Financial Controller

The Company
ESI Limited is a 20 years established employee owned leading geoscience and environmental consultancy with head office in Shrewsbury and branch offices in Cardiff, Reading and Bristol. We work for a range of large corporate clients in the water, minerals, property and waste sectors, as well as local authorities and governmental bodies in the UK and overseas.

Geosmart is a sister company to ESI that since 2013 has been developing as an innovative data and environmental information services business. GeoSmart is a startup based on intellectual property assets and market expertise and we are currently progressing an accelerated growth plan and achieving considerable success in the property and legal markets, with further expansion into insurance and infrastructure sectors anticipated.

ESI and Geosmart between them employ about 60 people. We provide a friendly and flexible work environment and pride ourselves on our professionalism, high level of service, leading brands and a growing commercial performance.

The Finance Team
The finance function for both companies is based in the Shrewsbury head office. Currently the team runs with a part time management accountant, a sales ledger administrator and a purchase ledger clerk. The year end for ESI and Geosmart is 30th June, and the budget for 2016/17 financial year includes a number of challenging but achievable targets. ESI has shown consistent year-on-year sales growth of 20%, and we anticipate that this will continue. Geosmart is a start-up company that has achieved rapid growth and is similarly ambitious for its sales forecasts for the year as it moves into profit and continues an accelerated growth plan.

Delivery of the budget KPIs in 2016/17 will require clarity for the front line consultants over their sales, margins and utilisation performance. The business is seeking to expand into new sectors and we need to carefully manage our cash position. Our goal is to become a commercial leader in our sector to match our technical leadership position.

The Role
The role is for a full time Financial Controller for ESI based in Shrewsbury, in part to replace our current management accountant, who is moving to China for family reasons, and in part to increase support to the management team. You will be responsible for delivering monthly management accounts and the consistent provision of management information to various parts of the team to ensure KPIs are tracked and variance from budgets identified in a timely manner. You will need to be an effective communicator and advise project managers and others, escalating deviations from company procedures for management attention.

This role reports to the Managing Director and includes responsibility for the Accounts team. The position offers the potential to expand your role as the business grows.

Duties and Responsibilities
Your main responsibilities will be:

• Control company financial procedures and cashflow to ensure financial discipline and effective management, escalating any issues for corrective action in a timely manner to help maximise operating effectiveness and profitability.

• Support the management team in preparation of annual budgets for the company and ensure that individual profit and cost centres have all necessary information for effective budget management.

• Prepare monthly management accounts and KPI tracking, and year end accounting and taxation reports to ensure compliance with regulations, liaising with auditors and others as required.

• Support project managers work with the commercial team in the company involved in bidding and billing, and control supplier contracts and transactional aspects of the business operations.

• Responsible for day to day running of financial team to ensure they are appropriately motivated and trained to carry out their responsibilities to the required standards.

Person Profile
You’ll have a track record of developing successful relationships with front line staff, and working as part of a small team. We’re looking for a good track record and experience backed up by a CIMA or ACA/ACCA qualification.

We’re looking for somebody with a keen commercial awareness who is great at working with people and who is ambitious and effective and a good communicator.

We use Deltek Vision as our principal business system. Experience of this system is not essential but an aptitude for Excel and creating reports from ERP systems is.

You will have a commercial attitude and aptitude for seeking improvements in profitability in our project and corporate activities through good financial discipline, and the use of KPIs to drive strong business performance across a team of applied scientists, but you will also be a 'completer finisher’ who takes pride in delivering accurate management information.

You will be ambitious and keen to develop your career in a professional services business, with aspirations to grow with the business. You will be flexible and willing to travel and turn your hand to various challenges anticipated within a dynamic expanding SME.

Remuneration
We offer excellent remuneration packages for high calibre individuals, and reward performance through bonus and equity participation (tax advantaged through Government Approved EMI Scheme). This position provides an opportunity to share in the commercial success of the business.

Benefits include:

• Generous pension contributions
• Permanent health insurance cover
• Cycle to work scheme
• Annual bonus scheme
• Active company social programme
• Additional benefits including gym membership according to preference

ESI is an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from anyone, regardless of gender, disability or ethnic origin.