Operations Finance Analyst

Job content

DS Smith Packaging site in Hinckley has an exciting opportunity for an Operations Finance Analyst to join the Heavy Duty team. This role is key to support the operations across 4 sites and is critical to drive the budgeted operational efficiencies that keep us competitive.

This role offers the opportunity to be a key finance report and will offer a mix of true business partnering, operational costing, reporting, leading cost saving projects and capital investment appraisals. This role will be heavily involved in month end, forecasting and budgeting and has the exciting prospect of taking a lead role on governance and driving improvements in financial controls.

This is a high profile role in the Heavy Duty business to take ownership of the numbers to help drive business performance where your key stakeholders will be the Plant Managers and Heads of Engineering.

The ideal candidate will come with strong cost reporting/business partnering experience and an investigative mind set to support, improve and challenge business leaders. You must have demonstrable achievements to date and show good career progression as this position requires a bright and driven individual with a self assurance to hold their own if they are to be successful.

This is an exceptional opportunity to join a fast track business with all the development possibilities of working for a larger corporation.

About the role

The role will act as a first point of contact to the site leaders to help maximise the profitability of the cluster by providing insightful information and continually improve operational efficiency. This is a key role to support the delivery of profit improvement and achieving the strategic goals set for the business.

You will:

• Drive operational improvement at every opportunity, ensuring we remain competitive and provide the best commercial value.
• Take a lead in reporting cycle outside and provide timely and accurate operational costing.
• Work closely with the Commercial Finance Business Partner to ensure that suitable financial controls and processes are in place and adhered to.
• Work with the sector finance team, site teams and the SSC to ensure that the month end, budget and forecasting cycles are managed accurately and to schedule
• Act as first point of contact for the Site Plant Managers & Operations Managers
• Maintain strong cost controls – e.g. overtime reporting, labour recs, workflow issues etc
• Ensure Cost Models are fully implemented, updated and reconciled regularly at all sites.
• Finance lead on operational cost saving projects e.g. PACE, Waste
• Support the GM to prepare capex proposals/business cases
• Focus on innovation – identify new ways of collecting/analysing data
• Prepare relevant and accurate analysis for forecasts and budgets.
• Take ownership of project reporting and use this to drive project savings against budget.
• Maintenance of the costing system.
• Highlight any process flaws between sites and SSC and implement creative/simple solutions.
• Ensure that all financial controls are consistently implemented across all sites
• Assist CFBP in improving working capital management with a specific focus on stock control.

About you

• A highly motivated qualified or part qualified accountant (ACA/CIMA/ACCA).
• Degree qualification preferred with strong academic record.
• Strong understanding of financial management and reporting.
• Strong understanding of effective financial controls and processes and their implementation and ongoing governance.
• Advanced MS Excel skills with experience of having been able to quickly pick up new IT systems.
• A strong team player who can work collaboratively as well as autonomously.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• A site performance bonus
• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays
• Pension scheme 
• Life assurance 
• Income protection