Job Description

My Client, an SME Manufacturing business in the Lancashire Region is currently looking for a qualified Finance Professional/ Junior Financial Controller looking for their next exciting challenge in their career.

In this role you will undertake all aspects of financial management of the company, including corporate accounting, regulatory and financial reporting, and budget and forecasts preparation. This person will work closely with the General Manager and operational staff to maintain accurate product costing to improve profitability by identifying, and tackling, inefficiencies and waste in the production cycle to take control of stock and reduce the level of stock holding and also the amount of slow moving and obsolete stock.

This person will be a key part of the management team and will be involved at a strategic level within the company and will also present to the Group’s Corporate Team at the monthly management meetings.

Key Responsibilities include:

• Responsible for all financial operations of the company including reporting, invoicing, cash management, stock control, sales ledger, purchase ledger, nominal ledger and fixed assets.
• Providing financial and commercial support to the General Manager.
• Working closely with the General Manager and operational staff to ensure all products have accurate and up to date Manufacturing Instructions and Bills Of Materials.
• Be the person in the business to hunt out and implement cost savings in all areas.
• Take control of stock management, recording and reporting.
• Ensure quality control over financial transactions and financial reporting and ensure the integrity of the ledgers and associated systems.
• Ensure the nominal ledger is accurate and that key nominal ledger accounts are reconciled each month.
• Prepare timely and accurate monthly management accounts.
• Investigate and report variances.
• Prepare year-end accounts and audit pack.
• Prepare annual budgets and monthly financial forecasts.
• Manage the Finance Department to ensure the resource available is utilized as efficiently and effectively as possible.
• Continuous monitoring and auditing of sales prices and margins, both quoted and actual.
• Publish daily/weekly/monthly production profitability, yield, variance reports etc. to improve the information available to support decision making. Use the reports to identify, and implement, improvements to increase profit margins, improve efficiencies, reduce waste etc..
• Ensure that financial controls are in place across the factory and are adhered to.
• Ensure compliance with all tax and regulatory issues.
• Be the main point of contact to external auditors and provide all required information.
• Work closely with the Financial Controller of the company’s Australian subsidiary.

This is an exciting opportunity for an individual who has maybe started their career in an accountancy practice and taken a move into industry for 12-24 months as an assistant to the FC but is now ready to take the step up to the number 1 in Finance.

Alternatively the role may also suit someone who has continually progressed and has no further room to do so in their current organization and is therefore ready to take on a leading role with new and exciting challenges ahead.

The key is that you are ambitious, have great leaderships skills, can communicate across all areas of a business and can mentor and train junior team members as well as all the above criteria of course.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Qualified accountant with either a background in manufacturing or a strong understanding of a manufacturing business. A proven track record of driving improvements and saving costs in production. The desire to want to make improvements and the tenacity to drive them through. A hands on approach – roll sleeves up and get out on the shop floor to see what is really happening. Product costing experience. Stock management experience. Strong interpersonal, communication and commercial skills. Solid technical ability. Attention to detail. Ability to meet deadlines. Experience of foreign currency transactions and foreign currency bank and ledger management. Strong Excel skills. Experience of MRP and/or ERP systems.