APPOINTMENT OF FINANCE DIRECTOR

Transcription

1 APPOINTMENT OF FINANCE DIRECTOR

2 xford Economics is one of the world s preeminent global forecasting and quantitative analysis advisory consultancies. Our worldwide client base now comprises over 1,000 international organisations, including leading multinational companies and financial institutions; key government bodies and trade associations; and top universities, consultancies, and think tanks. It is a time of rapid growth as a firm and the needs of the business warrant the appointment of a commercially-minded and growthoriented Finance Director. INTRODUCTION 1

3 xford Economics was founded in 1981 as a commercial venture with Oxford University s business college to provide economic forecasting and modelling to UK companies and financial institutions expanding abroad. Since then, we have become one of the world s foremost independent global advisory firms, providing reports, forecasts and analytical tools on 200 countries, 100 industrial sectors and over 3,000 cities and regions. Our best-of-class global economic and industry models and analytical tools give us an unparalleled ability to forecast external market trends and assess their economic, social and business impact. ABOUT OXFORD ECONOMICS Headquartered in Oxford, England, with regional centres in London, New York and Singapore, Oxford Economics has offices across the globe in Belfast, Chicago, Dubai, Mexico City, Miami, Milan, Paris, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Paarl (South Africa) and Sydney. We employ over 200 full-time staff, including more than 120 professional economists, industry experts and business editors - one of the largest teams of macroeconomists and thought leadership specialists. Our global team is highly skilled in a full range of research techniques and thought leadership capabilities, from econometric modelling, scenario framing, and economic impact analysis to market surveys, case studies, expert panels, and web analytics. Underpinning our in-house expertise is a contributor network of over 500 economists, analysts and journalists around the world and our links with academics in Oxford University and other leading institutions. In recent years we have grown consistently by about 20% per annum. With an ever-increasing demand for our services, we expect this growth to continue. Our services include both subscription services and bespoke consulting projects. Currently the subscription services retention rate is over 90% and the consulting work includes many recurring or long-term assignments. 2

4 Our global model supports a wide range of business analysis Our global economic model can provide a rigorous, customisable framework to support a wide range of planning, marketing and risk management activities. Scenario planning Assess the impact of potential economic, political or financial shocks on your revenue, costs and market exposure Stress testing Conduct stress testing and reverse stress testing. Financial firms can use the model to run CCAR scenarios to stress test balance sheets Market sizing Help identify key markets around the world and size the opportunity for your products and services GLOBAL ECONOMIC MODEL Impact analysis Gauge how a change to a government policy or emerging macro development will affect your business Forecasting Enable you to correlate economic drivers to your business so that you can forecast sales performance Data codification Provide a rich databank of consistent economic indicators to support various planning and budgeting activities 3 3

5 ABOUT OXFORD ECONOMICS CLIENTS xford Economics inhabits a very particular niche in the global consulting space. We have established ourselves as one of the most reliable global economic forecasting and analytical advisory firms. Our conviction is that the macro-economy is more inter-connected than ever.what has become clear in recent years is that every business and every government is impacted by the movements of the macro-economy. With this operating macroeconomic framework, we are able to model countless possibilities and provide clients exceptional service to support their decision-making. 4

6 Our clients represent a global who s who Corporate and consulting Financial and real estate Government and academic GE Honda Citigroup MasterCard d World Bank Shell Boeing Prudential Amex OECD SAP Renault Putnam Visa US Treasury AT&T Chevron GM Ford Barclays CBRE OPEC Coca-Cola Unilever UBS DTZ EU Commission Airbus IBM Rolls-Royce DHL BP BAT AT McKinsey Kearney Deloitte PwC Accenture KPMG EY Banco Santander Bank of Tokyo Invesco Cushman & Wakefield HSBC Jones Lang NM Rothschild LaSalle Deutsche Bank Bouwfonds Asian Development Bank Central banks from China to Thailand to Mexico US Energy Information Administration Daimler France Telecom 5

7 ROLE DESCRIPTION OXFORD ECONOMICS FINANCE DIRECTOR ONTEXT Oxford Economics has managed to grow rapidly in part due to its strong cultural value of enterprise. We are a quickthinking and quick-decision-making culture, where strategic directions agreed in the morning can begin implementation in the afternoon. We seek to grow whilst remaining nimble and responsive to changes in our marketplace and responsive to our clients needs. We believe in continuous development, at personal and organisational level. It is therefore critical that we identify an entrepreneurial Finance Director, able to maintain exceptional financial management standards and reporting whilst evolving the organisation through stages of growth and greater organisational effectiveness. This is a newly created role. As the organisation grew at pace, it was appropriate for the CEO to own the financial responsibilities up to this point. However, Oxford Economics now needs a dedicated leader over the operational support services. The Finance Director will manage increasingly global accounts, with new offices opening regularly as well as regular acquisitions. The Finance Director will assume responsibility for financial oversight of the Oxford Economics Group and develop strong financial reporting including regular management accounts, quarterly and annual accounts. The Finance Director will also be asked to help non-finance staff engage strong business planning and budgetary processes. The Finance Director will ensure that utmost integrity is maintained in all internal financial reporting and external business relationships with our clients and contractors. 6

8 KEY RESPONSIBILITIES The Finance Director of Oxford Economics will, by nature, take responsibility and ownership for key aspects of the Group s activities. The key leadership qualities sought and according responsibilities include: STRATEGIC COMMERCIAL LEADERSHIP Gain an overview of the business. The expectation is that the Finance Director will not simply oversee the production of the numbers but be a commercially astute strategic thinker. Alongside the CEO and the other members of the Leadership, the Finance Director will contribute to the preparation and execution of strategic plans. Assume leadership responsibility internally and externally. The Finance Director will engage directly with client representatives and external contractors. Therefore the Finance Director is expected to uphold and guard the reputation of an advisory service that stands for integrity, excellence, and trustworthiness. Sensitively engage a number of highly confidential considerations. The Finance Director will be involved in due diligence and making the business case for various growth opportunities. PEOPLE MANAGEMENT Managing upward and across the team matrix to best aid decisionmaking in a highly collegiate culture; Develop the internal professional service or business partnering practice of both HR and Finance; Foster an organisational culture and practice of business and budgetary planning and reporting; Manage bookkeepers in the UK and US to deliver timely and accurate accounts; Directly managing the HR function to oversee appropriate contract management, with the objective of helping attract and retain quality staff. As necessary, working with the HR Adviser to create appropriate policies to enable a thriving work force, including pension and insurance options. 7

9 OVERSIGHT OF ALL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING Provide strong oversight to Oxford Economics financial management and reporting, thus informing the decision-making of the CEO, Leadership, and the Board; Develop an appropriate dashboard for the health of the business, working closely with data captured from our CRM system and team budgeting processes; Balance robust risk measurement and opportunity cost; Create new systems and practices to best enable efficiencies during a growth period; Coordinate international accounts, audited in country but assimilated, managed and reported on by this role at head office in the UK; Manage Oxford Economics Treasury, including discernment of investment options, foreign exchange and interest rate management; Oversee the financial management of acquisitions; Manage the Budgets and Key Performance Indicators; Ensure regulatory compliance in respect of HMRC PAYE, HMRC Corporation Tax and the secure processing systems for all movement of funds, and the equivalent in other countries in which the company has businesses; Continue strong relationships with external audit liaison and manage internal audit procedures; also own all banking and insurance provider relationship management; Oversee legal and tax advice internally (with external support as required); Assume the Company Secretarial role. 8

10 PERSON SPECIFICATION Trustworthy; Intellectually curious and naturally interested in the work of Oxford Economics; A strong team player, excited about the opportunity of working with a brilliant and international workforce; Comfort with change management and continuous evolution, and personally excited by and thriving during growth periods; A self-starter who thrives when given empowered responsibility to problem solve; Able to establish professional credibility and build good working relationships with others, being able to persuade and influence when necessary; Able to facilitate group meetings in order to draw out opinions and ideas from others; Able to present issues, information and solutions clearly and effectively through excellent communication skills, both verbal and written; Experienced in dealing with people at all levels in organisations; Strong IT proficiency and the aptitude to learn new systems and CRMs; Experienced in producing business reports, plans and recommendations; Clearly demonstrate high level of numeracy and attention to detail. QUALIFICATION Educated to Higher Degree standard or equivalent, preferably a Degree with Accountancy/Business Administration bias; Professional level certification (ACA, CIMA, ACCA, CIPFA) or similar in relevant area(s); Clear commitment to Continuing Personal Development. 9

11 xford Economics is working with Macaulay Search to conduct this critical appointment process. There is a competitive salary on offer, subject to negotiation and appropriate to the level of experience of the candidate. HOW TO APPLY This post could be based in either the Oxford or London office. YOUR APPLICATION SHOULD COMPRISE: A covering letter of not more than two pages outlining your motivation and relevant experience for the role; A full CV, including educational and professional qualifications, a full employment history showing the more significant positions, responsibilities held and relevant achievements. Interested candidates are directed to their application to: ewen. mcalpine@macaulaysearch.com Closing date: Monday, 27th July Interview date: Early August Thank you for your interest in the work of Oxford Economics. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with Ewen McAlpine using the above address should you have any questions regarding this appointment process. 10