Senior Cost Analyst

Awaze; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Awaze is seeking a Senior Cost Analyst to own analysis, forecasting and reporting of staff costs across the Group, partnering with the Finance Cost Business Partner and cost team to drive cost efficiency.

The role is based predominantly in our Manchester office with a flexible hybrid approach, requiring strong commercial thinking and a hands-on, detail-oriented mindset.

Qualifications

• Solid experience in finance business partnering or management accounting with a focus on cost analysis.
• Strong Excel modelling skills and planning/reporting tools such as Power BI, SAP or PBCS.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and influencing skills across functions and seniority levels.
• Bonus points if you're a qualified accountant (CIMA, ACCA or ACA), or a finalist with strong commercial acumen.
• Experience within travel, leisure, hospitality or consumer sectors would be beneficial, as would experience using or embedding AI tools within finance processes.

Responsibilities

• Own the monthly reporting and analysis of staff overheads, including variance commentary and reforecasting.
• Manage and analyse the key metrics underpinning staff cost performance, including headcount, FTE movements, pay rates and agency mix, identifying trends and opportunities to improve cost efficiency.
• Partner with budget owners to ensure accurate cost tracking, challenge anomalies and support proactive cost management.
• Explain variances between operational KPIs and financial performance, identifying the underlying drivers and actions required.
• Lead the cost element of the annual budgeting and quarterly reforecasting processes across departments, ensuring forecasts reflect strategic priorities and robust operational assumptions.
• Maintain and develop scalable financial models that support cost planning, forecasting and scenario analysis.
• Present monthly cost insights to department leads, translating complex financial data into meaningful and actionable information.
• Support strategic projects, including cost efficiency initiatives, reorganisation planning and contract negotiations, with robust financial analysis and insight.

Skills

Finance business partnering

Excel modelling

Stakeholder engagement

Analytical thinking

Education

Qualified accountant (CIMA/ACCA/ACA)

Tools

Power BI

SAP

PBCS

Job description

Turn detailed cost data into insight that helps shape smarter decisions across Awaze.

Your mission

As our new Senior Cost Analyst, your mission will be to take ownership of the analysis, forecasting and reporting of staff costs across the Awaze Group, helping us deliver strong financial cost performance in line with our annual targets.

You’ll join our Commercial Finance Team, working closely with the Finance Cost Business Partner and wider cost team. This is a hands‑on role for someone who combines strong commercial thinking with a willingness to get into the detail – understanding what is driving our numbers, challenging assumptions and translating financial information into clear, actionable insight.

What you’ll be doing

• Own the monthly reporting and analysis of staff overheads, including variance commentary and reforecasting.

• Manage and analyse the key metrics underpinning staff cost performance, including headcount, FTE movements, pay rates and agency mix, identifying trends and opportunities to improve cost efficiency.

• Partner with budget owners to ensure accurate cost tracking, challenge anomalies and support proactive cost management.

• Explain variances between operational KPIs and financial performance, identifying the underlying drivers and actions required.

• Lead the cost element of the annual budgeting and quarterly reforecasting processes across departments, ensuring forecasts reflect strategic priorities and robust operational assumptions.

• Maintain and develop scalable financial models that support cost planning, forecasting and scenario analysis.

• Present monthly cost insights to department leads, translating complex financial data into meaningful and actionable information.

• Support strategic projects, including cost efficiency initiatives, reorganisation planning and contract negotiations, with robust financial analysis and insight.

Who we're looking for

You’ll thrive in this role if you enjoy combining commercial thinking with detailed financial analysis. You’re comfortable challenging assumptions, solving problems and working across different functions and levels of seniority. You’ll be able to see the bigger picture while still being motivated to understand exactly what sits behind the numbers.

We're looking for someone who brings:

• Solid experience in finance business partnering or management accounting, with a focus on cost analysis, overheads and/or staff cost management.

• Strong Excel modelling skills and experience with planning and reporting tools such as Power BI, SAP or PBCS.

• Strong organisational and problem‑solving skills, with a pragmatic and operational mindset.

• Excellent stakeholder engagement and influencing skills, with the confidence to work effectively across functions and seniority levels.

• A proactive, collaborative approach and the ability to turn detailed analysis into clear commercial insight.

• Bonus points if you're a qualified accountant (CIMA, ACCA or ACA), or a finalist with strong commercial acumen.

• Experience within travel, leisure, hospitality or consumer sectors would also be beneficial, as would experience using or embedding AI tools within finance processes.

How you'll make an impact

• Take ownership of staff cost reporting, forecasting and analysis across the Group, giving stakeholders a clear view of performance and its underlying drivers.

• Work closely with the Finance Cost Business Partner and cost analysis team to support wider Group cost initiatives, analysis and insight.

• Support the monthly production and ongoing improvement of dashboards and reporting metrics across the wider cost base.

• Deliver clear, insightful analysis in response to ad-hoc cost-related requests and business priorities.

• Identify and implement opportunities to improve cost reporting, forecasting tools and financial processes, increasing both efficiency and quality of insight.

• Help identify opportunities to deliver greater efficiency and value for money across the business.

• Provide ad-hoc support to the Finance Cost Business Partner across projects and workstreams, contributing wherever detailed financial insight can help drive better decisions.

Why you'll want to work at Awaze

We offer a versatile position in a strong professional and social environment - one you'll have the opportunity to influence and help shape. You'll be part of an international company that invests in the future, and join a dynamic, fast‑paced department with skilled and committed colleagues who support each other.

We're a people‑first business - and we know that our success starts with our teams. Here's a glimpse of what you'll enjoy:

• Generous discounts on holidays across our brands

• Flexible hybrid working - with the autonomy to work how you work best

• Real opportunities to grow, learn and shape your role as well as careers progression vertically or horizontally, cross countries and responsibilities.

About Awaze

Our mission is clear - to create amazing holidays with Europe's widest choice of holiday homes.

With more than 110,000 properties across Europe, we are the largest managed vacation rentals business in the region. Our ambition is not only to be the biggest, but the best provider of holiday homes in Europe.

As travel continues to evolve, we are focused on what comes next. We will keep strengthening our relationships with guests and homeowners, continuously improving the way we work, and delivering strong performance. By making things simpler and smarter, we are building a business that is ready for what's next - powered by proud, passionate and inclusive people.

Worth knowing

This role sits within our Commercial Finance Team and is based predominantly in our Manchester office in the North-West of England. You'll report to the Finance Cost Business Partner and work closely with colleagues across the wider cost team and business.

We're committed to running an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. All applicants will receive equal consideration for employment, and if you have any specific requirements or adjustments needed for the interview, just let us know when you accept your invitation - we're happy to accommodate.