Finance Business Partner
// Role Summary
Join BAE Systems as a Finance Business Partner, providing critical financial insight and strategic support to the National Security London team. This hybrid role offers a chance to drive growth and ensure financial integrity within a dynamic, high-stakes environment.
// Key Responsibilities
- Act as the primary finance partner for National Security London Leadership.
- Lead budgeting, forecasting, and IBP planning for software engineering and professional services.
- Provide financial challenge on cost estimates, business cases, and investment decisions.
- Monitor financial performance, identify risks, and drive change.
- Prepare and present financial reports to senior-level audiences.
- Ensure alignment with BAE Systems financial policies and governance.
// Role Specification
About the Role
We are seeking a skilled Finance Business Partner to serve as the primary financial liaison for the National Security London team. This role is crucial for delivering high-quality financial insight, analysis, and recommendations to underpin strategic and operational decision-making. You will build trusted relationships with the National Security London Leadership team and engage with stakeholders across the account and the wider National Security & Government business, acting as a key enabler for growth.
This is a hybrid role, requiring office presence a few days per week in London or Frimley. Flexible working arrangements are available.
What You Will Be Doing
- Act as the primary finance partner delivering high-quality financial insight, analysis, and recommendations to support strategic and operational decisions.
- Build strong, trusted relationships with the National Security London Leadership team, engaging with stakeholders across the account and the wider National Security & Government business, acting as a key enabler for growth.
- Lead budgeting, forecasting, and IBP planning for a fast-paced, software engineering and professional services-based business.
- Provide robust challenge and oversight on cost estimates, business cases, investment decisions, and portfolio prioritisation.
- Monitor financial performance, identify risks and opportunities, and drive change across a complex business unit.
- Prepare and present clear, concise financial reports and insights tailored to senior-level audiences.
- Lead on customer engagement for all finance-related queries.
- Ensure alignment with BAE Systems financial policies, procedures, and governance frameworks, applying a strong understanding of internal control requirements.
- Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives across financial processes within the National Security & Government portfolio.
- Collaborate closely with the wider Finance Business Partnering team to ensure consistency, share knowledge, and promote best-practice ways of working.
Your Skills and Experiences
- Fully qualified accountant (CIMA, ACCA, ACA or equivalent).
- Proven experience in finance business partnering and project accounting.
- Strong communication skills with the ability to simplify complex financial information for non-finance audiences.
- Excellent relationship-building and stakeholder management capability.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Confident in presenting financial insights in a clear, engaging, and credible manner.
- A solid understanding of BAE Systems policies, procedures, governance, and financial controls (or the ability to quickly develop this knowledge).
The National Security London account is London-based, and whilst the role is hybrid, there would be an expectation for the successful candidate to be in London on a fairly regular basis.
Benefits
BAE Systems offers a competitive pension scheme, employee share plans, and an extensive range of flexible discounted health, wellbeing & lifestyle benefits. These include a green car scheme, private health plans, and shopping discounts. You may also be eligible for an annual incentive.
About National Security London
National Security London is a complex and dynamic account area, built on a longstanding partnership with HMG. Employing c.350 FTE and generating in excess of £80m in annual revenue, National Security London delivers critical capability and professional services in an ever-evolving world, with the core mission of protecting the UK’s National Security.
Why BAE Systems?
At BAE Systems, you can make a real difference. We foster an inclusive culture that values diversity of thought, rewards integrity and merit, and empowers you to fulfil your potential. We welcome people from all backgrounds and strive to make our recruitment processes as inclusive as possible. If you have a disability or health condition that may affect your performance in certain assessment types, please speak to your recruiter about potential reasonable adjustments.
Please be aware that many roles at BAE Systems are subject to both security and export control restrictions. These restrictions mean that factors such as your nationality, any nationalities you may have previously held, and your place of birth can restrict the roles you are eligible to perform within the organisation. All applicants must as a minimum achieve Baseline Personnel Security Standard. Many roles also require higher levels of National Security Vetting where applicants must typically have 5 to 10 years of continuous residency in the UK depending on the vetting level required for the role, to allow for meaningful security vetting checks.