Senior Finance Manager Job in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Required Skills for Success:

Strong analytical skills.
Exceptional commercial awareness and creativity.
Proven negotiation abilities.
Decisive, with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment.
Excellent communication, analytical, and organizational skills.
Effective delegation skills, ability to prioritize tasks, and manage deadlines.
Superior time management skills and the ability to perform well under pressure.
Qualifications and Experience:

Education:

At least a Bachelor’s Degree, Professional Degree, Post Graduate, or equivalent.
Experience:

Minimum of 5 years of experience as a Buyer in a retail environment, preferably in Health and Beauty.
Behavioral Competencies:

Exercises sound judgment in decision-making.
Acts with integrity and respect.
Adapts to business-driven changes.
Manages multiple tasks simultaneously in a dynamic environment.
Handles unexpected events and issues promptly and independently.
Identifies priorities, organizes, and plans activities to ensure timely execution.
Works effectively as a team member.
Willing and able to travel.

Budgeting and Forecasting Responsibilities:

Budget Preparation and Control:

Assist in preparing budgets for GDA in collaboration with the commercial business department to ensure key assumptions are reliable.
Monitor and control the operating budget, investigating variances as necessary.
Support re-forecasting the budget during quarterly financial reviews, recommending adjustments based on market conditions and business needs.
Process and Calendar Support:

Assist with the budgeting and forecasting of the calendar and process.
Provide support for budgeting and forecasting templates and requirements.
Aid in developing budgeting guidelines and assumptions, such as manpower planning.
Budget Review and Analysis:

Review budgets by Legal Entity (P&L, Balance Sheet, and Cash Flow) and Profit Centre (P&L, Working Capital, CapEx) for:
Group Functions and Group Consolidation
Division Functions and Divisional Consolidation
Business Units within existing Divisions
Incubated Businesses – New Sectors
Budget Challenge Reviews:

Participate in budget challenge reviews by scrutinizing outputs, assumptions, and drivers and assessing the sensitivity of these drivers for:
Divisions
Business Units within existing Divisions
Incubated Businesses – New Sectors
Cost Recharges and Allocation:

Assist in defining the framework for budget cost recharges and allocation for:
Group services provided to businesses
Division services offered to businesses
Shared services provided to businesses
True-Up Support:

Support in ensuring the true-up process is completed twice a year and accurately reflected in business forecasts.

Management Reporting & Controlling Responsibilities:

Management Reporting:

Lead the management reporting process, cadence, and overall framework.
Determine KPIs and metrics to be reported periodically at the Division and Business Unit (BU) levels.
Perform analysis and prepare standalone and aggregated periodic management report packs for:
Group and Incubated Businesses – New Sectors
Divisions
Business Units
Performance Reviews:

Conduct periodic business performance reviews for:
Incubated Businesses – New Sectors
Divisions
Business Units
Controlling Functions:

Support controlling functions for GDA 2060 by ensuring:
Validity of Census Headcount Report.
Review of Total Rewards postings every payroll processing.
Verification of balance sheet schedules (e.g., prepayments, accruals).
Oversight of ICM review, acceptance, and escalation.
Execution of true-up activities (AAA, Group Housing, GDA allocable cost, and Group Cost).
Review of open Purchase Orders to ensure appropriate accruals.
Group Finance Year-End Requirements:

Provide support for year-end requirements, including:
Automotive Like-for-Like Analysis.
Credit Card Transaction Analysis.
Automotive Balance Scorecard.
Automotive EBIT Adjustment Review Analysis.
Automotive Bonus/Incentive Payout Analysis.

Strategic Planning and Capital Allocation Responsibilities:

Strategic Plan Development:

Assist in developing the strategic plan and its financial implications.
Support the identification and leveraging of cross-business synergies as inputs to the strategic planning process, including:
Across Divisions
Across Business Units (BUs) within a Division
Support strategic plan challenge sessions at the Division and BU levels.
Portfolio Performance Review:

Periodically analyze country-wise business performance and exposure, including:
Division-wise performance within a country
Periodically categorize the portfolio into segments based on performance (e.g., performing – stable, growth; non-performing – turnaround, exit).
Conduct divestment impact and feasibility analysis for businesses within:
Country
Division
Commercial Finance and Business Support Analysis:

Assist in the analysis of investments and capital expenditures (Capex).
Support principal analysis, including the impact of currency fluctuations (e.g., yen impact) and payment terms.
Analyze inventory, sales (pricing), and gross margin (GM) by channel.
Prepare showroom/facility analysis using dashboards.
Conduct PCP (Periodic Control Point) and lease analysis.
Support strategic sourcing and cost optimization opportunities.

FP&A Financial Reporting Systems Responsibilities:

Group SAP BPC System:

Understand the end-to-end process of the Group SAP BPC system.
Resolve reconciliation differences with VC’s BIW and IFRP.
Advise on system enhancements.
Auto SAP BPC System (IFRP):

Understand the end-to-end process of the Auto SAP BPC system (IFRP).
Resolve reconciliation differences with VC’s BIW and Group BPC.
Advise on system enhancements.
Group VC’s BI System:

Understand the end-to-end process of the Group VC’s BI system.
Resolve reconciliation differences with IFRP and Group BPC.
Advise on system enhancements.
User Training:

Provide training to end users on all mentioned FP&A systems.
FP&A Dashboards Responsibilities:

IFRP Dashboards (Tableau and Alteryx):

Understand the end-to-end process of IFRP dashboards using Tableau and Alteryx.
Resolve data reconciliation differences.
Advise on dashboard enhancements.
IFRP Dashboards (Power BI):

Understand the end-to-end process of IFRP dashboards using Power BI.
Resolve data reconciliation differences.
Advise on dashboard enhancements.
Required Skills for Success:

Experience in the automotive industry or a Big 4 firm.
Certified/qualified accountant.
System-savvy with SAP experience.
Commercial background.
About the Team:

Reporting to the GM – Finance.
Qualifications and Experience:

Education:

Qualified in Finance (CIMA), Accounting (CA), MBA, or equivalent.
Experience:

Over 10 years of relevant experience.
Preferably with automotive experience.
Key Competencies:

Excellent communication, analytical, written, and interpersonal skills.
Proven ability to work with global finance teams.
Established a record of managing multiple and competing priorities.
Ability to meet deadlines and perform well under pressure in a fast-paced environment.
Strong capabilities in complex financial modeling.
Proficient in Microsoft Office, including Excel and PowerPoint.
Knowledge of SAP ERP and SAP BPC.
Individual accountability.
Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
Personal integrity.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Ability to follow up on outstanding issues.
Effective team collaboration.
Time management and ability to work under pressure.
Perseverance with challenging tasks.
Assertiveness without aggression.
Ability to focus and drive tasks to completion.