Senior Director Finance, Differentiating Markets Europe

The Senior Director Finance, Differentiating Markets Europe and Automotive provides strategic financial leadership, shaping and executing the financial agenda to drive sustainable, profitable growth across a multi-region remit that includes UKI, Iberia, Nordics, Benelux, and North America.

Reporting directly to the CFO Europe and serving as a key member of the Finance and Business Leadership Teams, this role acts as a trusted advisor to senior executives by translating commercial insights into actionable priorities that deliver enterprise value and align with the CHEP Europe Four-Year Plan.

The position holds full governance and P&L oversight for a scale of ~$1.3bn in sales with comprehensive accountability for annual and long-term performance across revenue, costs, asset productivity, and cash flow, alongside holding formal Directorship(s) for relevant legal entities.

Key Accountabilities

• Serve as the senior Finance Business Partner and trusted adviser to the Regional and Business Unit Leadership Teams, providing independent financial leadership, constructive challenge and an enterprise-wide perspective to shape strategy, priorities and executive decision-making.
• Own financial and commercial decision support across growth, pricing, customer and channel profitability, supply chain, asset productivity, investment and capital allocation, ensuring decisions are grounded in robust analysis, clear scenarios and sustainable value creation.
• Own the financial dimension of the long-term strategy and planning cycle for the businesses within scope, translating enterprise and regional ambitions into integrated strategic plans, value drivers, investment choices and measurable outcomes aligned with the CHEP Europe Four-Year Plan.
• Lead the annual budget, forecasting and in-year performance cycles, setting clear financial expectations, aligning resources to strategic priorities and ensuring credible, integrated plans with transparent assumptions, risks, opportunities and accountabilities.
• Drive performance and value delivery by identifying material opportunities and emerging issues, sponsoring cross-functional initiatives, defining corrective actions and holding business leaders accountable for delivery against revenue, profitability, cash, asset productivity and return objectives.
• Provide an integrated, forward-looking view of business and regional performance, delivering concise executive insight on results, business drivers, customer and channel economics, outlook, risks and opportunities, and the actions required to improve momentum and outcomes.
• Maintain strong financial stewardship, governance and control across the businesses within scope, including balance sheet and cash oversight, investment governance, risk management, policy compliance and effective partnership with Controllership, Group Finance, Tax, Treasury and Internal Audit.
• Lead finance transformation and continuous improvement across the region, simplifying processes, strengthening data and analytical capability, improving systems and management information, and embedding scalable ways of working that increase the effectiveness and impact of Finance, closely aligning to the global programme
• Build and lead a high-performing, diverse and commercially focused finance organisation, setting clear direction and standards while developing capability, succession and talent through coaching, performance management, targeted recruitment and meaningful career opportunities.

About the Person

• Successfully operated within organizations having a large international presence and been part of a global management team. The ideal candidate will have experience working with a variety of organizations and understand and appreciate the organizational, cultural, and economic nuances of doing business on a global scale.
• Ability to operate effectively across a matrix and wide range of leadership styles, being an effective influencer, persuasive spokesperson across the entire organization and engager to bring support and alignment for a range of efforts
• Credibility and gravitas across strategic, financial and operational discussions at a senior level
• The ability to anticipate future consequences and trends accurately and paint credible pictures of future possibilities
• A deep understanding of how businesses work with the ability to see the big picture and manage the business taking into account a wide variety of metrics (revenue, ROI, Cash flow, Operating profit etc)

Experience and Qualifications

Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, or a relevant technical discipline. A master’s degree (such as an MBA) or a professional finance qualification is highly desirable.

Experience

• Extensive background in Finance or Accounting Management, specifically within senior financial business partnering roles in a complex multinational company.
• Demonstrated track record of leading major change management, team reorganisation and capability building, commercial analysis, customer negotiations and pricing.
• Experience directly managing and developing directors, managers, and senior finance professionals.
• Individuals with strong supply chain expertise would be highly valued, however experience in the FMCG or Retail sectors could also be very relevant.