Who are we?

First Rail is part of FirstGroup, one of the leading rail operators and one of the largest bus operators in the UK.  FirstGroup operates services throughout the UK and Ireland, with over 30,000 employees providing services that make travel smoother and life easier.  FirstGroup works hard to reduce its impact on the environment, introducing cleaner and more environmentally responsible methods of transport.

About the job

To lead and manage the Finance Applications team.

Provide finance application support and development to the business units within FirstGroup on a value adding basis.

Act as a trusted technical advisor to the senior business stakeholders.

Manage suppliers to support the delivery of Finance applications.

Your main responsibilities will be:

Team Manager

• This will involve recruiting, developing and managing a team on an ongoing basis.
• Setting their performance objectives and supporting development plans.
• Also managing their workload on a daily basis through oversight of a helpdesk ticketing tool.

Providing finance application support:

• Managing a first line response support desk in line with SLAs
• Working on projects and programmes as SME.
• Work with suppliers and internal teams to manage system changes in a robust and compliant manner.
• Managing the Finance applications through a product lifecycle, ensuring compliance with security and audit requirements.
• Supporting improved business practices and processes through an effective governance framework.

Trusted technical advisor.

• Support senior stakeholders in developing strategy and improvement plans for their business areas.
• Implement a governance framework to review issues, agree and implement best practice solutions.
• Work with other teams in IT to advise on changes and deliver improvements.

Supplier Management

• Manage supplier delivery to SLAs and contracts, build relationships and review service on a regular basis.

As a minimum, you will need to have:

Core skills & competencies

• Leadership
• Robust problem-solving and analytical skills
• Team management
• A self-starter who is results-driven with high levels of self-motivation, energy and initiative.
• Proven ability to work under pressure.
• Be able to work independently as well as in a team.
• Good communicator

Expertise & knowledge

• Finance systems and processes
• Experience of a working in a busy Finance environment
• Applications development and management

Technology

• Experience in IT Applications preferably SAP
• Background in a Finance environment
• Knowledge of peripheral applications intrinsic to the financial applications e.g., payroll, revenue, engineering, payments
• Understanding of server and networking architecture is an advantage.

Qualifications

Appropriate IT Qualifications and experience

We all belong at First Rail. FirstGroup's vision is to provide an inclusive environment for all colleagues, across its group of businesses, ensuring all candidates have an equal opportunity to access meaningful employment.

We value our differences such as age, gender, LGBTQIA+, ethnicity, religion, and disability. We maintain a zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice towards our colleagues, customers, and future talent.

We celebrate and encourage diversity of thought, progressive ways of working and seeing all our colleagues grow and thrive.

We review all roles and job descriptions to ensure they are accessible and, where possible, we support and provide flexible working options; we recommend that you refer to each vacancy description for further details.

If you require additional support to complete your application due to a disability or neurodivergent condition, for example, dyslexia, dyspraxia, or autism, please follow the links below.  We encourage you to share any additional needs you may require so we can provide a fair and equal process for all who apply.

https://exceptionalindividuals.com/neurodiversity/

https://www.healthassured.org/blog/neurodiversity/