group target finance system, Microsoft Dynamics.
• Cleanse purchase order data, ensuring only genuine open items are transitioned into the target entity.
• Ensure the required customer level data is captured to ensure a smooth transition of the billing process, capture requirements around annual price increases and communicate these requirements effectively.
• Coordinate treasury activities related to integration. This includes bank mandates and signatories, access to bank portals, cash reporting and forecasting. Ensure smooth transitions for banking operations.
• Partner with existing finance and operational teams to integrate additional businesses into underlying processes efficiently. Identify opportunities for process improvement and standardisation.
• Create a comprehensive integration steps plan for use on a variety of acquisitions and internal integration work streams.
• Be an outgoing and extroverted team member. Effective communication is crucial for successful integration.
• Lead the opening balance sheet exercise for acquisition. This involves capturing the financial position of the newly integrated entities at the beginning of the integration process and processing any opening balance sheet adjustments. Where necessary completion accounts will also have to be prepared.
• Oversee data cleansing efforts during integration. Ensure data accuracy, consistency, and completeness, facilitating the transition of financial data from legacy systems to the unified platform.
• Ensure VAT returns of the entities are completed during the integration process, partnering with the tax manager to ensure final returns are completed.

Professional Qualifications required for the job

• Qualified accountant ACA/ACCA/CIMA minimum

Previous experience desirable/essential

• Considerable experience of in finance, mergers and acquisitions, or integration projects
• Experience with implementing processes and controls
• Proven track record of reviewing financial accounts, postings and reports
• Knowledge of ERP software
• Good knowledge of fundamental accounting principles, IFRS
• Audit background preferred but not essential
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to collaborate effectively across teams
• Strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and problem-solving abilities

Other Details

Drivers Licence required Yes, UK travel possible

Flexible working Currently three days a week in the office, two days a week at home

How to Apply:

If you are interested in joining a business that encourages professional development, career progression and the chance to work with inspirational people then please click apply and register your interest! You can also sign up to our job alerts when registering which will notify you when other suitable vacancies are available.

We are an equal opportunities employer and rely on a diverse workforce with a broad range of knowledge, skills, and backgrounds to deliver our goals. We offer an inclusive and welcoming environment and actively encourage applications from all individuals regardless of race, gender, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or age.