What Does A Finance Business Partner Do?

WHAT DOES A FINANCE BUSINESS PARTNER DO?

Published: Mar 14, 2025 - The Finance Business Partner influences daily decisions and shapes strategic direction by introducing robust financial reporting and analysis. Drives financial efficiency, provides deep-dive analysis for strategic insight, and develops medium to long-term financial plans with the FD. Coordinates budgeting, forecasts, and supports capital investment decisions to enhance business profitability and financial awareness.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Finance Business Partner

1. Finance Business Partner Duties

Data Ordering: Ordering of financial raw data, assessing value to present the findings to the relevant internal or external stakeholders in a meaningful and digestible way while adjusting to the audience.
Model Development: Developing financial models to support financial planning processes and forecasting, taking into account legal limitations based on current and past financial results.
Investment Monitoring: Identifying, recommending, and monitoring internal investment expenditures.
Audit Participation: Participating in internal and external regular audits, recommending practical solutions, and ensuring execution of action plans.
Policy Design: Designing and reviewing fiscal policies, maintaining up-to-date technical knowledge of financial instruments, market conditions, and trends.
Financial Control: Controlling and approving bookings initiated by other staff through cross-referencing of incoming and outgoing financial data.
Process Efficiency: Helping the Finance Team become more efficient through rigorous, documented, and measurable processes and KPIs.
Improvement Implementation: Identifying and implementing opportunities for improvement, making Finance more accountable.
Documentation Improvement: Regularly maintaining and improving the documentation of all Finance processes.
Change Management: Helping with and coaching the Finance clerks Team in change management when looking for efficiency and improvements of domain (AP, AR, GL).
Stakeholder Interaction: Interacting with all units, all internal committees, and with all Finance’s external partners.
Finance Representation: Supporting the Head of Finance by representing and coordinating the Finance Team in various company projects and committees.
Project Management: Managing from end to end internal Finance projects in various areas such as accounting, management control, consolidation, merger & acquisitions, house bank management, and tax.
Process Coordination: Coordinating Finance processes efficiency improvements and any projects where Finance is playing a key role.

2. Finance Business Partner Details

Customer Billing: Billing customers and ensuring collection of corresponding cash in due time.
Invoice Management: Recording suppliers’ due invoices and paying them on time.
Treasury Management: Managing treasury/liquidity at house banks.
Tax Management: Estimating, recording, declaring, and paying all taxes.
Compliance Assurance: Complying with French GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and with all tax authorities’ regulations.
Budget Organization: Organizing budget processes with proper documentation on projected revenue and costs.
Performance Analysis: Understanding actual financial performance and explaining/documenting deviation to projections.
Report Management: Managing budget controlling reports for management analysis.
Ad-hoc Reporting: Providing ad-hoc reports on financial performance to the management team and shareholders.
Relationship Building: Building relationships with Heads of Units and senior management team.
Financial Advising: Advising, and creating and advising recommendations for the senior management team on financial planning, budget, and strategic decisions in alignment with business objectives and legislation.
Performance Monitoring: Monitoring the financial performance of the company and presenting it to internal and external stakeholders through improved reports.

3. Finance Business Partner Responsibilities

Commercial Support: Pricing and commercial support.
Finance Collaboration: Work closely with MD Foods International & team on projects requiring finance support.
Decision Support: Enable decision making through evaluation of new business opportunities including new product and market launches.
Performance Analysis: Deliver monthly analysis of results and suggest corrective actions to be taken to deliver EBITA targets.
Performance Reporting: Prepare periodic (weekly, monthly, quarterly as appropriate) reporting on performance by market, region, product category, customer etc., and provide financial insights.
Financial Management: Provide strong balance sheet and working capital management by tracking spend, monitoring Accounts Receivable, highlighting slow moving inventory, and tracking accruals and reserves.
Variance Analysis: Perform variance analysis to Budget and provide commercial narrative on causes of variance.
Budget Leadership: Lead annual budget process for Foods International, delivering a clearly articulated and initiative-driven business plan.
Forecast Preparation: Lead preparation of detailed quarterly forecast (3+9, 6+6, and 9+3) throughout the year.
Strategic Planning: Lead preparation of 5/6 Year strategic plans.
Forecasting: Prepare monthly Flash forecasts.
Compliance Management: Ensure adequate resource is in place to undertake local tax and legal compliance.
Compliance Assurance: Regular reviews to ensure local compliance is being maintained to a high standard.
FP&A Support: Provide support for broader Foods teams in the area of FP&A.
Performance Consolidation: Support consolidation of Foods actual performance (monthly) and forecasted performance (quarterly).
CapEx Reporting: Consolidate quarterly reporting on Capital Expenditure by Foods subsidiaries.

4. Finance Business Partner Accountabilities

Financial Reporting: Prepare monthly financial reports and hold meetings with budget holders to review actual spend and forecast expected spend for labour and overheads.
Budget Assistance: Assist with the preparation of annual budget and monthly forecast.
Month-End Support: Assist with the delivery of a range of month-end close activities and reporting on time and to a high standard of accuracy.
KPI Reporting: Preparation/overview of daily, weekly, and monthly KPI reports for senior management review.
Cost Analysis: Assist with analysis of costing, including purchase price variance (PPV) and production usage variance (PUV) and supporting standard cost updates.
Purchase Approval: Approving SRM (Purchase Order) carts, ensuring they are in line with budget/forecast.
Forecasting Support: Assist with monthly submission of actuals and forecasts into Group systems.
Reconciliation Management: Monthly Balance sheet reconciliations.
Financial Training: Develop the financial knowledge of non-financial managers within the business as appropriate.
Reporting Assistance: Assist in the preparation of internal and external reporting requirements as required to agreed deadlines.
Continuous Improvement: Contribute fully to Continuous Improvement for all Finance Activities.
Stakeholder Engagement: Engage and develop strong relationships with Key Stakeholders.
Management Support: Assist the Senior Management Accountant and the Financial Controller with any other duties.

5. Finance Business Partner Functions

KPI Management: Driving the performance dialogue around core retail sales KPIs.
Sales Support: General support on the retail sales area, e.g., to the European Customer Leadership Team.
Project Participation: Participation in strategic projects, e.g., implementing new channel reporting.
Customer Coordination: Coordination of international customer management.
Process Ownership: Process ownership on the waste agenda setting targets, following up, and analyzing the development.
Team Collaboration: Active participation in the Sales Finance Virtual Team, working together with the markets driving operational tasks as well as larger projects.
Financial Reporting: Responsible mainly for assisting the Finance Business partner and Head of FP&A with the production and review of the Group's consolidated management accounts providing insightful commentary, including hands-on production of the divisional accounts reported.
Reporting Improvement: Improving the quality, impact, and understanding of reporting on business performance including the development of non-financial KPI's analysis to monitor performance against plans.
Forecasting Development: Develop and create financial forecasting, decision-making support, and commercial analysis.
Risk Management: Highlight operational or financial risks and, where appropriate, provide advice on potential solutions for minimizing these risks.
Ad Hoc Support: Assist the Finance Business Partner (National) with other ad hoc reporting requirements when required, for example, VAT returns, tax analysis, and audit process.
Financial Advisory: Responsible for the provision of financial reporting, business and strategic planning, budgeting services, and generalist financial advice to steer decision-making and add value between finance and operations.
Management Reporting: Lead the collation of management accounts across the organisation into a reporting pack including budgeting and financial projections, offering planning and analysis expertise.

6. Finance Business Partner Job Description

Strategic Influence: Influence day-to-day decisions, shaping the strategic direction of the business by introducing commercial and operational financial reporting, analyzing and forecasting complex financial, economic, and other business data, and making relevant recommendations that contribute to strategic decision-making.
Efficiency Management: Identify and drive financial efficiency across all areas of the business.
Insight Provision: Provide forward-looking insight and challenge, undertaking deep-dive analysis when required, adding demonstrable value through commercial knowledge.
Financial Planning: Work with the FD and wider LST to develop the medium-term and longer-term financial business plans, including relevant KPI’s to drive and evaluate performance.
Strategy Support: Support the FD in delivering the financial strategy, developing models and reports which enable scenario and/or ‘what if’ modeling.
Relationship Development: Work pro-actively with key stakeholders to develop successful partner relationships.
Budget Coordination: Coordinate and/or lead the preparation of budgets and rolling forecasts for partnered business areas.
Investment Analysis: Provide support on all Capital investment decisions, develop a robust investment model and post-investment reporting tool.
Profitability Analysis: Work with the FD and wider business to introduce product and customer profitability analysis and reporting.
Presentation Skills: Make formal and informal presentations to senior leaders on monthly results, forecasts, and plans.
Awareness Promotion: Work with the FD to drive financial awareness across the organization.
EHS Advocacy: Demonstrate good EHS responsibility, support EHS practice, and contribute pro-actively to the EHS culture.

7. Finance Business Partner Overview

Stakeholder Engagement: Engage with senior stakeholders in business units, Operating Companies, and Hitachi Corporate to ensure the business partnering service meets customer and corporate requirements.
Change Responsiveness: Anticipate and respond to changes in customer needs that may impact the Business Partnering organization.
Opportunity Identification: Work closely with senior stakeholders in HEU Ltd to identify opportunities for increasing support delivered by the Business Partner team and ensure these are delivered effectively.
Financial Advising: Provide advice and guidance to senior line management concerning financial matters to improve knowledge and understanding and increase awareness of financial planning, management, and control in the business.
Budget Assistance: Assist in all budget (short and mid-term) and forecast processes ensuring information is produced, consolidated, analyzed, and distributed such that line management is fully briefed and informed on present and forecast cost and budget performance including operating profit and working capital.
Financial Review: Review financial statements and management accounts to ensure they represent an accurate reflection of financial performance, including income, cost, transfer price, asset value, and asset records, Group recharges (rent, rates, other recharges, etc.), consultancy fees, etc.
Reconciliation Management: Ensure reconciliation of monthly sales and orders, analysis of margins by product groups, customers, and shipments including specific balance sheet items so that the accounting and financial position in the accounts accurately reflect the actual position.
Relationship Management: Manage relationships with key partners and stakeholders to ensure that financial perspectives are reflected in all key business decisions.
Performance Support: Business performance evaluation and decision support, working with stakeholders from various business units and Group companies in EMEA.
Budget Coordination: Coordinate and prepare Budget/Forecast figures and analysis.
Reporting Delivery: When required, deliver accurate and timely elements of management reporting critical to supporting business decision-making.
Project Support: Assist in the delivery of strategic projects, ensuring key deliverables are achieved in a timely, accurate, robust, and controlled manner, while in some instances being able to shape effective solutions.
Change Support: Support change initiatives undertaken by business customers.
Regulatory Compliance: Ensure work of self and others (where applicable) is carried out in full compliance with all legal and regulatory requirements and codes of practice/conduct.

8. Finance Business Partner Details and Accountabilities

Collaboration: Work closely with the Record to Report team located in the Shared Service Centre.
Relationship Management: Establish and maintain relationships with functional heads and key contacts in the Shared Service Centre.
Budget Coordination: Liaise with FP&A in preparation for the annual budgets and quarterly reports.
Report Ownership: Accountable for the ownership and preparation of monthly overhead reports for the overhead functions.
Analytical Support: Assist with the analytical review of month-end results against budget/forecast for discussion with the Group Financial Controller, Head of Group Reporting, and stakeholders.
Journal Preparation: Prepare journals as part of the month-end process or to correct errors.
Audit Support: Supporting the group audit and compliance programme.
Stakeholder Engagement: Develop and sustain good working relationships with key stakeholders and colleagues.
Data Provision: Provide analysis, data, and explanations as requested for the statutory and regulatory financial reporting.
Continuous Improvement: Acting as a champion of continual business improvement through incremental change and innovation.
Meeting Facilitation: As required run meetings, draft communication to key stakeholders, train those impacted by process change and support the Head of Group Reporting.
Reconciliation Review: Review monthly reconciliations.
Ad-hoc Support: Ad-hoc financial reporting, analysis, and decision support.
Compliance Adherence: Comply with company standards, policies, and procedures.

9. Finance Business Partner Tasks

Revenue Adjustment: Processing monthly and annual adjustments to projects in line with the Group’s revenue recognition policies.
Analytics Reporting: Reporting and analytics on business unit activity for finance and non-finance users.
Management Reporting: Preparing monthly management reports and presentations for business unit and Group management.
Financial Forecasting: Preparing P&L and cash flow forecasts for the business unit.
Procurement Liaison: Liaising with procurement and AP teams on the business unit supply chain.
Cost Monitoring: Monitoring business unit overhead costs and reporting variances against Budgets.
Finance Collaboration: Working closely with the Group’s Finance and management accounts teams on monthly and annual reporting.
Compliance Management: Ensuring business unit compliance with the Group’s policies and procedures.
Audit Assistance: Assisting with year-end audits.
Stakeholder Reporting: Prepare monthly management accounts to internal and external Stakeholders – including insightful analysis and commentary on Revenue, Gross Margin, Opex, Projects, Capex and KPIs.
Process Management: Management and effective close of the month end process ensuring all deadlines are met.
Accounting Oversight: Management of all Accounting across the Group, including, Revenue Recognition, Assets, Stock and WIP.
Systems Development: Develop, deliver and maintain robust accounting systems & processes to ensure the integrity of day to day accounting.
Audit Support: Work collaboratively with the wider finance team to support the production of Statutory Accounts and the annual External Audit.
Team Management: People management of a small team of Finance Analysts and Assistant Accountants.

10. Finance Business Partner Roles

Report Standardization: Prepares and issues the monthly financial management accounts for the Charity, consolidating results across RMS.
Variance Analysis: Produces insightful analysis of the variances between actuals and budget and forecast, supporting the Head of FP&A and CFO in reports to the Executive and Trustees.
Budget Management: Manages the annual budget and quarterly forecasting process for the Charity.
Report Integration: Works with FBPs across RMS, central Finance, and IT finance business support to deliver the consolidated reporting for RMS with quality variance analysis.
Cashflow Forecasting: Prepares rolling cashflow forecasting and analysis for the Charity.
Financial Partnering: Provides financial business partnering support to the Senior Management team in the Enabling functions to maximise value and control costs.
Data Integrity: Ensures the financial information in the Enabling functions is complete, accurate, and reliable.
Budget Forecasting: Delivers the budget and forecasts for the Enabling functions.
Process Improvement: Seeks to continually improve the quality of analysis and work with finance colleagues and the Systems Accountant to optimise reporting.
Risk Management: Highlights risks & opportunities and identifies activity required to mitigate or maximise these.
Financial Interpretation: Interprets financial information into suggested actions.
Critical Analysis: Provides constructive challenge.
Relationship Building: Builds on relationships with operational and finance colleagues across the Charity and the wider leadership team.

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