Senior Finance Analyst recruitment
MG Investments is Prudential plc's UK based fund management business and is one of Europe's leading active asset managers with over £194 billion* of funds under management across fixed income, equity, property and multi-asset strategies.
MG's Fixed Income business manages assets of around £112 billion* for a range of institutional clients, including 38 local authority pension funds and 70% of the top 40 pension funds in the UK. We have 80 years' experience of managing investments from public and private debt to alternative credit and real estate. The team of credit analysts is one of the largest in Europe, covering the full range of fixed income opportunities. The culture is based on a shared set of values focusing on investment leadership, innovation and transparency. As a long-term investor via our parent, for whom we invest almost £61 billion*, our interests are aligned with those of our clients and we use the skills we have primarily developed for investing Prudential's assets to provide innovative and attractive investment solutions to our clients.
-*as at 30 September 2011
Opportunity
The role sits in the Distribution Finance team of MG Retail, and is primarily responsible for the financial monitoring, control and reporting for the UK Sales channels and UK rebate and Commission processes.
Key responsibilities
- Support the UK business;
- Build a constructive and supportive working relationship with the UK Sales team;
- Obtain a good understanding of the MG Retail operating model, especially the sales distribution environment and its interaction with other areas of the business;
- Preparation of monthly profit loss reports and comprehensive analysis for UK Sales channels;
- Preparation of a monthly Global Sales Report, including year-on-year sales and profit comparisons and margin analysis;
- Preparation of a quarterly UK Board Report, commenting on business performance against plan and prior year;
- Produce annual budgets and quarterly forecasts for the UK business;
- Manage the transfer in to the team of the payments and accruals process for UK Rebates and renewal commission, building a robust process to monitor , control and report on these costs;
- Attend UK Sales Meetings and regular business updates to ensure an up-to-date knowledge of developments impacting the distribution teams and MG Retail as a whole;
- Work closely with other areas in Finance to understand and challenge revenue assumptions and cost allocations for the UK channels;
- Support the Global Marketing team building a strong and constructive working relationship;
- Obtain a good understanding of the marketing function, providing accurate and transparent information on key marketing concepts;
- Work closely with the marketing team to monitor and control circa £20m discretionary pot, which covers Brand, Events, Advertising, Web/on-line marketing and literature;
- Support the UK business;
- Build a constructive and supportive working relationship with the UK Sales team;
- Obtain a good understanding of the MG Retail operating model, especially the sales distribution environment and its interaction with other areas of the business;
- Preparation of monthly profit loss reports and comprehensive analysis for UK Sales channels;
- Preparation of a monthly Global Sales Report, including year-on-year sales and profit comparisons and margin analysis;
- Preparation of a quarterly UK Board Report, commenting on business performance against plan and prior year;
- Produce annual budgets and quarterly forecasts for the UK business;
- Manage the transfer in to the team of the payments and accruals process for UK Rebates and renewal commission, building a robust process to monitor , control and report on these costs;
- Attend UK Sales Meetings and regular business updates to ensure an up-to-date knowledge of developments impacting the distribution teams and MG Retail as a whole;
- Work closely with other areas in Finance to understand and challenge revenue assumptions and cost allocations for the UK channels;
- Support the Global Marketing team building a strong and constructive working relationship;
- Obtain a good understanding of the marketing function, providing accurate and transparent information on key marketing concepts;
- Work closely with the marketing team to monitor and control circa £20m discretionary pot, which covers Brand, Events, Advertising, Web/on-line marketing and literature;
- Interpret and communicate discretional marketing expenditure, providing quarterly updates to a senior marketing committee;
- Work closely with the cost accountant for UK Sales and Marketing to ensure a good understanding this cost base, and to ensure a seamless interface between Finance and the business;
- Continually review, refine and develop reporting to ensure it is fit for purpose;
- Assist with ad-hoc analysis and provide financial input on projects as requested;
- Maintain up-to-date professional competence and industry knowledge.
What we are looking for
Essential:
- Qualified accountant;
- Good communication skills, both written and verbal, and able to liaise effectively with personnel at all levels;
- Bright, enthusiastic and proactive;
- Numerate, logical and analytical approach;
- High level of accuracy and attention to detail;
- Able to work effectively under pressure and to tight deadlines;
- Strong spreadsheet and financial modelling skills;
- P.C. literate, especially competent with MS Excel, PowerPoint and Word.
Desirable:
- Prior knowledge of asset management or similar financial services organisations;
- Experience of Sun Systems general ledger, and Vision reporting suite;
- Experience of Hyperion planning Essbase or other analytical cube databases.
MG is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from a diverse background.
