Finance Business Partner

Job description

Job responsibilities

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Partnering

1. Support the delivery of the business partnering function providing future focused decision support, technical financial advice, business intelligence and reports to management to enable them to effectively manage resources for their area of responsibility.
2. Build effective relationships, internally, to effectively challenge performance, decision-making and outcomes.
3. Promote and support the use of financial and operational management information to review, assess and forecast unit performance.
4. Identify and highlight quickly and appropriately any evidence and/or risk of divergence from financial plans, targets or forecasts and work with management to develop mitigations to return performance to plan/forecast.
5. Month end.

Resource Utilisation

1. Support the production of business cases, including taking responsibility for the accuracy of the financial analysis.
2. Support the development and monitoring of non-financial performance indicators to identify areas where the use of resources can be improved.
3. Support negotiation of commissioning agreements with external organisations for services provided or received to ensure that income is maximised or best value for money is achieved respectively.
4. Support the Trust in setting realistic and achievable waste reduction/efficiency targets and developing robust plans that ensure and maximise delivery; both on an annual basis and for the medium/long-term plans.
5. Provide expert advice on the identification and achievement of waste reductions and productivity improvements using benchmarking and other comparative data to inform this process

Governance

1. Support the maintenance of the Standing Financial Instructions and internal financial control procedures to ensure these operate as designed and provide appropriate levels of assurance on accuracy, completeness and anti-fraud measures.
2. In conjunction with Internal Audit, support reviews to ensure that the financial control environment is operating effectively and that information is shared with the Audit Committee for assurance purposes.
3. Support with ensuring that operational and strategic financial risks are identified and properly assessed so that adequate arrangements for managing them can be implemented.

Communication & Engagement

1. Support with writing high quality papers on all financial accounting, reporting and related issues; with appropriate consideration of purpose, background, guidance i.e., relevant accounting standards, laws and regulations, policies etc., materiality, analysis, risk, conclusions/recommendations.
2. Present highly complex and highly sensitive financial information to small audiences of varying experience, disciplines and seniority.
3. Represent the Finance Department and its interests at internal meetings/events as required, acting independently, and effectively.

Service Delivery and Improvement

1. Maintain an up to date, in depth specialist knowledge theory and experience of financial and accounting procedures, financial aspects of relevant legislation and financial policies (governmental and NHS).
2. Identify and analyse the consequences and risks of short and long term local service changes; ensuring that any impacts are communicated/escalated and understood.
3. Maintain a good understanding of Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) and ensures they are followed across the Trust, involving training and advising staff and monitoring compliance.
4. Support innovative and continuous process review and improvement for Planning and Delivery activities.
5. Contribute to and influences process improvement and transformation throughout the Trust to ensure financial requirements are appropriately met and financial governance is maintained.

Personal Development

1. Maintain an up to date, in depth specialist knowledge theory and experience of financial and accounting procedures, financial aspects of NHS legislation and NHS financial policies.
2. Ensure that Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) are followed within the Division and cross-Trust, involving training and advising staff and monitoring compliance.

Learning and Development

1. Commit to improve skill levels and knowledge by participation in appropriate training and learning opportunities.
2. Responsible for maintaining own professional development including being aware of new developments within the sphere of the role.
3. Achieve and demonstrate agreed standards of personal and professional development within agreed timescales.
4. Participate in the Trusts appraisal process to discuss how your role will help deliver the best possible care to our patients and help to deliver any changes in service.
5. Attend mandatory and statutory training as required; ensuring compliance is maintained.

Please see the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of duties and responsibilities.

Person Specification

Experience/ Qualifications

Essential

• Acquisition of the skills below is considered to require at least two years post qualification experience in a financial management role, demonstrating experience equivalent to a Master's degree. Part-qualified CCAB Evidence of participating in Continuing Professional Development to the required level expected of a Professional Accountancy Body.

Knowledge and Experience

Essential

• Express complex and sensitive financial issues both orally and in writing in an easily understood manner. NHS Financial regime & National Tariff The Principles of Standing Financial Instructions

Communication and Interpersonal

Essential

• Experience effectively communicating complex financial information to non-finance managers Confidence presenting financial and non-financial information to a senior audience Ability to chair Finance meetings within the Directorate. Ability to coach budget holders and provide teaching seminars to groups of budget holders. Professional telephone and communication manner to represent the professional standing of the Financial Management Dept. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Leadership and influencing skills with the ability to enthuse motivate and involve individuals and teams.

Desirable

• Experience of close working relationships with senior clinicians.

Analytical and Judgemental

Essential

• Confidence to challenge and negotiate with other senior managers in the Trust to ensure financial plans are adhered to. Ability to manage tensions between local and corporate priorities. Excellent numeric and analytical skills. Able to produce concise and accurate reports, both financial and information based. Highly developed problem solving skills and ability to respond to sudden unexpected demands. Ability to analyse complex facts and situations and develop a range of options.

Planning and Organisational

Essential

• Ability to participate in setting the short and medium term objectives for the department. Ability to set priorities for a team of finance professionals to ensure operational objectives are met within a deadline. Ability to work on a diverse set of projects at one time and to meet imposed deadlines. Excellent organisational and prioritising skills. Ability to manage own work programme and to prioritise deadlines. Demonstrate capability to plan over short, medium and long-term timeframes and adjust plans and resource requirements accordingly.

Financial

Essential

• Two years of experience in a financial role Experience of preparing Business Cases to support changes to service delivery and advising on the revenue and cash impact of proposals. Evidence of meeting challenging corporate and personal targets

Desirable

• Understanding of current developments within the NHS and knowledge of NHS Education environment

Information and Communication Technology

Essential

• Expert with main Microsoft Office applications Ability to use numerous IT systems for data extraction and investigation. i.e. PAS, RIS, SUS

People Management and Development

Essential

• Management of projects, complex finance issues or junior members of staff.

Desirable

• Experience managing a team of finance professionals, including recruitment, appraisal

Personal Attributes

Essential

• Personal presentation must be of a professional standard and to ensure that junior members of the team are also. Physically fit to undertake the duties of the role. Able to travel between sites.

Freedom to Act

Essential

• Ability to work autonomously, liaise and coordinate the Team on a day to day basis and to take appropriate action as necessary. Identify and adhere to best practice. Responsible for own professional actions and have sufficient autonomy for the delivery of the role. Broad occupational policies Works to achieve agreed objectives and is given freedom to do this in own way, working within broad professional policies; acts without reference to manager; acts as lead specialist in a particular financial area.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (279)

Address

St Richards Hospital, Worthing Hospital or Royal Sussex county Hospital

Chichester, Worthing or Brighton

PO19 6SE

Employer's website

https://www.uhsussex.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)