Wellbeing Central Overheads Business partner

JOB DESCRIPTION OVERVIEW

Unilever has set out the bold ambition to be the world’s leading wellness organization. By 2030, Unilever Health & Wellbeing will be $5bn Turnover with Underlying Operating Margin 20%, firmly Top 5 in the global VMS industry and clear #1 in E-Commerce.

Over the past 5 years Unilever has acquired 7 brands that embody the Health & Wellbeing purpose of health as a lifestyle pursuit. This portfolio of millennial, digital first, narrowcasting brands includes Equilibra, Olly, Smarty Pants Vitamins, Liquid IV, Welly, Onnit, and Nutrafol. In 2024 the business is expected to reach global Turnover $2.4bn, Underlying Operating Margin in mid-teens, and expand Liquid IV to multiple new international markets.

Finance is a very special function that is called upon in many ways to support our multi-stakeholder model and ensure the business delivers our bold ambitions. They are called upon to co-pilot with the business leaders to deliver in-year performance, develop the roadmap towards our ambitions, and operate the business with efficiency and agility to enable business partners to secure wins. Concurrently, are accountable for timely and comprehensive financial reporting and financial compliance to our corporate parent, shareholders, and internal and external governing bodies.

In order to deliver against the mission of Health & Wellbeing it was announced in August 2023 the plan for the finance function to undergo an evolution into three distinct areas: Operating company finance, led by our CFOs/COOs who report directly to their respective CEOs. They will be strategists and catalysts accountable to commercial and strategic business partnering, value creation as well as financial planning. Health & Wellbeing Collective group finance, called upon to act as strategists, catalysts, stewards, and operators accountable for group level performance management, business development, partnering the Health & Wellbeing Collective leadership team, and meeting requirements of corporate senior stakeholders. Finally, the new created, Finance Operations Collective – platform that will be stewards and operators accountable for reporting, accounting, and finance operations across the entirety of the Health & Wellbeing Collective and business partners to technology, route-to-market operations, and operating company and group finance teams. This evolved finance function will support and empower our business through timely, rigorous, and insightful financial operations, analytics, and intimacy with each operating company.

The H&W Overheads Business Partner role would join the collective group finance team in a newly created position and report into the Business Transformation & Global Programs Director. As a business partner to the H&W Central Function, this person would play a key role in the 2025 delivery of H&W overheads target EUR357m and have an end-to-end view of central costs through ownership of the annual budget planning process and in-year performance management. Excellent communication skills would be essential to build a strong relationship with the H&W central leadership team as they work closely together to deliver against their target, to navigate potential risk/opportunities and to define investment priorities.

In addition, the H&W Overheads Business Partner would own the central planning tool (Allocadia) and work closely with a consultant to extend the usage of the tool to actuals reporting, to prepare forecast submissions and to widen the scope beyond the central team costs. This would require strong analytical and reporting skills since the tool would be bringing together data from various sources and need to be summarized in executive reports.

This role would also be directly partnering the H&W Controller on the new cross-charge model being introduced to H&W in 2025. This model aims to allocate central costs based on where the benefits are seen rather than keeping them under a central entity. The H&W Overheads Business Partner would lead this new way of working and closely collaborate with all stakeholders (OpCo finance teams, budget owners and H&W controller) to implement the new process and to ensure accounting accuracy.

This resource should preferably be based in Los Angeles, close to the rest of the team.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Central Overheads Budget Owner

• Lead AOP process for central budgets
• Partner central budget owners and manage in-year central cost delivery against target.
• Partner HR to ensure a future proof org
• Own Allocadia tool and leverage it as a planning and forecasting tool for the central team.
• Business partner central function leads such as R&D, M&A, SC or Procurement to unlock future opportunities and to define investment priorities.

Central Business Partner

• Lead monthly central overheads actuals vs forecast variance analysis and understand the drivers behind any of the gaps by connecting with function leads.
• Own Allocadia tool, manage reporting and governance of tool to ensure data accuracy forecast submission
• Identify opportunities and roadmap for Allocadia tool to be expanded beyond the central team and used across OpCos
• Share any risk or opportunity in the central forecast with Overheads team.
• Manage central A&D budget

Central P2P process owner

• P2P process owner and H&W knowledge expert
• Ensure H&W cost centers are correctly used, cost center information is up-to-date and create any new cost cents where required
• Own OpCo cross-charges process, manage monthly x-charges, communications to stakeholders and work closely with H&W controller to ensure reporting accuracy.
• Manage central sundry invoices.
• Manage monthly central accruals.

Key Stakeholders  

• CFO Health & Wellbeing  
• H&W Business Transformation & Global Programs Director
• H&W Central FP&A team
• H&W Central Function leads & budget champions
• H&W Central Controller

Professional Qualifications  

• Controller and FP&A experience preferred  
• Finance Business partnering  
• Excellent analytical and communication skills with ability to respond under pressure  

• Ability and drive to work independently  
• Experience and effectiveness of working in cross functional and cross market teams  
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders  

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Unilever is an organization committed to diversity and inclusion to drive our business results and create a better future every day for our diverse employees, global consumers, partners, and communities. We believe a diverse workforce allows us to match our growth ambitions and drive inclusion across the business. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal law and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. 

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