Finance Analyst - Capex Analysis

WE ARE LANDSEC

We identify and shape places that create opportunity, enhance quality of life, and bring joy to the people connected to them. This is how we’ve created the UK’s leading portfolio of urban places and one of the largest listed real estate companies in Europe. Our £10 billion portfolio is built around premium workplaces, the country’s pre-eminent retail platform, and a residential pipeline that will redefine urban life. We’ve honed this ability over 80 years. Spotting the opportunities, building the partnerships, and continually adapting to shape the places that meet the needs of a changing world.

The Team:

This is an exciting time for the Commercial Finance Performance and Planning team at Landsec. With the implementation of a new suite of finance systems, we are undergoing a transformation of our planning and performance reporting processes, with the ambition to significantly enhance their value to the business. We are looking for someone to be part of this and join our team! The team is highly proactive and tech-literate, playing a central role in driving performance, streamlining and automating processes and reporting, and providing the Finance Business Partners and Business Unit Finance Directors with system-led analysis and insight. The team culture is collaborative, supportive, and focused on continuous improvement. You will work alongside experienced finance professionals who value clear communication, teamwork, strong analytical and tech skills, and a proactive mindset that embraces accountability and delivers positive change.

The Role:

• We spend approximately £350m on operational and development capex across our portfolio on an annual basis. In order to help drive stronger business performance a new role is being created to provide an increased oversight and analysis of this spend.
• Reporting into the Performance and Planning Finance Director you will be responsible for Capex analysis and reporting, consolidation of forecasts and budgets across all Business Units, providing valuable data insight and trend analysis to support decision making to enhance performance whilst innovating and streamlining current processes utilising system technology.
• We’re seeking a tech-literate individual to drive improvements and efficiencies in our monthly and external reporting, enhance performance analytics, and streamline the forecasting and budgeting process by optimising system capabilities. This role will collaborate and partner closely with the Commercial Finance Business Partners; Finance Directors of the Business Units; the Group Performance Management team; Group FP&A team and Group System’s expert.

Salary: Competitive

The Location: The role is based in London, Victoria. The role offers hybrid working, with majority of the working week in the office. We recommend discussing arrangements with the hiring manager to find the best fit for both you and the role.

What you will be responsible for:

• Capex Analysis, Reporting and insight
• Own the monthly operational and development capex analysis and reporting for our Retail, Workplace, MediaCity and Capital Projects business units; partnering closely with the Commercial Finance Business Partners to monitor and track capex actuals to budget/forecast, highlighting risks and opportunities and supporting value maximisation.
• Consolidate the four business units’ monthly operational and development capex to provide full Group capex reporting. Review month-end actuals and projections highlighting any material variances to budget.
• Support the monthly process reviewing capitalised interest and staff costs against projects across the Business Units.
• Provide insight and analysis on historic and forward-looking spend looking both across business units and by type of spend to assist in the prioritisation of spend on an ongoing basis and specifically as part of the annual business planning and budgeting processes.
• Support the Director of Commercial Finance with the tracking and controlling of all capital expenditure. This will include producing analysis for MI reporting and Board reports, as necessary.
• System led Budgeting and Forecasting – Capex
• Own the monthly rolling forecasts for operational capex and liaise with the Capital Projects Finance Business partners to ensure development capex is appropriately captured in the group forecast.
• Work with the Commercial and Capital Projects Finance Business Partners to understand key assumptions including maintaining R&O schedule.
• Modelling Capex assumptions for the annual business planning and budgeting processes, utilising the rolling forecasts.
• Monthly Business Review – Capital Projects
• Preparation and innovation of the monthly forward looking Executive insights report for Capital Projects Business Unit to agreed SLAs.
• Collaborate with the Finance Business Partners in Capital Projects to gain a comprehensive understanding of the key performance drivers; both financial and operational, internal and external; and deliver clear impactful reports to influence decision-making.
• Work closely with the Group Finance team to ensure the accuracy and integrity of our reported data and complete first reviews of month end financials highlighting any material variances.
• Ensure our month end reporting requirements are delivered in line with the reporting deadlines, and proactively take the lead in identifying opportunities to further enhance the process to drive greater efficiency and effectiveness through optimising system capabilities.
• Work with the Finance Business Partners in the preparation of the Cost to Complete schedules that are integral to the 6 monthly valuation process, and the half year and year end disclosure pack.
• System
• Become a super-user of the OneStream system, efficiently navigating the system, maintaining suite of automated reports and build additional analysis as required by the business.
• Continuously challenge the status quo and use systems expertise to enhance all processes, reporting, analysis and insights.
• Other
• Develop a strong understanding of our internal control and governance processes for capex approvals and recommend improvements as appropriate.
• Assist with the production of external disclosures and analysis, and manage audit queries relating to capex.
• Use other reporting tools such as PowerBi to analysis and integrate data effectively.

Your skills, experience and qualifications:

• Essential criteria
• Fully Qualified Accountant (ACA, CIMA, ACCA).
• Experience of capex analysis and reporting supporting decision making.
• Experience of analysing information from a variety of sources to monitor and track performance and to predict trends including PowerBI experience.
• Keen interest in Systems and proven ability to work with financial planning and reporting tools, ideally OneStream.
• Budget and Forecasting experience.
• Strong Excel and PowerBi skills with the ability to present information in a way that is clear and understandable to your audience.
• Ability to distil information and summarise the key issues concisely.
• Strong Excel skills with the ability to present financial data in a way that’s clear and understandable to the audience.