Partner Executive are working with a large professional services firm to look for a Head of Shared Services Europe and Americas. Our client has recently implemented a finance change programme aimed at simplifying the way in which they work globally and harmonising processes across the whole business.

This role will be responsible for setting the direction of the finance shared service centre and will be accountable for its operational excellence. It is a strategic operation for the company as it handles a large volume of transactions including account payable, account receivable and order to cash.

Supporting the transformation of the company, this role will foster continuous improvement, automation and will ensure that relevant controls are in place across the shared service organisation.

• Assess the current shared services model to strategically develop organisation and workflow updates aligned with the company strategy and culture.
• Establish regular communication with stakeholders across the business.
• Define and agree SLAs and KPIs with key stakeholders and manage performance.
• Manage and monitor overall Shared Service Centre performance to drive accuracy and timeliness of all deliverables.
• Maintain strong controls ensuring all group policies and statutory requirements are complied with by the Shared Service Centre team.
• Identify opportunities to deliver new activities from the Shared Service Centre.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement that ensures process flows and standard operating procedures are kept current and constantly improved.
• Responsible for management of headcount against targets and ensure the right skills are available in the team.
• Build a strong team within the Shared Service Centre, including talent development and hiring.

• Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent).
• Demonstrated experience in impacting the quality and success of a finance shared service.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to influence at all levels.
• Deep understanding of accounting principles and their application.
• International work and culture exposure to UK, Europe and US.
• Proven track record in a similar position operating in a large, corporate environment, implementing financial controls.
• Experience in managing high volume finance processing teams.