What is a Finance Business Partner? | Robert Half

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Business partnering has existed in one form or another for decades but in recent years the business world has seen a growing demand for effective finance business partners with organisations of all sizes. As the business environment becomes more complex, the finance department is having to adapt.

Companies recognise that to be more responsive – continually re-evaluating both short and long-term goals and strategies – finance and accounting professionals must take a business advisory role in an organisation by taking on a value-added, ‘business partnering’ role, to help other parts of the business improve their analysis and decision-making.

If you are an accounting or finance professional who is eager to expand your role within the business, read on to find out if the role of Finance Business Partner is right for you.

What is finance business partnering?

Business departments are eager for the support of finance professionals who understand the objectives of the business and can analyse real-time information to support their decision-making. Businesses need a culture of governance, accountability and scrutiny, where strategic and tactical decisions alike are based on data and projected figures.

Finance business partnering involves finance executives working alongside different business departments, providing financial information, tools, analysis and insight to executives, challenging their thinking, helping them make more informed decisions and driving business strategy.

What does a finance business partner do?

A finance business partner breaks down the barrier between accountancy and management to support business objectives and corporate growth. They act as an advisor to leadership, supporting business decision making through a combination of analytical insights, strategic acumen, and commercial mindedness. 

Will Cannaby, Director at Robert Half and specialised finance and accounting recruiter says “A great finance business partner can provide valuable support and guidance with budgeting, forecasting, and they offer financial insight and strategy. This can help a company achieve its financial goals and succeed in today’s competitive market. Finance business partners improve decision-making with a strong understanding of the financial health of a company, helping management make better decisions about investments, resource allocation, and other key initiatives.”

Related: Need help updating your resume? Download our free financial resume template here.

What value does a finance business partner provide?

Overall, finance is not just checking the data and the formulas, but understanding and checking the hypotheses behind management’s views, and ensuring the goals being pursued are aligned with the company strategy.

Faced with a complex and volatile environment, companies need to develop a clearer understanding of the drivers of business performance and the effect of new initiatives on the development of the company. Finance business partnering can help to achieve this.

The process is agile and open to interpretation depending on the company or department, as well as its objectives. It might be a short, mid or long-term relationship, a permanent one, or when a decision needs to be made.

Examples of how these business partnering relationships operate:

• The finance business partner might work with business unit heads to help clarify how particular key performance indicators (KPIs) are calculated, or how exchange rates are managed.
• The finance business partner can work with HR to help calculate compensation packages across the business – using comparable data, and correcting for inflation. They might review forecasts to ensure these are realistic and that no big risk factors have been overlooked.
• The finance business partner may explain to a sales team the financial impact of certain guarantees included in a sales promotion.
• The finance business partner might work with the R&D department, ensuring that competing research projects are evaluated consistently, or by setting the criteria, such as short-term returns, level of risk, or strategic interest, in order for such judgements to be made.

What skills does a finance business partner need?

While technical finance skills used to be perceived as the only requirement to perform a finance and accounting job, soft skills have become a must-have for finance business partners.

As business partners, finance professionals now need a commercial appreciation of the business, as well as leadership, team-building, interpersonal, and project management skills.

With Will’s 12 years of recruitment experience, here is his list of must-have skills for a finance business partner:

• Macro and micro economic perspectives to allow a holistic view before deciding a strategy, for example how interest rates might change a decision.
• Attention to detail
• Capacity to transform extensive data into a narrative, usually via a Business Intelligence tool
• Effective dissemination of financial information to identify and communicate areas for improvement and develop strategies for growth and profitability.

Related: Ready to develop your soft skills? Here are the soft skills CFOs are looking for.

Those working in a business partnership role need to have the right blend of both data and communication skills, so that the relationship works fluidly. Building interpersonal skills alongside a thorough understanding of the overall vision and mission of the business are possibly the biggest advantages a business partner can possess.

A business partnership is a dual role, which can provide a pragmatic financial overview balanced against the management and operational needs of a business unit.

Key communication skills together with a clear understanding of both budgets and KPI are prime skills.

A successful business partner will be able to show that he or she can analyse data; can understand what both sides of a given partnership require; can identify strengths and weaknesses across a business unit or entire company; and set company and individual goals.