Strategic Planning & Forecasting Assistant Analyst

Job description

  Salary
Competitive plus benefits
·  Role area
Finance
·  Contract type
Permanent
·  Job reference
HRGHA363245
·  Location
Milton Keynes
MK9 2NW
· 
At Sainsbury's Argos, the great digital transformation is under way. It's our aim to become the digital market leader in choice, value and convenience, so our Finance teams are more important to us now than ever before. They're the people who provide support across the business and help make the crucial decisions that will allow us to develop into a leading digital retailer.

We have joined Sainsbury's in our journey to become a leading retail organisation and ensuring we place our customers at the heart of everything we do. Together we have a great opportunity to build a brilliant future and do a fantastic job for all our customers.

The Role:

The Reporting & Forecasting team provides a key link between the various business partnering and FP&A teams across the business to create budgets, forecasts and strategic plans as well as delivering corporate performance reporting e.g. weekly trading packs, periodic management accounts and investor relations analysis.

You will establish and support the on-going delivery of the Sainsbury's Argos strategic planning, budgeting and forecasting process with guidance from the Strategic Planning & Forecasting Manager. This involves producing impactful channel reporting, analysis and insight in a format that the business can easily interpret and act upon. You will consolidate and communicate business performance to various key stakeholders and develop standardised reporting and insight for Business Partner tream.

As Strategic Planning & Forecasting Assistant Analyst, your main responsibilities will include:

Support the creation of the Sainsbury's Argos Strategic Planning and Forecasting process to provide the board with insight and analysis to understand the direction of the business. This will include short term Latest Views, medium term forecasts and long term strategic plans.
Help convert the Sainsbury's Argos Strategic Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting process from a long arduous planning cycle to a quick and agile process that provides the same business understanding and insight but requiring fewer resources without the comprise on accuracy, insight and direction.
Develop standardised reporting & insight for Business Partnering teams to drive productive action / improved business performance in collaboration with the business with guidance from the Strategic Planning & Forecasting Analyst.
Channel reporting, analysis and insight to help the business understand which channels are driving growth, the cost of the likely volume trends and guide the operational areas with their forecast.
Consolidate and communicate business performance to various key stakeholders including board level and key operational teams.
Production of agreed standardised reporting & insight to Business Partnering teams across weekly and period reporting timelines. This should be timely and accurate and provide insight to support future business activity.
Support the delivery of Finance improvement initiatives and implementation of internal & external best practices to enhance process efficiency and quality of outputs.

Your skills & experience will include:

Studying towards a professional accounting qualification – CIMA / ACCA.
Some experience of working with and presenting analytical results to Non-Finance users.
Strong analytical skills, Excel & Access skills and attention to detail.
Good inter-personal skills, an empathetic nature and a good sense of humour.
Enthusiastic, positive and proactive engagement of key Finance and non-Finance stakeholders.
Team player with good presentation and communication skills (both verbal & written).

What you'll get in return:

If being part of a hugely influential Finance team wasn't enough, you'll also receive a host of great benefits. As well as a competitive salary and bonus scheme you will receive a huge range of learning and development opportunities, 22 days' holiday, study support, a save-as-you-earn scheme, health care, pension and staff discounts at Argos, Sainsbury's and Habitat.