Senior Finance Analyst - Retail Transformation

Marks & Spencer Plc; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - GBP 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading retail company in Greater London is seeking an ambitious Senior Finance Analyst to support the Retail Transformation agenda. This role involves business partnering with Retail Operations, managing project finances, and tracking efficiency programs. The ideal candidate has strong analytical skills and is a qualified accountant, eager to influence stakeholders and contribute to strategic financial planning. Benefits include a discount on products and a competitive holiday entitlement.

Benefits

20% colleague discount

Competitive holiday entitlement

Discretionary bonus schemes

Defined Contribution Pension Scheme

Access to wellbeing support

Charity volunteer day

Qualifications

• Strong experience in Retail or a relevant industry.
• Solid commercial awareness and understanding of customer and market trends.
• Ability to manipulate and interpret data effectively.

Responsibilities

• Act as a proactive business partner to Retail Operations.
• Lead financial management of projects and programmes.
• Track Retail efficiency programmes and communicate benefits.
• Contribute to core Risk & Opportunity processes.
• Support month-end process for reporting and performance analysis.

Skills

Qualified Accountant (CIMA/ACCA/ACA or equivalent)

Exceptional communicator

Highly analytical

Forward thinking and collaborative

Self starter with strong initiative

Job description

Summary

M&S is embarking on one of the most exciting transformation journeys in our history. From modernising our end-to-end supply chain, redefining our store estate and driving efficiencies in our retail operating model, to accelerating the growth of M&S, now is the perfect time to join us and make a real impact.

We’re looking for an ambitious, commercially minded Senior Finance Analyst to join our Retail Finance Team. In this pivotal role, you’ll help shape and deliver the Retail Transformation agenda, driving productivity and cost efficiencies across our Store Resource cost base. You’ll work closely with business partners in Retail Operations and Transformation to support the execution of the Retail Strategy and achievement of annual targets.

If you thrive in a fast-paced environment, enjoy influencing senior stakeholders and are excited by the opportunity to play an integral role in transforming our business, this could be the role for you.

To stay close to customers, our support teams are in the office three days a week as we believe that skills are developed through collaboration, and that spending time together makes us more creative and connected.

What you’ll do

Your key accountabilities will include:

• Business Partnering & Collaboration: Act as a proactive and influential business partner to Retail Operations and key Finance stakeholders (including Property and Tech), supporting, challenging and shaping decision making to ensure initiatives align with strategic priorities, deliver value, and drive the successful execution of the Retail Strategy and annual targets.
• Project & Programme Financial Ownership: Lead the financial management of projects and programmes from business case inception through approval, applying robust challenge to ensure stretching but deliverable assumptions. Own programme finances end to end, ensuring project costs are tightly tracked, remain within approved budgets, and that any required changes follow a clear and well governed change request process.
• Efficiency Tracking & P&L Benefits Realisation: Take ownership of tracking all Retail efficiency programmes, ensuring P&L benefits are accurately measured, realised and clearly communicated. Provide regular, insight-led updates to the Senior Finance Manager and Head of Finance to highlight performance, progress and any risks to delivering expected benefits.
• Strategic Financial Planning & Governance: Contribute to core Risk & Opportunity processes, including long term planning, tech prioritisation and capex planning. Partner closely with the Senior Finance Manager on Post Investment Reviews (PIRs) to ensure adherence to the governance cycle, embedding key learnings into future investment cases and strategic financial plans.
• Month-End, Reporting & Performance Analysis: Support the month end process for cost-out, capex and broader Retail reporting, ensuring accuracy and insightful commentary. Analyse financial and operational data to identify value optimisation opportunities, working cross-functionally with Retail, Food and FH&B to build a holistic view of Retail enabled benefits and continuous performance improvement.

Who you are

Your skills and experience will include

• Qualified Accountant (CIMA/ACCA/ACA or equivalent) with strong experience in Retail or a relevant industry, bringing solid commercial awareness and understanding of customer and market trends.
• Exceptional communicator with the confidence to influence at all levels and present analytical insights clearly and effectively to senior stakeholders.
• Highly analytical, comfortable manipulating and interpreting data to drive decision making, with a continuous improvement mindset to strengthen processes, controls and ways of working.
• Forward thinking and collaborative, able to work independently or as part of a wider team, building strong relationships across the business.
• Self starter with strong initiative, able to manage multiple priorities effectively while contributing innovative, future focused thinking to support strategic objectives.

What’s in it for you

Being a part of M&S is exactly that – playing your part to bring the magic of M&S to our customers every day. We’re an inclusive, dynamic, exciting, and ever evolving business built on doing the right thing and bringing exceptional quality, value, service to every customer, whenever, wherever and however they want to shop with us.

Here are some of the benefits we offer that make working for M&S just that little bit more special…

• After completing your probationary period, you’ll receive 20% colleague discount across all M&S products and many of our third-party brands for you and a member of your household.
• Competitive holiday entitlement with the potential to buy extra holiday days!
• Discretionary bonus schemes awarded based on how you achieve your personal objectives and our performance as a business.
• A generous Defined Contribution Pension Scheme and Life Assurance.
• A dedicated welcome to our teams with a tailored induction and a wide range of training programmes to develop your skills.
• Amazing perks and discounts via our M&S Choices portal to maximise your financial and personal wellbeing.
• Industry-leading parental, adoption and neonatal policies, providing support and flexibility for your family.
• Access to a fantastic range of wellbeing support for all colleagues including access to our 24/7 Virtual GP and PAM Assist to support you and your family.
• A charity volunteer day to support a charity or cause you're passionate about through a dedicated day away from work.

Everyone’s welcome

We are ambitious about the future of retail. We’re disrupting, innovating and leading the industry into a more conscientious, inspiring digital era. We’re transforming how we work together and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. Marks & Spencer strives to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make change happen.

We are committed to building diverse and representative teams, where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and be at their best. We support each other and work together to win together.

If you feel you'd benefit from any support or reasonable adjustments during any stage of the recruitment process, please don’t hesitate to let us know when completing your application. This information will be picked up by our team, so we can try and put steps in place to help you be at your best through this process.

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