Head of Shared Services - Finance

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Job Description

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an ambitious finance professional looking to progress their experience within a FTSE listed construction business with a track record of delivering high profile infrastructure projects.

This is a critical role within the central finance function that involves running the shared service centre. Reporting to Group Director of Finance, the Head of Shared Services is a key role with a team size of c.30 colleagues. The shared service centre has a purchase to pay team, record to report team, order to cash team and systems administration team with a number of roles being filled by external hires following a restructure in 2025.

The role will own development of the shared services team, core finance processes and reporting outputs from shared service centre. The requires exposure to senior management of the group and other central finance functions, providing an excellent opportunity to demonstrate your ability for further advancement.

This role is based in our Maidenhead office (Hybrid/Office-based 3 days per week).

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Responsibilities

Responsibilities

Team management:

• Manage shared service team ensuring engagement plans are delivered
• Ensure all HR processes are followed within shared service centre
• Own continuous improvement initiatives for shared services, including but not limited to, work alignment within teams, role clarity, capability improvement and training, process simplification, data cleansing and financial control strengthening.
• Develop shared service team and prepare them for ERP implementation

Finance Process Management:

• Manage financial calendar and manage month end close process to ensure all finance teams are appropriately engaged
• Create a set of KPIs to support smooth running of core finance processes and monitor and report on agreed KPIs
• Manage a wide range of stakeholders including senior leaders in the business, project teams, business finance teams and group finance colleagues to ensure finance processes are understood and appropriately implemented.
• Ensure process improvements are appropriately delivered and communicated
• Ensure process documentation is kept up to date with clear owners within shared services
• Business system owner for concur and transactional processing elements of E1 ERP
• Ensure all balance sheet reconciliations are completed and reviewed to a high standard

Finance Leadership:

• As a key member of Group Finance senior leadership team, own adhoc initiatives supporting the broader finance function
• Own continuous improvement initiatives for shared services, including but not limited to, work alignment within teams, role clarity, capability improvement and training, process simplification, data cleansing and financial control strengthening

Knowledge, Skills, and Experience

Essential

• Strong leadership skills and experience of managing teams through a structure of direct reports
• A hands on leader with experience of working in a FTSE 250 finance function
• Proven ability to lead, structure and develop high-performing finance teams

Desirable

• Similar industry experience an advantage but not required

Qualifications

Essential

• Qualified accountant with extensive PQE with significant shared service and finance process experience

About Us

Costain helps to improve people's lives with integrated, leading edge, smart infrastructure solutions across the UK's energy, water, transportation and defence markets. We help our clients improve their business performance by increasing capacity, improving customer service, safeguarding security, enhancing resilience, decarbonising and delivering increased efficiency. Our vision is to be the UK's leading smart infrastructure solutions company. We will achieve this by focusing on blue chip clients whose major spending plans are underpinned by strategic national needs, regulatory commitments, legislation or essential performance requirements. We offer our clients leading edge solutions that are digitally optimised through the following five services which cover the whole lifecycle of their assets: future-shaping strategic consultancy; consultancy and advisory; digital technology solutions; asset optimisation and complex programme delivery. Our culture and values underpin everything we do.

Costain appreciate the time and effort taken when applying for one of our positions but, due to the high volume of responses, we are unable to provide individual feedback on candidates at application phase.

We do share individual feedback following an interview.

A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that disclose they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer.

It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people.

For more details please go to the Disability Confident website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/disability-confident-campaign