Finance and Operations Business Partner: Global & Africa and Middle East (maternity cover)

Location: London

Reports to: Head of Global & Africa Programme Manager (London), matrix reporting to Head of Global Finance (London)

Contract:12 month Fixed Term Contract (maternity cover), Full-time

About Fondation CHANEL:

Created in 2011, Fondation CHANEL (the “Fondation”) is a corporate foundation aiming for women and girls to be free to shape their own destiny. We work in partnership with nonprofit organisations, international organisations, alliances, academic and research institutions, social businesses and other charitable funds and foundations to address the overlapping discriminations women and girls experience, and advance gender equality.

The Fondation is guided by a set of core values which lie at the heart of the way in which it carries out its work, both internally and externally with its grantee partners: act with humility, hold trust, learn in collaboration, think holistically and nurture lasting change.

Fondation CHANEL is committed to diversity, equality, and inclusion and to building a collaborative work environment where each individual can perform at their best and feel fulfilled and confident in their work.

The Finance and Operations team at Fondation CHANEL supports and enables all areas of the Fondation’s global and regional financial management and operations: accounting, payment processing, planning, budgeting and forecasting, financial controls, management reporting and analysis, statutory reporting, internal and external audit, tax, treasury management, travel & expenses processing, professional advice, systems development and maintenance, policies and procedures, risk management, safeguarding, frameworks for impact monitoring and learning to enhance organizational effectiveness.

The role:

The Finance and Operations Business Partner (FOBP) is a highly influential role supporting the strategic and operational effectiveness of Fondation CHANEL’s work across our Global portfolio and Africa & the Middle East, driving operational excellence, building resilience in systems and processes, and serving as a trusted advisor to programme and leadership teams.

The role will serve as a dedicated partner to Fondation CHANEL’s regional programmatic teams based in London, covering our Global portfolio and Africa & the Middle East. They will both support and enable their programmatic colleagues by contributing financial acumen, analytical skills, risk management insight and professional advice to the development and management of the grant making portfolio, operational and programmatic budgets and compliance with local regulations and Fondation CHANEL global policies and procedures.

They lead on ensuring the smooth operation of internal financial and operational processes for their internal stakeholders (for example, ensuring payments to suppliers and grantee partners are paid on time, budgets and reforecasts are submitted on time, grant documentation is provided in line with agreed timetables, etc.) and support the Head of Region in carrying out their risk management, budgeting and planning responsibilities by providing relevant financial and risk analyses to guide evidence based decision-making. They will also work collaboratively with the finance and operations teams at the London headquarters and other regional offices to design and embed high-quality systems, policies and procedures which are suitable for a global Foundation and suitably adapted for the local context if necessary.

The ideal candidate will be a proactive, service-oriented financial and operations professional with the ability to multi-task and manage change while maintaining high analytical proficiency and integrity while demonstrating a real passion for the mission of the Fondation.

The impact you can create:

Programmatic Support

Provide financial and operational expertise and insights to the regional programmatic teams throughout the grant lifecycle. 

During grant prospection:

• As an integral part of the regional team, provide analysis and insight on the coherence of the proposal with the related financial information such as organisational or project specific budgets.

• Actively support and enable the due diligence process, in particular through research, analysis and assessment of financial, compliance and legal matters relating to the prospective partner organisation, in order to advise on the level of risk and advise on next steps.

• Verify and cross-check grant currency, grant amount and duration, organisational budget and funding ratios between the proposals and the Board/ Programmes Committee dockets before submission for approval.

• Partner with programmes and legal teams to agree appropriate payment schedules for grants based on the reporting cadence and the nature of the grant.

During the grant term:

• In conjunction with the programme colleagues, review the annual financial report submissions from grantee partners and, when necessary and by mutual agreement, participate in check-in calls, meetings, and site visits.

• Monitor and anticipate budget variations and advise and assist programmes colleagues on budget changes if needed.

• Partner with programmes colleagues to monitor risks and, if necessary, update risk mitigation plans accordingly.

• By mutual agreement with programmes colleagues, and at the invitation of the grantee partner, provide support and advice to grantee partners for capacity strengthening.

At the end of the grant term:

• Support grant closures to assess whether all funds have been expended in accordance with the grant agreement.

Collaborate with other teams as necessary to support the preparation of regional and global portfolio analyses for stakeholders, as requested.

Regional Financial and Operational Management

Work with the Head of Region, programmatic teams and central team to support the region’s financial and operational requirements, and responsibilities for risk management, including:

Strategic financial support

• Co-ordinate and facilitate financial budgeting and forecasting at a regional level in accordance with the global finance guidelines and calendar.

• Lead on any support required for additional compliance or regulatory requirements as a result of granting to, and working in, the countries within our Global and Africa and Middle East portfolios.

• Accountable for delivery of financial insight and analysis to regional stakeholders including but not limited to monthly meetings to understand variances between actual and budget, cashflow forecasts covering grant payments and other expenditure, financial commitments, and address any financial queries the regional teams may have.

• Support the preparation and presentation of financial updates as necessary for management or trustees and support programmatic teams with financial or operational content for presentations or other documents. Support and prepare ad hoc analyses and presentations for Fondation leadership as required.

• Support the Head of Region to manage and mitigate risks effectively, including identifying risks and maintenance of a risk register for the region, in accordance with the Fondation’s overall risk management framework.

Regional liaison and international collaboration

• Serve as liaison between the Head Global of Finance and regional team to support the implementation and ongoing adherence with financial processes and policies. Arrange and facilitate internal and external audit requirements as necessary from time to time. Raise regional needs, feedback and issues with the Head Global of Finance to promote greater efficiency and effectiveness.

• Identify needs and deliver training and mentoring to regional colleagues on financial processes, risk management, and compliance requirements.

• Actively contribute to building collaborative and constructive working relationships and a positive working environment with the regional team and across the Fondation offices, including working with other FOBPs to adopt consistent approaches and share learnings across regions and the centre. Follow-up on payments and liaise with the programmes team to keep them informed.

• Collaborate with the President, Chief Finance and Operations Officer, Financial Controller, Operations team, Legal and Governance teams, other teams and third-party suppliers to achieve high quality, consistent, efficient and effective financial operations in their region and across the Fondation.

• Support wider Finance and Operation teams’ projects/workstreams, working collaboratively with other teams and seeking to anticipate needs and identify further process improvements.  Bring the regional perspective to the design of new processes and systems being considered from time to time by London headquarters.

• Stay informed about developments in the region, including updates from partners and other grant makers. Attend and participate in relevant regional team meetings.

Systems and processes

• Work closely with the central Finance team to ensure the accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of data in all relevant systems, including the global ERP.

• Support the regional team in new systems design and implementation, data integrity and risk management processes.

What you will bring to the team:

• Significant experience in a finance/accounting role within a grantmaking and UK charity context, with experience of in understanding the regulatory and compliance requirements, together with a recognised accountancy qualification and direct experience of programmatic support within an international organisation.

• Experience or knowledge of the civil society ecosystem.

• Interest in Fondation CHANEL’s mission and vision.

• Self-motivated with the ability to plan, manage and prioritise their own varied workload and take responsibility for dealing with issues through to resolution.

• Demonstrated analytical and problem-solving skills with high attention to quality and detail.

• Experience implementing or optimising finance processes and operational systems to drive efficiency and scalability.

• Proven ability to navigate and ensure compliance across complex regulatory and operating environments.

• Ability to build capacity and confidence in non-financial colleagues on financial processes and risk.

• Strong understanding of financial statements, budget analysis and financial forecasting and planning.

• A service-oriented mindset in addition to being proactive and values driven, always guided by the Fondation’s mission and strategy.

• Excellent and adaptable communication, presentation, and relationship-building skills with internal and external stakeholders across varied levels of seniority and financial expertise

• Curiosity and a desire to seek understanding of ‘why’ and not just ‘what’, with the ‘how’ being guided by the Fondation’s values and good judgement.

• Ability to read, grasp, and synthesize grantee proposals and narrative and financial reports efficiently.

• Ability to challenge and influence respectfully.

• Ability to operate effectively in a matrix management structure.

• A willingness to learn and model trust-based philanthropy and feminist funding principles.

• Deep integrity, the ability to act always with discretion, and adherence to Fondation CHANEL’s core values.

Position Logistics:

• Fluent business English with French advantageous in both written and verbal communication. Knowledge of other languages relevant to the region would be an advantage.

• The postholder must have the right to live and work in the United Kingdom and be able to travel to London for office-based work.

• Ability to adapt and be flexible working across different time zones.

• Role involves 5%-10% international travel.

What you will gain from this experience:

• The opportunity to apply your analytical skills and financial acumen in the service of equity for women and girls globally.

• Collaboration with a dynamic, collaborative, and forward-thinking Fondation team

• Leadership experience serving as the key financial and operations business partner providing comprehensive financial, compliance, risk and systems support to your region(s).

• The opportunity to immerse yourself in the Fondation during a period of exciting evolution and growth and help test and improve new ways of working.

At CHANEL, we are focused on creating an inclusive culture that nurtures personal growth, contributing to collective progress. We believe the uniqueness of each individual increases the diversity, complementarity, and effectiveness of our teams. We strongly encourage your application, as we value the perspective, experience, and potential you could bring to Fondation CHANEL.