The company:
My client is one of Australia's leading financial institutions, renowned for its innovation, customer focus and continued investment in finance transformation.
The organisation is currently evolving its finance operating model, with a strong focus on strengthening commercial business partnering, improving decision support and ensuring finance delivers meaningful insight to the business.
This is an opportunity to step into a high-profile finance leadership position at an important point of transition, partnering with senior leaders across a broad Corporate Functions portfolio, whilst leading a small, high-performing team.
The role:
We are seeking an experienced Senior Finance Business Partner to step into an interim leadership role for an initial 3-6 month period (with the potential to convert to permanent employment for the right individual).
This is not a caretaker role. You will be expected to quickly establish credibility, support delivery, provide commercial challenge and bring clarity to the team and its stakeholders during a period of operating model change.
As the Senior Finance Partner to Corporate Functions leadership, you will work across areas including technology, operations, transformation and broader corporate/staff functions.
Key responsibilities include:
- Act as a Senior Finance Business Partner to Corporate Functions leadership, providing trusted commercial and financial advice
- Lead and support the Corporate Functions finance business partnering team
- Own and shape the expense narrative across actuals, forecasting and planning cycles
- Translate financial results into clear business insights, recommendations and actions
- Provide constructive challenge around investment proposals, productivity initiatives, cost drivers and benefits realisation
- Partner closely with Financial Planning and Financial Control as well as other finance teams to ensure the financial fact base is translated into meaningful business insight and decision support
- Provide senior stakeholders with a clear view of financial performance, risks, opportunities and key cost drivers
- Coach, support and prioritise the work of the finance partnering team, creating clarity around expectations and priorities
- Personally contribute to delivery and analysis where required - this is a genuine player-coach opportunity
- Help embed new ways of working and demonstrate strong ownership, accountability, commercial judgement and constructive challenge
Success in the first few months will mean building credibility quickly, establishing a clear and controlled view of performance, and helping shift conversations from simply reporting financial results to understanding their implications and driving better decisions.
Ideal skills & experience:
You will be an experienced finance leader who is equally comfortable operating strategically with senior stakeholders and getting into the detail when required.
We are looking for:
- Senior Finance Business Partnering/Commercial Finance or FP&A experience
- Demonstrated experience partnering with corporate functions, technology, operations, shared services and/or transformation environments
- Strong understanding of complex cost bases, including FTE and non-FTE expenditure, investment, productivity initiatives and benefits realisation
- Proven ability to translate financial information into clear, commercially relevant insights and recommendations
- Strong stakeholder management skills, with the confidence to influence and constructively challenge senior leaders
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to distil complex issues into concise messages and practical actions
- Previous experience leading, coaching or coordinating a finance team
- A hands-on, delivery-focused approach and willingness to personally contribute where required
- The ability to operate calmly and effectively through ambiguity, change and evolving operating models
- Strong commercial judgement and the ability to distinguish between financial reporting and genuine business insight
Most importantly, you will be someone who can lead from the front - bringing credibility, pragmatism and commercial judgement while supporting the team and maintaining momentum through a period of change.
What's in it for you:
- An opportunity to step into a senior finance leadership role within a large and sophisticated financial services environment
- The chance to make an immediate impact during an important finance operating model transition
- Exposure to senior stakeholders across technology, operations, transformation and broader Corporate Functions
- A genuine leadership opportunity where your experience, judgement and commercial perspective will be valued from day one
- A role combining strategic business partnering, commercial influence, team leadership and hands-on delivery
- The opportunity to help shape and embed a new approach to finance business partnering
- An initial 3-6 month interim engagement, ideal for an experienced finance professional who enjoys stepping into complex environments and making a tangible difference
- Strong potential for permanent employment at the end of the initial contract (if desired)
- Excellent leader who will support you in navigating the business and stakeholders
- CBD location and hybrid work environment
To register your interest, please send through a copy of your resume to Erin Leader via the link.
