Senior Business Analyst

Company Description

This is an exciting time to join Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) as we focus on becoming a 100% digital economy business by 2020 through content, media and commerce. We are well placed to build capability, scale and sustainable growth as a high performance business. Our strategy is driven by our unique culture with one vision (to innovate the way brands are built), one set of values and a unique operating model which drives collaboration, client focus and attention.

Dentsu Aegis Network believes that everybody should be treated equitably. We are committed to creating an inclusive, diverse and collaborative environment that enables our people to do what they do best - innovating the way brands are built. This is regardless of age, race, disability, sexual orientation, gender, marital, civil partnership or parental status, religion or belief. As a global organisation, we offer fair employment and advancement opportunities for our employees to succeed and advance within their profession, both in Singapore and around the world.

Job Description

Purpose of the job:

The purpose of this role is to utilise financial analysis techniques to provide insight, analysis and trends on critical business issues impacting the day-to-day performance of a business unit for consideration by senior stakeholders.

Key responsibilities and accountabilities:

Strategic Focus

• Proactively advise the brand cluster management teams on key business decisions through sound commercial judgement highlighting options, trade-offs, risks and opportunities
• Develop, lead and deliver financial and commercial strategies and decisions through evaluation and pursuit of opportunities
• Lead and drive business performance providing commercial financial analysis underpinning and validating business case assumptions for decisions, including merger and acquisition transactions (where relevant) throughout their implementation to realise projected benefits
• Contribute to the delivery of business strategy
• Lead and implement commercial finance strategic decisions that are guided by functional strategy and priorities
• Facilitate closer integration of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) brands and clusters within and across geographies for the benefit of the group
• Develop and maintain multi-year financial plan for brand cluster, making use of the long-term strategy in considering short term tactical decisions.

External Relationships - Business Partnering

• Operate as a senior business partner and strategic advisor to the brand cluster's leaders and lead the commercial finance contribution to the brand cluster, providing advice on key business decisions through sound commercial judgement highlighting options, tradeoffs, risks and opportunities
• Lead and contribute to the development of brand & client financial strategy including investment cases & driving focus on revenue growth including cross and up-sell. Lead the strategy to embed client profitability

Commercial Finance & Business Development

• Drive the negotiation of the financial aspects of client contracts including remuneration and payment terms as well as supporting and leading the financial strategy of new business and pitches. Key inputs include appropriate pricing models to provide negotiating options for the business without leading to loss-making accounts; and management of client payment terms to generate positive working capital.
• Ensure smooth client on-boarding for new business, including due diligence and credit insurance application
• Lead the assessment of ongoing client profitability, working with management to improve client remuneration and other revenue streams
• Drive vendor negotiations and provide analytical support ensuring optimal balance of pricing, early payment discounts, rebates and volume commitments or other benefits (where applicable)
• Provide significant input and decision support to brand cluster management for all investment cases and key business developments
• Work with business leaders to understand short, medium and long-term resource requirements and impact on forecast, with proactive advice on improving outcomes
• Develop relevant benchmarking analysis to ensure best practice commercial structuring is shared as appropriate across brand cluster to improve commercial performance of DAN.
• Provide competitor research and analysis into best practice commercial financial solutions
• Identify and drive operational improvement through analysis of financial plans, management information and performance
• Partner with the leadership team, to drive a focus on diversifying media income revenue streams into new & sustainable models, implement and deliver relevant projects to drive this.
• Partner with relevant leaders eg. the Head of Trading and key senior management to optimise income in a compliant and sustainable way

Financial Planning & Analysis and Compliance

• Manage the budgeting and forecasting process for brand cluster, ensuring the right balance of risk and realism and using data analysis to support accurate projections
• Provide interpretation of financial analysis through reporting and presentations to enable business leaders to make key decisions and achieve targets. Identify actions to drive opportunities and mitigate risk.
• Track performance against internal targets and external best practice, making timely interventions
• Responsible for ensuring policy and governance requirements are met including compliance with DAN policies such as commercial & contract compliance
• Accountable for the income Statement and Balance Sheet across brand cluster, specifically including management of accrued income, trade receivables and Work in Progress.

Operational Finance & Group engagement

• Proactive, positive and inclusive engagement with the operational finance team, maximising usage of its services and playing a key role in the success of the cross- finance relationship.
• Liaise with operational finance as required in the onboarding of new clients or vendors (ensuring close alignment to existing processes) and analysis of brand performance
• Open, transparent & frequent communication with finance leadership
• Champion and drive closer integration of DAN business units within the market
• Proven strength in the area of process improvement.

Leadership and Talent management

• Visibly sponsor and drive continuous improvement/ change programs throughout implementation to achieve project benefits
• Build finance capabilities, tools and skills within the Finance team on a continuing basis to increase efficiency and the value add of the Finance team across the business
• Leverage and share best practice with your peer group and local Finance team
• Prioritise KPls and track performance against internal targets and external best practice

Vision and Values & Personal Development

• Actively demonstrate DAN Vision and Values
• Support all staff in understanding DAN Vision and Values and actively recognize/commend behaviours consistent with DAN Vision and Values
• Ability to recognise personal development needs and take personal responsibility for continuous learning.

Qualifications

Qualifications

• Significant commercial finance experience in the advertising industry
• Experience operating as a trusted advisor and valued partner to business leaders
• Experience with changing overall business strategy through finance thought leadership and applications
• Experience of pricing and negotiation
• Experience in local accounting standards
• Expert level financial analysis skills
• Proven experience of successful collaboration between finance and non-finance teams
• Fluency in English
• Professional experience working in a fast moving business environment
• Graduate degree and/or internationally recognised finance/accounting qualification (i.e. CA/CPA)

Core Competencies

• Excellent oral and written communication, collaboration and relationship building skills; ability to quickly form working relationships and gain credibility with senior management
• Strong influencing skills and judgement to get the balance right between challenging business management to ensure achievement of revenue and profit targets and working in partnership with the business
• Strong skills in developing team members through coaching, constructive feedback and developmental opportunities
• Ability to challenge existing thinking
• Unafraid to deal with confrontation and confident making decisions under pressure
• Excellent negotiation skills
• Ability to work to challenging deadlines and deliver quality work in demanding fast paced environment
• Ability to juggle multiple priorities to deliver strategic objectives
• Proactive in identifying and solving complex problems/ issues
• Ability to think innovatively in developing and implementing solutions