Bilingual Business Finance Partner

Bilingual Business Finance Partner

Riyadh

Our client owns and operates schools throughout the GCC. This new position is for an experienced finance professional to join their team. In this role you will be responsible for providing commercial and financial oversight across our clients’ schools in Saudi Arabia, reporting directly to the General Manager. The role will focus on business performance, financial planning and analysis, revenue and enrolment growth, cost management and management reporting. Working closely with school leadership and functional teams, the role will provide commercial insights, identify opportunities for improvement and support the achievement of business targets. Must be fluent in English and Arabic, written and spoken. Experience in the education sector, with a relevant understanding of the financial operations within an educational organisation is essential. Please respect the criteria requirements and only apply if you meet these as you will not be considered if you do not, this role is not open to candidates who do not currently reside in KSA.
 
Description:
  • Monitor and analyse overall business and commercial performance across all Saudi schools
  • Review revenue, profitability, EBITDA, enrolments and operating expenditure against agreed business targets
  • Monitor admissions and marketing performance, including enrolment growth, conversion rates, student retention and revenue generation
  • Oversee OPEX and CAPEX performance against approved budgets, identifying opportunities for cost optimisation and improved financial efficiency
  • Identify commercial risks, business trends and opportunities for revenue growth and improved profitability
  • Support the General Manager in evaluating business opportunities, investments and commercial initiatives
  • Lead the consolidation of annual budgets, financial forecasts and periodic financial performance reviews across the Saudi portfolio
  • Prepare monthly management reports, including profit and loss, budget versus actual performance, variance analysis and financial forecasts
  • Monitor cash flow, working capital, fee collections, receivables and outstanding liabilities
  • Analyse key financial and operational cost drivers, including staffing costs, operating expenses and school-level profitability
  • Develop financial models, scenario analysis and business cases to support planning and management decisions
  • Establish and maintain consolidated financial and commercial dashboards, ensuring accurate and timely reporting to the General Manager
  • Work closely with school Finance teams to ensure consistency, accuracy and reliability of financial information
  • Monitor financial controls, expenditure approvals and adherence to approved budgets and Group financial policies
  • Provide clear financial insights, highlight emerging risks and recommend corrective actions to improve business performance
  • Act as the key financial and commercial business partner to the General Manager
  • Work closely with Principals, school Finance teams and Group functions to monitor performance and support business priorities
  • Coordinate periodic business performance reviews and follow up on agreed actions
  • Support the General Manager in commercial negotiations, stakeholder discussions and strategic business decisions
  • Ensure effective coordination and information flow between the Saudi schools and Group leadership
  • Travel throughout KSA to the various schools as required
Criteria:
  • Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, business, economics or a related discipline
  • Professional finance qualifications such as CA, ACCA, CPA, CIMA or equivalent would be an advantage
  • Significant experience in commercial finance, financial planning and analysis, management reporting or a similar commercially focused role
  • Extensive professional experience within the Saudi Arabian market, with a strong understanding of the local business and commercial environment
  • Strong experience in budgeting, forecasting, financial modelling and performance analysis
  • Experience working across multiple sites, businesses or entities
  • Strong understanding of P&L, EBITDA, cash flow and commercial performance
  • Commercially minded and highly numerate
  • Analytical with strong attention to detail
  • Proactive and solutions-oriented
  • Confident working with senior internal and external stakeholders
  • Able to work independently and manage multiple priorities
  • High level of integrity and discretion
  • Accountable, dependable and focused on delivery
  • Experience in the education sector, with a relevant understanding of the financial operations within an educational organisation is essential
  • Must be fluent in English and Arabic, written and spoken
  • Must currently reside in KSA

Please respect the criteria requirements and only apply if you meet these as you will not be considered if you do not. We thank you for your application, however due to the high volume of candidate applications, we only accept online applications in the first instance. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted, however if you are not successful on this occasion, your CV will be stored on our database but to make sure you do not miss out, keep checking our website, follow us on Twitter and follow our Sapphire Recruitment LinkedIn page.

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