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- Tasks: Lead financial reporting for Halfords Autocentres' supply chain and improve processes.
- Company: Join Halfords, a leader in motoring and cycling innovation.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, hybrid working, employee discounts, and personal development opportunities.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on financial processes and drive transformation in a dynamic environment.
- Qualifications: Qualified accountant with experience in financial reporting and complex reconciliations.
- Other info: Inclusive workplace with a commitment to diversity and wellbeing.
The predicted salary is between 36000 - 60000 £ per year.
About Us
At Halfords, our mission is to inspire and support a lifetime of motoring and cycling. As a specialist retailer, we lead the market through customer-driven innovation and a distinct product range. We are dedicated to providing our customers with an integrated, unique, and convenient service experience—from e-bike and electric vehicle servicing to on-demand solutions. Our commitment is to foster customer loyalty by offering compelling reasons to keep coming back to our stores, ensuring a lifetime of motoring and cycling enjoyment.
The teams at our Redditch Support Centre work with every other area of our business, putting them at the heart of the action and playing a key role in our success and growth. Everyone brings their individual knowledge and experience to work every day, working as one team to keep things moving smoothly.
If you're willing to get stuck in, you'll love it here too. So put yourself at the heart of a dynamic, fast-paced working environment where expertise and focus take people far.
The role
This is a high-impact Financial Reporting Manager role, owning the financial reporting for Halfords Autocentres' complex 3PL supply chain. You'll be responsible for tracking purchasing and inventory across a £80–£100m annual spend, managing supplier financing and notional transactions, and translating management accounts into accurate statutory reporting under IFRS and UK GAAP. It's a technically demanding role with significant board-level visibility, sitting at the heart of a critical operational area of the business.
You're a qualified, experienced finance professional who thrives in complexity. You're comfortable operating in a heavily manual, spreadsheet-driven environment, owning detailed reconciliations and challenging assumptions to get to the right answer. As a confident self-starter, you take accountability for ambiguous problem spaces, work calmly through multiple moving parts, and communicate clearly with non-finance stakeholders across supply chain, legal, commercial and external partners.
Beyond day-to-day reporting, this role is about making things better. With SAP in place and transformation firmly on the agenda, you'll lead the move from fragmented manual processes to robust, systemised solutions. It's an opportunity to shape long-term reporting and control frameworks, reduce risk, improve transparency and leave a lasting mark on how a critical part of the business operates.
Key Responsibilities
- Own end-to-end financial reporting for the Autocentres 3PL supply chain, covering both management and statutory reporting.
- Track and reconcile purchasing, inventory and supplier financing across a complex, multi-party supply chain, including notional sale and buy-back arrangements.
- Develop a robust alternative to the current solution and create a more efficient process, which will require liaison with the 3PL provider, and the Halfords Commercial and IT teams.
- Prepare statutory adjustments from management accounts, ensuring compliance with IFRS and UK GAAP.
- Deliver accurate monthly, interim and year-end reconciliations across inventory, AP, AR and foreign currency balances.
- Produce clear management reporting on stock holding, stock cover, cash flow and supply chain KPIs.
- Act as the primary finance partner to Supply Chain, Category, Legal and external 3PL providers, ensuring data clarity and accountability.
- Lead the improvement of controls and processes, reducing risk and strengthening reporting accuracy in a heavily manual environment.
- Drive the transition from spreadsheet-led processes to more systemised, automated solutions in partnership with ERP and IT teams.
- Own relationships with external auditors for all areas under remit, providing clear documentation and technical justification.
About You
- Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or equivalent) with post-qualification experience in technical financial reporting and complex reconciliations.
- Strong experience operating in manual, spreadsheet-driven environments, with advanced Excel skills and confidence handling large, detailed data sets.
- Solid working knowledge of IFRS and UK GAAP, with the ability to convert management accounts into accurate statutory reporting.
- Proven self-starter, comfortable taking ownership of complex and ambiguous areas and bringing structure where systems and processes are still evolving.
- Track record of driving process improvement and finance transformation, particularly moving from manual controls toward more automated, system-led solutions.
- Able to build effective working relationships across finance, supply chain, legal teams and external partners, including auditors and service providers.
- Highly analytical and detail-focused, with the resilience and judgement to balance technical accuracy with commercial priorities.
Reward & Benefits
- A fair and competitive salary evaluated against market data, annual discretionary bonus scheme, pension, life assurance, 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays and enhanced family leave.
- Commitment and dedication to your ongoing personal and professional development. We help you to own and grow your potential so you can be at your best in your current role and to support your future career aspirations.
- We offer hybrid working with a blend of working in our Support Centre and from home.
- You will have access to a wealth of employee discounts across the Halfords suite of products and services.
- Wellbeing and inclusion are at the heart of our colleague experience. We offer resources and ongoing support to enhance your wellbeing at work and active Colleague Networks supporting inclusion initiatives across Halfords.
Not sure you meet all the criteria? We'd encourage you to take the wheel and apply anyway! At Halfords we are committed to creating an inclusive workplace for our colleagues. We're an equal opportunities employer and proud to welcome applications from all backgrounds and embrace diversity within our one Halfords Family.
At Halfords, we operate a hybrid working policy with 2 days on site at our Support Centre in Redditch, Worcestershire.
Financial Reporting Manager (12 Month FTC) in Birmingham employer: Halfords
Contact Detail:
Halfords Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Financial Reporting Manager (12 Month FTC) in Birmingham
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to your connections in the finance world, especially those who might have insights into Halfords or similar companies. A friendly chat can sometimes lead to opportunities that aren’t even advertised.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for the interview by diving deep into Halfords’ mission and values. Show us how your experience aligns with our commitment to customer-driven innovation and operational excellence. We love candidates who are genuinely excited about what we do!
✨Tip Number 3
Practice your financial reporting skills! Be ready to discuss how you’ve tackled complex reconciliations and improved processes in the past. We want to see your analytical prowess and how you can bring structure to our evolving systems.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets noticed. Plus, it shows us you’re serious about joining the Halfords family and contributing to our success.
We think you need these skills to ace Financial Reporting Manager (12 Month FTC) in Birmingham
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV reflects the skills and experiences that align with the Financial Reporting Manager role. Highlight your experience with IFRS, UK GAAP, and any complex reconciliations you've handled. We want to see how you can bring value to our team!
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter: Your cover letter is your chance to shine! Use it to explain why you're the perfect fit for Halfords and how your background in financial reporting can help us improve our processes. Be genuine and let your personality come through!
Showcase Your Problem-Solving Skills: In your application, don’t just list your qualifications—share examples of how you've tackled complex financial challenges in the past. We love candidates who can think critically and bring structure to ambiguous situations!
Apply Through Our Website: We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way to ensure your application gets the attention it deserves. Plus, you’ll find all the details about the role and our company culture there!
How to prepare for a job interview at Halfords
✨Know Your Numbers
As a Financial Reporting Manager, you'll need to be on top of your game with numbers. Brush up on your knowledge of IFRS and UK GAAP, and be ready to discuss how you've applied these in previous roles. Prepare specific examples of complex reconciliations you've handled, as this will show your technical expertise.
✨Master the Art of Communication
This role requires clear communication with non-finance stakeholders. Practice explaining financial concepts in simple terms. Think about how you can convey complex information to someone without a finance background, as this will demonstrate your ability to bridge the gap between finance and other departments.
✨Showcase Your Problem-Solving Skills
Expect questions that assess your ability to tackle ambiguous problems. Prepare to share instances where you've taken ownership of complex issues and how you structured your approach to find solutions. Highlight any process improvements you've implemented, especially those that moved from manual to automated systems.
✨Build Relationships
Since you'll be acting as a primary finance partner, think about how you've built effective working relationships in the past. Be ready to discuss your experience collaborating with supply chain, legal teams, and external partners. This will show that you understand the importance of teamwork in achieving financial accuracy and transparency.
