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Purpose of the position

The role of the finance director will oversee all financial aspects of the Knowledge Division. The FD will lead the commercial finance team to ensure they are integral to effective decision making. Providing accurate timely information, commercial insight and analysis, supported by seamless and efficient transaction processing in a well controlled environment. The role will lead the Knowledge divisional finance function to enable the highest level of service and leadership to all stakeholders.

The team is responsible for the flow of divisional financial and broader operational KPI’s to the executive team, wider Knowledge management team and BSI group while ensuring compliance with all statutory, regulatory or contractual obligations to external parties such as trading partners and Her Majesty’s Government in relation to funding activity.

As a member of the Knowledge Executive management team, you will play a lead strategic role in ensuring that we lead the organization to meet our stretching goals for growth in a period of significant business change.

The role has overall control of:

• the division’s commercial finance, funding, accounting and subscription contracting team;
• commercial analysis, financial planning, reporting and analysis, to ensure effective business decisions;
• formulation of financial targets and budgets in accordance with the strategy;
• all financial transactions and accountancy matters, including internal and external audits, corporate governance, funding obligations including in relation to the role as the National Standards Body and implementation of group financial policies;
• the optimisation of its financial processes and procedures including full use of the group financial shared service team;
• the preparation of management accounts and broader financial information;
• ensuring that the regulatory requirements of all statutory bodies are met in relation to financial affairs and BSI Corporate policy;
• the management of the input and preparation for the strategic planning process including the five year strategic plan and related supporting business analysis;
• the integrity of BSI Standards HMG grant fund management, its audit and other funding obligations.

Key Responsibilities & Accountabilities

• Act as strong business partner to the Group Director, Knowledge, and the Executive team, challenging and debating business ideas and strategies to help develop the business.
• Develop the business analysis functions and methods to enable better trend and foresight for the Executive team to ensure optimal decision making.
• Optimise the financial processes and procedures of the division, taking into consideration those of the Group and the appropriate level of integration with the European Shared Service Centre.
• Challenge the status quo across the business, ensuring that decisions are well founded and providing a constructive counterbalance to strategic ideas.
• Produce the annual 5 year Strategic Plan, setting out financial framework, capital and operating targets and efficiencies and required outputs/KPIs.
• Be a leader of change driving through technological change and the digital transition of the business products, platforms and systems.
• Produce monthly financial reporting of revenue, profit and loss and capital expenditure, including critical appraisal of trends, variances and risks.
• Ensure the preparation of all consolidation returns for the division including statutory and regulatory financial statements to meet reporting deadlines including in relation to HM funding.
• Lead on BSI’s financial involvement and its understanding of the financial aspects of its membership of the relevant international standards organisations, including developing a peer group and representing its financial interests as required.   
• Support the Group Director, Knowledge, the Director of Standards and the senior management team, in the development and articulation of a short and medium term strategy, providing the financial input required to that process.
• Ensure that the financial controls and understanding are sufficiently robust for the pace of growth and change which the business is experiencing currently and faces in the future.
• Control operating budgetary processes and costs, to ensure that budgets are consistent with the divisional strategy as well as group policies.
• Ensure that the division maintains a set of accounting policies, which comply with Group requirements and best practice to provide a sound basis for assessing financial performance. Ensure the funding and governance financial and reporting requirements as the NSB are maintained including all related aspects of the Code of Conduct. Responsibility for the businesses risk register and risk reporting.  
• Develop an agreed framework for business development, which flows from the corporate strategy and identifies priorities for acquisition, organic growth etc.
• Support the Executive team management in monitoring the performance of each of the business’s key products/markets and the control of related operational costs.
• Develop and coach the Finance team.

Person Specification

Knowledge and Experience

• Experience as a finance director for a suitably sized business.
• Strong track record of success, ideally obtained within a relevant sector. (publishing or other business information related environment).
• International outlook, ideally with good exposure to managing growing international businesses.
• Track record of leading commercial change within a business
• Experience of creating a new vision for the Finance function and leading change.
• Full understanding of financial governance requirements.

Skills and Abilities

• Excellent people management skills with the ability to lead, coach and develop a finance team reporting directly and indirectly.
• Leadership skills to influence change when necessary.
• Communication skills to present convincingly to divisional and Group management. 
• Willingness to lead change across an organisation.
• Process optimisation skills.
• Technically and digitally literate to be successful in a business and industry experiencing significant technological transition.  

Personal Qualities/Aptitudes

• Energy and motivational commitment to drive through the demanding programme of change and growth.
• Communication skills, both oral and written.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Ability to set targets, motivate and inspire staff to achieve targets

Our Excellence Behaviours: Customer Focus, Accountability, Respect, Communication, Achievement & Leading and Managing others