Head of Business Finance & Controlling LATAM

Head of Business Finance & Controlling LATAM

In this role you will lead the Management Control and Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) department in Latin America

In this role you will lead the Management Control and Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) department in Latin America, providing financial, operational and strategic information that enables the firm to maximise its profitability and supports decision-making by the partners and the Regional Management Committee. You will be responsible for overseeing financial planning, regional reporting, profitability analysis by practice area and office, work-in-progress (WIP) management, invoicing and monitoring key performance indicators for the legal business. You will report to the Global Finance Director.

Main responsibilities

Financial and budgetary planning

• Leading the annual budgeting process for the LATAM offices;
• Coordinating monthly and quarterly forecasts;
• Developing financial scenarios and business forecasts; and
• Identifying risks and opportunities in relation to the financial objectives.

Profitability analysis

• Analysing profitability by:
  • Office;
  • Practice Area;
  • Client;
  • Partner; and
• Assessing the profit margins and productivity of the legal teams; and
• Carrying out pricing analyses and drawing up proposals to improve profitability.

Management of legal business indicators

Developing and monitoring financial and operational KPIs, including:

• Billing;
• Collection;
• WIP (Work in Progress);
• Realisation Rate;
• Utilisation Rate;
• Billable hours;
• Non-billable hours;
• Revenue per lawyer;
• Profit per Partner;
• Margin per practice area; and
• Regional EBITDA.

Reporting and support for senior management

• Preparing executive reports for the LATAM Management Committee and Global Management;
• Presenting an analysis of the results and business recommendations;
• Designing regional scorecards;
• Ensuring the quality and consistency of financial information across countries;

Revenue management and invoicing

• Overseeing the entire cycle of work-in-progress (WIP), billing and collections;
• Analysing customer ageing and helping to reduce outstanding balances; and
• Work with partners and practice leaders to optimise the conversion of work carried out into invoiced and collected revenue.

Strategic business support

• Contributing to the financial analysis of new branch openings, business integrations and new lines of business;
• Developing business cases for strategic investments; and
• Supporting initiatives for regional growth and expansion.

Financial transformation

• Leading projects relating to the automation and digitalisation of reporting;
• Promoting Business Intelligence tools and advanced analytics; and
• Improving regional financial control and reporting processes.

Training

• Degree in Business Administration, Economics, Finance or similar.
• An MBA or Master’s degree in Finance would be highly desirable.

Experience

• Between eight and 12 years’ experience in Management Accounting, FP&A or Corporate Finance.
• Previous experience in international law firms or professional services firms (Big Four, consultancy, audit or similar) is preferable, but not essential.
• Experience of working in multi-country and regional organisations.
• Management of finance teams or regional functional coordination.

Technical expertise

Essential

• Budgeting and forecasting.
• Advanced financial analysis.
• Economic modelling.
• Executive reporting.
• Advanced Excel.
• Power BI or business intelligence tools.
• Knowledge of financial ERP systems.

Highly valuable

• Knowledge of metrics specific to the legal sector.

Languages

• Advanced Business English (C1).

Training

• Degree in Business Administration, Economics, Finance or similar.
• An MBA or Master’s degree in Finance would be highly desirable.

Location

Mexico City

At Pérez-Llorca we advocate equal opportunities for people who apply for vacancies at the firm regardless of their sex, race, age, nationality, marital status, political or religious beliefs, sexual orientation or family and/or personal situation. We are committed to talent without labels and we want to contribute to the creation of stable and quality employment, without any bias in the selection processes.

Ciudad de México