Head of Finance - Central Functions
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Ocado Group is an equal opportunities employer and as such makes every effort to ensure that all potential employees are treated fairly and equally, regardless of their sex, sexual orientation, marital status, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, age, or disability or union membership status.
About Us
Our teams are putting the world’s retailers online using the cloud, robotics, AI, and IoT. We provide services to partner clients globally via our innovative advanced robotics technology, known as the Ocado Smart Platform ("OSP"), this drives our highly automated, multi-million pound Customer Fulfilment Centres (CFCs). In our CFCs - together with the proprietary software applications - we operate a world-class online grocery business that automates the single pick of products, ready for your online delivery.
About the Role
The Head of Finance - Central will be a key strategic finance leader, partnering with the CPO, CFO, GGC, and CTO for their respective cost bases across Technology Services, General & Administrative (G&A) costs, and Technology Solutions FP&A. We are seeking a collaborative finance leader who can grow with our team, bring strategic insights, and contribute to aligning financial strategy with business goals.
The successful candidate will oversee the financial planning, analysis, and business partnering for three key areas:
- Tech Services: Group IT, Information Security, and Engineering Productivity (developer tools and development centre leadership).
- Corporate Functions: Partnering with teams reporting to the CFO, CPO, and GGC, including board costs, benefits, and ancillary income streams. This role will be a key business partner to the reward team, supporting pay reviews, incentive plans, and all other central reward activities.
- FP&A: Consolidated ownership of the Technology Solutions financials across the P&L, cash flow, and balance sheet, including core reporting and planning processes for management.
This role engages with senior leaders and we are looking for candidates who have a demonstrated ability to develop teams, influence stakeholders and drive business performance. Each area above is expected to include two heads.
What you will be doing
- Strategic Business Partnering
- Act as a trusted advisor and strategic partner to four senior leaders and their teams, providing financial insights and challenge to drive operational and strategic decision-making, with a focus on ROI and effective capital allocation.
- Lead the financial planning and forecasting process for Tech Services and Corporate Functions; oversee the planning and forecasting process for the wider Technology Solutions business unit.
- Drive cost-efficiency initiatives while ensuring strategic investment in key areas to deliver long-term value.
- Collaborate closely with Technology and corporate functions leadership to align financial goals with organisational priorities and performance.
- Support the overall Technology Solutions structural cost reduction exercise, expected to commence in 2025.
- Financial Leadership
- Oversee the preparation, analysis, and delivery of monthly performance reporting, annual budgets, and rolling forecasts for Tech Services, CFO, CPO, GGC, board, and benefits costs.
- Own the consolidation of Technology Solutions’ monthly performance reporting, annual budgets, and rolling forecasts.
- Develop robust business cases for capital and operational investments, ensuring ROI-driven decision-making.
- Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and provide actionable insights to leadership to enhance performance.
- Ensure accurate and timely reporting in line with corporate requirements and external compliance.
- Team Leadership and Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of approximately six finance professionals, fostering a culture of high performance, accountability, and continuous improvement.
- Develop talent pipelines and encourage cross-functional collaboration to drive both team and organisational success.
- Financial Analysis & Insights
- Deliver high-quality financial models, insights, and scenario analyses to help shape strategic decision-making.
- Identify trends and opportunities for growth and efficiency.
- Provide FP&A expertise, aligning financial plans with operational goals.
- Systems and Process Improvements
- Drive automation and process improvement initiatives, leveraging tools to improve efficiency in financial reporting and analysis.
- Collaborate with systems teams to enhance financial systems and reporting capabilities.
About you
- Qualified accountant (CIMA/ACA/ACCA or equivalent) with significant post-qualification experience.
- Proven experience in a senior finance leadership role within a technology, services, or similarly dynamic business environment.
- Track record of partnering with senior leadership to deliver financial and strategic outcomes.
- Experience overseeing financial planning and analysis across multiple business areas.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a commercial mindset.
- Demonstrable experience leading teams and building effective finance functions.
What we offer you
Our employee benefits are designed for you, we care about people and we’ve ensured we have a wealth of benefits that focus on your well-being. We regularly review our benefits to ensure we are supporting our employees appropriately.
- 30 days ‘working from anywhere in the world’ policy
- Wellbeing support through dedicated apps and an Employee Assistance Programme
- 25 days annual leave, rising to 27 days after 5 years service (plus optional holiday purchase)
- Pension scheme (various options available including employer contribution matching up to 7%)
- Generous Private Medical Insurance (within the first month of joining!)
- Income Protection (can be up to 50% of salary for 3 years) and Life Assurance (3 x annual salary)
- 22 weeks paid maternity/primary parent leave and 6 weeks paid paternity leave (once relevant service requirements complete)
- Train Ticket loan (interest-free)
- Cycle to Work Scheme
- Free shuttle bus to and from Hatfield Train Station to the Hatfield offices
- Free shuttle bus to and from Welwyn Garden City Train Station to the Welwyn Garden City offices
- Opportunity to participate in Sharesave and Buy as You Earn share schemes
- 15% discount on Ocado.com and free delivery for all employees (within the first month of joining!
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