Senior Financial Reporting Analyst at TBWA\ South Africa

A Financial Analyst is responsible for the financial planning and analysis of a company, allowing the organisation to make well-informed commercial decisions.They will be expected to produce regular reports using financial data; and work collaboratively across the entire agency to analyse and monitor business performance and strategy.

Reporting, Budgeting and Forecasting

• Review and oversee the preparation of monthly results / management accounts, complying with holding company (Omnicom) requirements and deadlines.
• Prepare and present monthly and quarterly forecasts in accordance with holding company (Omnicom) requirements and deadlines.
• Prepare and monitor capital expenditure budgets.
• Ongoing update of above forecasts (with focus on revenue and salaries) in coordination with latest information from management and business unit directors.
• Where challenges arise that cause the business to go off course, partner with management in action plans and strategies swiftly implemented to remedy. Keep holding company and management informed.
• Review and assist with annual financial statements and statutory audit.
• Review and assist with the B-BBEE audit. Set B-BBEE targets, drive and monitor actual performance against this.
• Ad hoc reporting requirements to the global group network.

Profitability, Strategy and Commercial Analysis

• Regularly calculating and sharing client profitability with management: identifying causes and monitoring in conjunction with account management to prevent over-servicing
• Overseeing completeness and accuracy of timesheet logging and reporting processes
• From insights gleaned in the above processes, develop financial models, possible solutions as well as mechanisms to monitor their implementation
• Administer the budgeting and approval of the new hire, increase and promotions processes
• Oversee all company and HR policies affecting costs
• Partner with holding company and agency management to deliver on business plan objectives and meet forecast targets
• Follow up on new business targets; with the CEO and client service to ensure unconfirmed revenue opportunities are reported, chased and converted in line with forecast.
• Proactive cost saving: continuously steer in conjunction with management and operational teams (drive cost saving initiatives, streamline and raise red flags)
• Prepare agency standard rate cards and individual client rate cards on request
• Oversee working capital management
• Negotiating & managing retainer client scope (hours and hourly rates) against actual hours worked, as well as agreed commissions/margins

Contract Management

• Participate in negotiation of new client contracts with in-house counsel. Review financial aspects of any contracts including risk exposure.
• Retainer and Project fee calculation for new and existing clients
• Linking above fees to resource requirements; assessment of over and under investment
• Ongoing clients review to assess compliance with legal and financial provisions of the client contract and to ensure that maximum agreed profitability levels are achieved.
• Ongoing monitoring of compliance with new and existing client contracts, specifically:
• Scope of work
• Manpower resource required
• Remuneration structures
• Manage the finance and compliance requirements during RFI/RFP/pitch processes
• Negotiation of new employee contracts in line with approved budgets.

Journal and Cost Approval

• With strategic objectives of the business and budgets in mind, approve expenditures while meeting compliance requirements
• Review and release batch payments to suppliers and their reconciliations
• Review journal entries in the finance system and approve their posting
• On exception, where purchase orders or payments to suppliers must be issued before client approval or payment (respectively) have been received, apply professional judgment in approving such overrides and take action with the relevant parties to minimize exposure and cash flow risk to the company

Preferred requirements

• 5+ years of business finance or other relevant experience
• BCOM Accounting or Chartered Accountant
• Proven work experience in a senior role achieving business goals
• Strong quantitative and analytical competency
• Self-starter with excellent interpersonal communication and problem-solving skills
• Advanced knowledge of Excel (VLOOKUP, SUMIFs, Pivots)