Finance Business Partner, Global Contracts

WPP is the creative transformation company. We use the power of creativity to build better futures for our people, planet, clients, and communities.

Working at WPP means being part of a global network of more than 115,000 accomplished people in 110 countries. WPP has headquarters in New York, London and Singapore and a corporate presence in major markets worldwide.

We create transformative ideas and outcomes for our clients through an integrated offer of communications, experience, commerce, and technology.

WPP and our award-winning agencies work with most of the world's biggest companies and organisations – from Ford, Unilever and P&G to Google, HSBC, and the UN. Our clients include 61 of the FTSE 100, 307 of the Fortune Global 500, all 30 of the Dow Jones 30 and 62 of the NASDAQ 100. WPP are the leader in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index and 20th in the FTSE 100 rankings for Women on Boards.

Why we're hiring:

At WPP, technology is at the heart of everything we do, and it is WPP ET’s mission to enable everyone to collaborate, create and thrive. WPP ET is undergoing a significant transformation to modernise ways of working, shift to cloud and micro-service-based architectures, drive automation, digitise colleague and client experiences and deliver insight from WPP’s petabytes of data.

Our finance business partnering team plays a crucial role to lead and partner with our technology teams to drive improved business performance with commercial and financial insight, driving financial performance, supporting strategic decision-making, and creating value.

This role will partner with the Tech Ops team in Enterprise Technology, managing and providing commercial support for Global Technology contracts including Kyndryl, Microsoft, Google and Adobe.

What you'll be doing:

• Partner with Technology Operations leadership to drive financial performance and achieve strategic commercial objectives, providing key insights and recommendations.
• Lead financial forecasting, planning, and reporting for global technology contracts, simplifying a complex landscape and enhancing transparency.
• Provide expert commercial finance support for a major IT outsourcing contract, optimizing value and mitigating risk.
• Oversee contract financials, including month-end close and change requests, ensuring accuracy and efficiency.
• Act as a strategic advisor on technology investments, ensuring alignment with business goals and maximizing ROI.
• Collaborate with Finance and Technology teams to develop a deep understanding of business models and technology needs, fostering a collaborative and informed approach.
• Identify and implement cost optimization opportunities across operations, vendor spend, and agency synergies, driving significant value creation.
• Champion financial rigor and control across purchasing, accounting, and performance management.
• Ensure compliance with all relevant regulations and internal policies, protecting and enhancing WPP's reputation and long-term value.
• Navigate a complex, high-stakes environment with significant financial and commercial implications.
• Support the Senior Finance Business Partner in developing insightful monthly reporting for senior leadership.
• Contribute to the production of monthly actuals, ensuring accuracy and timely delivery.
• Mentor and develop a remote Junior Finance Business Partner, fostering talent and building team capabilities.

What you'll need:

• Strategic Influence: Excellent communication and influencing skills with a proven track record of partnering with senior stakeholders.
• Investment Acumen: Experience developing compelling business cases for strategic investments.
• Adaptability: Thrive in fast-paced, complex environments and navigate organizational transformation with ease.
• Global Commercial Acumen: Strong commercial and decision-making skills with a global perspective, understanding multi-country/currency implications.
• Resilience: Excel under pressure, make critical decisions, and maintain composure in ambiguous situations.
• Data-Driven Mindset: A data-led approach to problem-solving and driving actionable insights.
• Negotiation Expertise: Skilled negotiator with strong commercial experience.
• Industry Foresight: Awareness of industry trends in skills, capabilities, and technology.
• Communication Prowess: Experience creating informative monthly reports for diverse audiences.
• Analytical Rigor: Detail-oriented with the ability to analyse financial data and provide actionable recommendations.

Qualifications:

• Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA, or equivalent).
• A degree  or equivalent i.e.(MBA ) desirable not not essential

 

Who you are:

You're open: We are inclusive and collaborative; we encourage the free exchange of ideas; we respect and celebrate diverse views. We are accepting: of new ideas, new partnerships, new ways of working.

You're optimistic: We believe in the power of creativity, technology and talent to create brighter futures or our people, our clients and our communities. We approach all that we do with conviction: to try the new and to seek the unexpected.

You're extraordinary: we are stronger together: through collaboration we achieve the amazing. We are creative leaders and pioneers of our industry; we provide extraordinary every day.

 

What we'll give you:

Passionate, inspired people – We promote a culture of people that do extraordinary work.

Scale and opportunity – We offer the opportunity to create, influence and complete projects at a scale that is unparalleled in the industry.

Challenging and stimulating work – Unique work and the opportunity to join a group of creative problem solvers. Are you up for the challenge?

WPP is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion or belief, sex, age, national origin, citizenship status, marital status, military/veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental disability. We believe in creating a dynamic work environment that values diversity and inclusion and strives to recruit a diverse slate of candidates to help us achieve that goal.

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