Contracts Finance Officer - Manchester, United Kingdom - The Growth Company

Description

The Growth Company's (GC)Business Growth Hub team have an exciting new opportunity for Contracts Finance Officer to Process complex data sets to administer funder claims, ensuring accurate and timely recovery of project costs with a high degree of compliance with funder regulations and contractual requirements. Maintaining and assisting in the development of efficient systems and processes to manage the claim and routine processes. To support the Operations Team, service delivery teams, and the Business Unit as a whole, by providing accurate and timely data, performance reporting, financial software and process training, and other accounting services.

GC Business Growth Hub is a community of specialists with a passion to help businesses across Greater Manchester to realise their ambitions. Since 2011, the Hub has supported more than 15,000 businesses including start-ups, scale-ups and established businesses, providing finance guidance, creating international links, and paving the way for innovation and people development across the region. We work with the best of public and private partners, offering expert one-to-one and peer-to-peer business support, events, specialist programmes, funding and much more.

This role is a Fixed Term contract till 31st March 2025

Key Responsibilities:

• Compile and verify funder claims and support the process of managing data across the full spectrum of business support projects to ensure the timely and accurate submission of claims, including responding quickly and efficiently to queries, thus ensuring timely recovery of project costs and a high degree of compliance with funder requirements.
• Provide the project delivery teams and the Business Unit and its management teams with timely and accurate management information to enable the efficient and effective delivery of projects.
• Support the development, implementation and maintenance of programme management tools and systems, to enable the capture, allocation, monitoring and reporting of programme activity and expenditure.
• Compile robust and transparent document evidence trails, as required, to fulfil the requirements of funder audits and to support the process of independent financial verification, including providing support to internal colleagues and external partners on compliant financial monitoring, allocation, reporting and audit processes.
• Support the exercising of financial due diligence through timely reviews of all contract and grant documentation.
• Assist in the administration and financial management of business support delivery through the raising of purchase orders, processing of sales invoice requests and supplier invoices, overseeing the process and providing training for journal corrections, managing internal recharges, working with Group Finance to verify income & expenditure, and undertaking financial reconciliations, where required.
• Develop and maintain project financial procedures and 'how to' guides to clearly document Operations Team routines.

About you:

• Ability to agree and work effectively with others to meet deadlines.
• Good interpersonal communication skills, both verbally and in writing.
• Strong ability in preparing, managing, and interpreting complex data, in particular, financial/accounts information.
• Numerically literate with a high level of attention to detail.
• Use of Excel Spreadsheets to an intermediate/advanced level.
• Knowledge of working with various accounting systems/software.
• An organised and focused approach, with the ability to manage multiple deadlines.

Skills Required:

• Relevant degree/ administrative/ accountancy professional qualification or equivalent business experience.
• Demonstrable experience of support and coordination, particularly financial, to UK-funded contracts in a relevant private or public sector role, government/public body, NGO, or consultancy.
• A track record of delivering analysis and reports to a high standard of accuracy and compliance.
• Design and development of complex data management and financial reporting systems.
• Sound knowledge and understanding of financial procedures and accountancy practices.
• A working knowledge of project claims processing and contract management systems.
• Knowledge of public funding contracts, audit, and compliance requirements.
• Able to interpret and articulate complex financial information and understand funding contracts/regulations and audit processes and systems.