Director of Commercial Finance

Job Purpose:
As a key member of our Finance Business Partnering team, your role is to deliver top-tier strategic financial guidance essential for informed decision-making within the Marketing function. You will play a pivotal role in monitoring and facilitating the achievement of our financial targets. Building robust commercial relationships with Marketing leaders, you will drive performance and ensure that financial goals are met. Your contributions will be highly visible to senior stakeholders, presenting a promising career path at Sage. Effective communication, both written and verbal, is crucial for success in this role. Cultivating strong relationships with senior stakeholders is essential.
This revised version maintains the core information while making the text more concise and straightforward. It’s essential in job descriptions to communicate clearly and effectively to attract potential candidates.

Key Accountabilities and Decision Ownership:
1.    Build Trusted Business Partnerships: Develop strong, trusted relationships with function leaders and their teams, serving as a valuable business partner.
2.    Accurate Financial Planning: Deliver precise and timely monthly and quarterly forecasts, annual budgets, and three-year plans, with the aim of enhancing function predictability.
3.    P&L Performance Optimization: Lead efforts to optimize P&L (Profit and Loss) performance, exercising control over expenditures, and proactively identifying and managing budget-related risks and opportunities.
4.    High-Quality Financial Guidance: Provide proactive, high-quality financial analysis and guidance to assist in commercial decision-making by function leaders.
5.    Process Improvement: Contribute to the ongoing enhancement of financial processes, ensuring compliance with relevant financial standards and best practices.
6.    Finance Team Development: Play a senior role in finance leadership by effectively managing and coaching the finance team, fostering a culture of high performance.
This revised version maintains the core responsibilities while presenting them in a more concise and clear manner, making it easier for readers to understand the key aspects of the role.

Skills, Know-How, and Experience:
Must-Have:
1.    Effective Communication: Proficiency in both verbal and written communication, with the ability to concisely summarize financial information for presentation to senior stakeholders.
2.    Adaptability: Thrives in a dynamic, fast-paced environment and consistently delivers high-quality results within tight deadlines.
3.    Relationship Building: Demonstrated ability to rapidly establish strong, trust-based relationships with stakeholders, evolving into a respected and credible strategic partner who can provide coaching, challenge assumptions, and influence business leaders.
4.    Proactive and Detail-Oriented: Ambitious and proactive, with an unwavering commitment to finding solutions and a keen eye for detail.
5.    Commercial Acumen: Commercially aware, with a proven track record of identifying and driving strategic initiatives forward.
Preferred:
6. Financial Modelling: Expertise in financial modelling, including strong Excel skills, and some experience in investment appraisal.
7.    Marketing Support: Familiarity with providing business partnering support to a Marketing function and working alongside Marketing leaders.
This revised version maintains the essential skills and qualifications while making the language more concise and reader-friendly. It also distinguishes between “must-have” and “preferred” qualifications to provide a clearer understanding of the ideal candidate profile.