Commercial Finance Manager

Reporting Location: London - 16 Hatfields

Workplace Type: Hybrid

TEAM: Agency Finance

REPORTING TO: Finance Director

Location: London, UK

ABOUT US

tms unites technology, marketing, and sourcing to drive transformational change for the world’s leading brands. With 1,200+ employees across 26 countries, we offer an impressive range of solutions – from inspiration and innovation to category management and delivery. Operating as a creative agency, a strategic consultancy, a sourcing business, and a technology provider, we engage with over 110 million customers every single day for our clients, including McDonald’s, T-Mobile, O2, Starbucks, and adidas. Most importantly, we're a place where you can achieve great things and be recognised as the best.

WHAT MATTERS THE MOST

Breakthrough, business-driving ideas come from extraordinary people with the freedom to be their most authentic selves at work. Authenticity and diversity are critical elements of our business. They can only be realised when we create access and equity for all. We foster a culture of inclusion and belonging and aspire to be ever-evolving. tms is a place where brilliant people are better together. If you want your ideas to be heard and to contribute to a culture of inclusion and authenticity, bring us your voice!

WHY WE THINK YOU WILL LOVE THIS ROLE

This role offers a unique opportunity to work closely with a broad range of teams. You'll be involved in day-to-day operations, providing financial insights and support to our teams to ensure we're making data-driven decisions that align with our business objectives. You'll have the opportunity to develop relationships with people across different departments, from client service to technology to creative teams, and act as a key business partner to help them manage their business effectively and achieve their financial goals. Your ability to influence decision-making and provide guidance on financial matters will be essential in driving the success of our business. You'll also have the opportunity to build relationships with clients, as you work closely with our account management team to understand our clients' financial needs and provide recommendations to help us work better together, and optimise our reporting and analysis functions. Additionally, you'll have the chance to learn the business in detail, gaining a deep understanding of our operations and financial structure. You'll also have line management responsibilities, overseeing the work of our finance assistant and providing support and guidance to help them grow in their role.

WHAT YOU WILL BRING TO THE AGENCY

You will bring a combination of financial acumen, business partnering, and strong communication skills, together with an ability to build relationships and work collaboratively with teams across the agency. Becoming an approachable, trusted partner to our business teams will be crucial to the role’s success, so your ability to respectfully challenge assumptions while maintaining your status as a trusted confidante is key.

DIGGING DEEPER INTO THE ROLE

• Act as the commercial finance business partner for Marketing International Services (Agency), supporting Client Service, Partnerships and senior stakeholders with timely analysis, clear commentary and practical recommendations.
• Manage annual client financial plans, budgets, forecasts and monthly revenue reviews, ensuring assumptions, variances, risks, opportunities and recommendations are clear, accurate and suitable for senior review.
• Ensure revenue and client expense recognition is completed in line with UK GAAP, contractual terms and close deadlines, working with Accounting and client finance teams to maintain appropriate documentation and audit readiness.
• Partner with account teams on new revenue streams, retainers and evolving scopes to support accurate financial planning, project set-up, client approvals, billing requirements, contracting, and future pricing decisions.
• Oversee monthly client reporting, GM results, project profitability, utilisation, WIP, retainer reconciliations and project closure activity, ensuring insight is meaningful and key risks are resolved or escalated.
• Review pricing estimates for retainers and projects, ensuring accuracy, contractual compliance, appropriate profitability and consistency with maintained rate cards, pricing matrices, benchmarking and historical records.
• Provide oversight of Balance Sheet accounts, including accrued and deferred income, project WIP and client debtors, ensuring effective controls are in place and trade working capital opportunities are identified and acted on.
• Manage billing, trade working capital and audit support activity, ensuring invoices, supporting documentation, audit requests and open queries are accurate, timely and appropriately escalated.
• Develop and maintain reporting files, pricing tools, dashboards and finance systems, including PowerBI, Hyperion and AI where relevant, improving the consistency, quality and usability of commercial finance reporting.
• Collaborate with regional and cross-functional finance teams to share knowledge, align reporting approaches, improve ways of working and embed consistent controls and client finance processes.
• Line manage, coach and develop the Client Finance Analysts, setting priorities, reviewing outputs and ensuring core responsibilities are delivered accurately and consistently.
• Support the senior finance team with commercial finance training, onboarding, process improvement and ad-hoc projects that improve commercial acumen, controls and stakeholder experience.

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE WE WOULD LIKE YOU TO HAVE

• At least 5 years’ professional experience with good knowledge of UK GAAP
• Professionally qualified or finalist (ACA, CIMA, ACCA or equivalent)
• Excellent attention to detail to ensure the accuracy and integrity of all financial data and processes
• Strong communication skills, with an ability to build relationships and work collaboratively with teams across the agency.
• Ability to work effectively independently, ensuring information is gathered from the business on time and queries are resolved in a timely manner
• A keenness in developing engaging financial reporting
• Ability to effectively communicate across the Business and Finance organisation and demonstrate a willingness to generate and share information.
• Excellent presentational skills – particularly presenting financial information clearly and as simply as possible to ensure key drivers are understood and actionable
• Ability to work closely with management to make informed business decisions
• Proficient with Microsoft Office, high-level Excel functionality expected

If you have any questions about the job, we are open to discussing this role further, so please feel free to get in touch.