Financial Analyst

ABOUT WELLA

The Wella Company is one of the world’s leading professional and retail hair companies. It is a beauty collective with a mission to enable consumers to look & feel like their true self. Its love brands, which include beauty icons such as Wella, Clairol, OPI, and ghd (all together “Wella”), are co-created by and designed for the beauty junkies of today and tomorrow. Following the divestiture of Coty’s Professional and Retail Hair businesses to the global investment firm KKR, Wella became, on December 1, 2020, a fully independent, standalone company with its own management team and operational structures. The new company has presence in over 100 countries and an estimated annual net revenue of $2.5Bn. Wella and its brands are and will remain committed to a range of social causes as well as seeking to minimize its impact on the environment. For additional information about Wella please visit www.wella.com.

ABOUT THE FINANCE FUNCTION

The Finance Team delivers an effective finance support service to the business to strengthen decision-making by providing timely and accurate reporting and business information. The appropriate financial control framework facilitates improvements in the business, promotes the management of financial risk within the organization and meets increasing statutory and regulatory requirements.

Join the team that is making a tangible difference for the future of Wella, participate to one of the biggest transformations in the industry, driving and leveraging our culture of pride and performance!

THE ROLE

Reporting to the Legal Entity Controller, the Financial Analyst – Mexico is accountable for all legal entity Finance activities for the Wella Mexico structure, Galeria Productora de Cosmeticos, S. de R.L. de C.V., HFC Prestige International, S. de R.L. de C.V., HFC Cosmetics and Wella Mexico Holdings S. de R.L. de C.V.

The purpose of this role is to support the LEC on leading the Finance custodian organization for the entities in scope, ensuring the financial results are reported timely and in compliance with Group and statutory requirements. The Accounting Manager will work together with the business and leverage on a larger SSC-based team to provide accurate, reliable, cost-effective and timely financial information to ultimately assist management in decision making. It has statutory and stewardship responsibility for the entities in scope.

As Financial Analyst for the Wella Mexico structure, you will closely work with the LEC to shape and drive the custodian organization in Mexico. By virtue of its central role, he will be instrumental in Group Controlling initiatives, e.g. system and process improvements, acquisition and integration projects, etc.  

In the context of the TSA exit and full Wella separation, the initial priorities of this role will be, for the entities in scope:

• In close collaboration with the Global Process Owners and advisors, plan and prepare the transfer of activities currently managed in Geneva to the Wella captive SSC.
• Assist in the ramp up of the SSC capability.
• Plan and support efficient knowledge transfer between the TSA resources and the SSC resources.
• Lead or participate in the IT-driven activities linked to the ERP cloning (cleansing, UAT, etc.)
• Co-lead the activity transition from Mexico to the SSC and further stabilization.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Accounting and Controlling

• Prepare and post journal entries for monthly and year-end closing.
• Oversee balance sheet account reconciliations and follow up on outstanding items.
• Review and analyze monthly financial results, including P&L and balance sheet variances; provide insights to the Controller.
• Assist with accounts payable and receivable processes, including invoice validation and payment tracking.
• Support local teams in subsidiaries when possible, to drive harmonization and best practices, together with the Global Process Owner and SSC organization.

External reporting requirements

• Provide support in audit processes by preparing schedules, retrieving documentation, and responding to audit queries.
• Maintain financial documentation and ensure completeness for audit and regulatory compliance.
• Ensure accuracy of master data changes in SAP and coordinate with SSC where needed.
• Support and validate monthly and quarterly reporting to the Group using SAP and HFM.
• Assist with the preparation of monthly and quarterly reporting packages.

Tax

• Support the preparation of statutory reports and external filings under guidance from the Accounting Manager.
• Support VAT and other tax filings by compiling required documentation and assisting with preparation.
• Support as needed the Group Tax team with request or interaction with the Mexican tax authorities.

Internal Control & Process Compliance

• Monitor internal controls and ensure documentation and compliance with Wella’s control framework and SOX requirements.
• Ensure that business activities and accounting processes are documented and updated as changes occur.

Budgeting and Forecast

• Participate in the forecast cycle activities for the entities in scope.
• Partner with FP&A and Treasury to support liquidity planning and provide analytical inputs for budgeting and forecasting.

Ad hoc activities and projects

• Assist with ERP testing (UAT), data validation, and process documentation.
• Support ad hoc analysis and reporting requests from the Controller or Accounting Manager.

QUALIFICATIONS

Essential:

• A Master´s degree in Finance/Accounting, or related subject.
• 3 years of progressive experience in accounting and controlling functions, in multinational and multi-cultural organizations.
• Working knowledge of SAP (process, master data, key transaction flows).
• Knowledge about Mexican tax principles and rules, experience to Manufacturing/LRD model a strong plus.
• Fluent in English, both written and spoken.
• Leadership, communication and interpersonal skills; ability to interact with senior stakeholders, internally and externally.
• Self-motivated, solution-oriented and results-driven.
• Analytical skills.
• Ability to prioritize and organize.
• Ability to work across cultures with all levels of organization as well as with different functions.
• Attention to detail whilst able to step back from operational process to address strategic challenges.
• Strong work ethics and personal integrity.
• Mastery of Microsoft Office tools.
• Willing to travel on an occasional basis.

Desirable:

• Accounting background.
• Knowledge or Hyperion HFM.
• Working knowledge of any of the following languages would be a plus: French, German, Italian, Russian.