Director - Business Partnering (FP&A)

About CLS:

CLS is the trusted party at the centre of the global FX ecosystem. Utilized by thousands of counterparties, CLS makes FX safer, smoother and more cost effective. Trillions of dollars’ worth of currency flows through our systems each day.

Created by the market for the market, our unrivalled global settlement infrastructure reduces systemic risk and provides standardization for participants in many of the world’s most actively traded currencies. We deliver huge efficiencies and savings for our clients: in fact, our approach to multilateral netting shrinks funding requirements by over 96% on average, so clients can put their capital and resources to better use.

CLS products are designed to enable clients to manage risk most effectively across the full FX lifecycle – whether through more efficient processing tools or market intelligence derived from the largest single source of FX executed data available to the market.

Our ambition to make a positive difference starts with our people. Our values – Protect, Improve, Grow – underpin everything that we do at CLS and define and shape a supportive and inclusive working environment in which everyone is encouraged to be open and forward-thinking

All the relevant skills, qualifications and experience that a successful applicant will need are listed in the following description.

Job information:

• Corporate level – Director
• Functional title – Director, Business Partnering (FP&A)
• Department – Finance
• Report to – Executive Director, Business Partnering
• Location – London

Position Summary

We are seeking a strategic and results-driven Director of Business Partnering (FP&A) to manage and take a leading role in our Business Partnering (FP&A) function. This role is pivotal in driving financial insights, strategic planning, budgeting, and forecasting to support key decision-making across the organization. The ideal candidate is a hands-on leader with strong analytical skills, business acumen, and a proven track record of managing a finance function in a dynamic but heavily regulated environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Financial Planning & Forecasting
• Manage and take a leading role in the company’s annual budgeting and long-range planning processes.
• Drive monthly, quarterly, and annual forecasting processes.
• Analyse business performance trends, variances, and key metrics to provide actionable insights.
• Business Partnership
• Act as a strategic partner to the Executive Director, Business Partnering, identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, profitability, and growth.
• Collaborate with senior leadership and divisional heads to support strategic initiatives and decision-making.
• Reporting & Analysis
• Prepare and present reports, dashboards, and key performance indicators (KPIs) to stakeholders.
• Develop and maintain financial models to evaluate business cases, investments, and strategic initiatives.
• Team Leadership
• Manage and develop a high-performing Business Partnering team.
• Provide coaching, mentorship, and professional development to team members.
• Process Improvement
• Implement and manage a strong control environment
• Implement and optimize FP&A tools, systems, and processes to drive accuracy and efficiency.
• Champion automation and digital solutions to streamline reporting and analysis.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field
• 5 -10+ years of progressive experience in financial planning & analysis, with at least 2–3 years in a leadership role.
• Proven experience in strategic financial planning, budgeting, and forecasting.
• Advanced financial modelling and analytical skills.
• Strong knowledge of financial systems (e.g. Oracle, Excel, PowerBI etc.).
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to distill complex information to non-finance stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced, high-growth, strong controls and cross-functional environment.
• Experience of a three lines of defence (3LoD) control framework and cashflow forecasting / management would be advantageous but is not essential

Preferred Attributes

• Experience in Financial Services
• Strong leadership presence with the ability to influence at all levels of the organization.

Our commitment to employees:

We are a small company with a big mandate, so every person is essential to our success. We are also committed to employing and retaining the most talented and dedicated people.

What makes us interesting goes beyond our competitive salaries and great benefits. Our work environment is designed around quality outcomes, not output. The FX market would cease to function without our services, and we take pride in being responsible for keeping it running smoothly.

We are different from other financial institutions in that we have a flatter and more transparent structure with accessible leadership. You will be seen, heard and empowered to develop your career.

We are a purpose-driven organization, with an inclusive culture that focuses on doing what is right. The well-being of our people is as important to us as the resilience of our systems. In addition to encouraging our people to ‘locate for their day,’ we run a range of initiatives that support employees’ sense of belonging and physical, emotional and mental well-being.

Our extensive benefits for employees typically include:

• Vacation/annual leave: 25 days in UK/Asia + 3 life days, 23 in US + 3 life days
• Private medical and dental cover and life insurance
• Generous pension contributions in the UK and Asia; matching 401(k) in the US
• Paid volunteer days
• ‘Locate for your day’ hybrid working – 2 days a week in office.
• Access to Discover – our learning platform with 1000+ courses from LinkedIn Learning.
• Paid parental leave / Coaching and support services
• Career development / LinkedIn Learning
• ‘Heads down days’ with no meetings on the last Friday of every month
• Wellbeing / Mental health support
• Diversity Council / Affinity groups (Women’s Forum, Black Employee Network, Pride Network, Parents & Caregivers Network, Sustainability Network)
• Social events

Awards:

• The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2023 & 2024 / Big Company / The Sunday Times Awards
• Third place in Britain’s Healthiest Workplace 2022 / Medium Company / Vitality Awards