Commercial Business Controller at Kenya Wine Agencies Limited (KWAL)

Job Purpose

This position is responsible for liaison and trusted financial advisory to the Commercial Function in supporting the sustainable strategic growth of the business through the provision of various financial analysis to aid in decision making.

Main Responsibilities

Financial Planning

• Collaborate with the Commercial Director to prepare the 3 year financial plan and annual budgets
• Collaborate with the Revenue Growth Manager to review phasing of Commercial Expense lines, mainly OPEX
• Provide strategic insights and recommendations to optimise financial performance and support the Company’s long-term goals
• Assist in the preparation of annual budgets and periodic forecasts to guide business planning.

Cost Control

• Collaborate with the Commercial Director to develop, monitor, and control all commercial budgets, providing detailed variance analysis and recommending short- and long-term remedial interventions
• Contribute to budgeting and forecasting processes by challenging cost and revenue drivers in sales meetings, and offering suggestions to enhance business performance
• Foster financial awareness and drive a cost-conscious culture within the Commercial team
• Work closely with the Commercial Director to ensure delivery of expenses against set target for all Commercial cost lines such as DVC (Sale Deductions), Advertisement and Promotion, and OPEX monthly
• Review and approve business cases presented by the Sales and Marketing team on a monthly or quarterly basis
• Review and approve staff expense claims
• Prepare, review and approve Distributor and Key Account customer claims
• Approve Cash Advances (Imprest) and Travel Clearance for the Commercial Team
• Analyse and provide strategic guidance on credit limits for key accounts and distributors, ensuring business growth while minimising risk exposure for KWAL

Financial Reporting and Analysis

• Collaborate with the Commercial team to manage pricing and product costs through detailed margin analysis, identifying acceptable margins and developing strategies to achieve them
• Take direct responsibility for revenue generation within the sales and distribution function through thorough analysis, acting as a liaison between the sales and distribution departments and the overall finance department
• Partner with the Marketing Manager to develop robust business cases, ensuring alignment with strategic goals
• Collaborate with the Commercial team to collate competitor pricing and perform pricing analysis
• Prepare and record accruals and provisions in Syspro for DVC, A&P and OPEX expenses
• Review monthly Commercial GLs to ensure accuracy of recording of expenses.
• Collaborate closely with the Commercial Team to develop presentation dashboards giving insight into the investment on brands

Trade & Marketing Activities

• Develop, recommend, and manage customer and distributor promotional and incentive schemes from a financial perspective to achieve organisational objectives
• Collaborate with the Marketing team to create activity plans, ensuring that marketing activities align with investment targets and agreed cycle plans
• Provide guidance in developing financial business cases for all commercial investment projects, oversee the monitoring of benefits by gathering data and calculating costs, benefits, and returns
• Partner with the Sales team to craft profit stories, proactively ensuring the delivery of a profitable brand mix in line with business objectives

Continuous process improvement mindset

• Adopt and drive a Continuous Improvement culture and identify possibilities for further improvements on key performance indicators.
• Facilitate innovation and continuous improvement in supply chain

Stakeholder management

• Collaborate with the Brand Manager to review opportunities to optimise brand investment to deliver Return on Investment
• Participate in the Commercial Leadership Forums
• Collaborate with the Commercial Director and Commercial Functional Heads to optimise on operation efficiencies with an aim to develop a cost-conscious culture
• Set up of offer in the ERP System – Syspro
• Process free issue stocks on Syspro requested by Sales Engage and communicate effectively with colleagues, customers, suppliers, and other internal and external stakeholders

Minimum Required Qualifications, Knowledge and Experience

Academic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration or related field 
• Master’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration or related field is an added advantage 

Professional Qualifications

• Professional qualification in Finance or Accounting such as Certified Financial Analyst (CFA), Certified Public Accountant of Kenya (CPA-K) or equivalent 
• Professional membership with a professional body such Institute of Certified Public Accountant (ICPAK), Association of Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA) or equivalent

Experience 

• At least 6 years, 2 years’ experience in management role in a similar role or busy function
• Experience in senior financial planning / senior commercial finance role function in FMCG industry or manufacturing is an added advantage
• Practical experience in the use of MS packages and ERP systems
• A good grasp in investment and portfolio management