Finance Manager - Projects

Vacancy Reference: CLA- 409

Position: Full-time

Location: Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK

Salary: £60,000 - £65,000 per annum

At Callen-Lenz, we are expanding the limits of what is possible. We specialise in crewed and uncrewed aircraft operations and technology and having recently received investment into the business we are going through a period of rapid growth and development and are looking for key roles to assist with these changes. Callen-Lenz offers innovative and customer-focused UAS solutions through our 4 key business strands: technical services, products, platforms and operational services. We are looking for individuals to help drive forward our expansion, placing you at forefront of UAS development in the UK.

Our Values

• Innovation

• Integrity

• Collaboration

• Excellence

Why Work for Us

Based in the heart of rural Wiltshire, close to the Historic city of Salisbury you will join our rapidly growing, friendly and multi-disciplined team, working on a range of diverse and interesting projects, leading the way in this exciting field and witnessing the full lifecycle of our products. The Callen-Lenz team are passionate about what we do, and we are searching for individuals to grow with us as we expand into the aerospace industry.

Our benefits include:

• 25 days annual leave per year (plus bank holidays)

• Buy/Sell holiday policy up to 5 days either way

• Pension Scheme via Royal London

• Company contributed Share Incentive Plan

• Green Car Scheme

• Life assurance scheme (6x basic salary)

• Income protection policy (75% of basic salary)

• Private Health Insurance via Vitality

• Private Dental insurance via Bupa

• Enhanced Maternity and paternity

• 1 Professional membership reimbursed per year

• 1 paid volunteering day per year

• Access to an independent financial advisor year round

• Training & development opportunities

About the role

Reporting to the Finance Controller, you will provide financial leadership across multiple defence and internal investment projects, ensuring accurate and timely project reporting whilst enforcing strong financial governance. You will lead a small team of Project Accountants and act as a Finance Business Partner providing advice and guidance to the project teams. You will review and challenge project financial data and draw out key insights to support decision-making.

Responsibilities

• Finance business partner to the project teams and delivery leads, providing financial support and guidance to drive programme performance.

• Improve the project Estimate At Completion (EAC) process and review & challenge EAC assumptions to drive financial performance.

• Lead timely and accurate project forecasts for Order Intake, Revenue, Profit and Cash Flow (incl. Risks and Opps) and complete monthly variance analysis to help the business understand and manage its performance.

• Lead accurate Revenue recognition in line with IFRS 15.

• Lead review of Contract Status Reports and the Summary Status Report and produce expert analysis and insights to help the management team understand project financial performance.

• Lead the annual 5-year business plan for Projects (Customer and Internally Funded).

• Provide Financial leadership to requests for internal investment (R&D and CAPEX) to ensure business cases are understood and there is a route to recovering the investment through future work.

• Lead the Project Finance transition to compliance with Single Source Contracting Regulations.

• Drive the implementation of common and consistent Project Finance processes, a culture of performance excellence and “right first time” and optimise key financial controls.

• Support contract pricing reviews, cost submissions, and financial modelling for bid teams.

• Provide support to both internal and external audit, ensuring timely response and action of any audit recommendations.

• Lead and develop a small team of Project Accountants.
  Support the wider Finance team with ad-hoc projects as required, e.g. ERP system implementation.

• Perform other talent or people related duties as required.

Health and Safety

• Demonstrate in daily activities a commitment to health and safety in the workplace by always ensuring tasks are performed in the safest possible manner.

• Report all hazards and incidents that the individual is party to, or observes, in the correct manner.

• When required or directed, participate in any health and safety training.

Skills and Experience

Qualifications:

ACCA/CIMA/ACA Qualified

Essential:

• Experience of working in a business partnering capacity with the ability to challenge the status quo.

• Experience in Project Accounting / Project Finance roles.

• Understanding of revenue recognition under IFRS 15.

• Experienced in stakeholder management and communicating financial knowledge across all levels of an organisation.

• Excellent prioritisation and self-management skills are key, as is the ability to manage and meet a wide variety of internal and external reporting deadlines.

• Advanced Excel skills and proficient in MS Office.

Desirable:

• UK Single Source Contracting Regulations (SSCR) experience.

• Experience of working in an ERP system environment.

Personal Attributes

• Must be a British Citizen or have an existing right to work in the UK.

• A curious mindset.

• A confident communicator.

• Excellent problem-solving ability.

• Ability to work well in a team and good at building relationships.

• Enthusiasm for their work and self-motivated.

• Ability to hold Security Clearance – 5 years residence in the UK.

Callen-Lenz is an equal opportunities employer, committed to building an inclusive working environment. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, or age. It is essential that the successful candidate must, by the start of their employment have permission to work in the UK. Proof of identity and eligibility to work in the UK will be required prior to commencement of employment.

Please be aware that many roles at BAE Systems are subject to both security and export control restrictions. These restrictions mean that factors such as your nationality, any nationalities you may have previously held, and your place of birth can restrict the roles you are eligible to perform within the organisation. All applicants must as a minimum achieve Baseline Personnel Security Standard. Many roles also require higher levels of National Security Vetting where applicants must typically have 5 to 10 years of continuous residency in the UK depending on the vetting level required for the role, to allow for meaningful security vetting checks