Application Open:
Full-Time
Job Purpose:
MBZUAI is seeking a Head of Financial Performance Analytics and Reporting to lead the institution’s Financial Performance Management (FPM) capability, delivering a single trusted view of financial performance through standardized KPIs, executive dashboards, and Board-level reporting. The role owns the financial performance reporting framework and provides independent, objective insight into performance against plan, key drivers, risks, and funding dynamics while maintaining clear governance boundaries regarding KPI ownership. Operating as a senior individual contributor, the role builds and governs the institution’s financial analytics infrastructure, ensuring alignment with government funding requirements, budget cycles (academic & calendar), and Higher Education performance models enabling leadership to make informed evidence-based decisions.
Key Responsibilities:
Financial Performance Governance & Standards
- Own and govern the institution’s financial performance reporting framework, definitions, and calculation logic.
- Establish standardized financial performance methodologies aligned to Higher Education operating models (e.g., academic units, research funding, student revenue, government grants).
- Ensure financial performance reporting aligns with university and government funding requirements (e.g. academic vs calendar fiscal year).
- Coordinate reporting cadence to align university budget cycles with government fiscal planning cycles.
- Maintain clear governance boundaries: provide independent financial performance insight while KPI ownership remains with accountable business and academic leaders.
- Document reporting standards, data definitions, and performance calculation methodologies to ensure transparency and auditability.
Executive & Board Reporting
- Lead preparation of financial performance reporting for the Board, President, Provost, and Executive Management.
- Develop executive dashboards, scorecards, and structured performance packs.
- Synthesize complex financial results into clear performance narratives highlighting key drivers, risks, funding impacts, and trade-offs.
- Present performance insights with independent judgment, ensuring clarity, objectivity, and decision support value.
- Ensure reporting supports strategic oversight, capital allocation decisions, and long-term sustainability objectives.
Advanced Analytics & Scenario Modelling
- Develop forward-looking financial analytics, including driver-based analysis and scenario modelling.
- Identify leading indicators and early warning signals relevant to Higher Education performance (enrollment trends, funding shifts, research activity, cost structure pressures).
- Perform variance, trend, and sensitivity analysis to support institutional decision-making.
- Support FP&A Partners with analytical depth for business cases and strategic initiatives.
- Evolve the institution from descriptive reporting toward predictive and scenario-based performance insight.
Institutional Collaboration & Effectiveness
- Partner with FP&A Business Partners, Strategy, Institutional Research, and academic leadership to ensure financial insight is integrated with university performance objectives.
- Translate technical data outputs into clear financial insight for non-financial stakeholders.
- Strengthen institutional financial literacy through consistent performance storytelling.
- Support cross-functional alignment between academic performance, financial sustainability, and government funding models.
- Promote a culture of performance excellence grounded in evidence-based financial insight.
Data Architecture & Automation
- Own financial data models, reporting logic, and performance calculation structures.
- Partner with IT to ensure robust data pipelines, validation controls, and integrity across systems.
- Design and maintain dashboards using enterprise analytics platforms (e.g., Power BI, Tableau).
- Build and evolve the analytics layer to reduce manual reporting and improve automation.
- Ensure scalability of reporting infrastructure to support university growth and increased analytical maturity.
Other Duties
- At the direction of the line manager, execute other duties commensurate with these functional responsibilities.
Academic Qualification:
- A minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Analytics or related discipline.
- A postgraduate degree will be preferred.
Professional Experience:
Essential
- Minimum of 8-12 years of experience in financial planning and analysis, financial performance management, or analytics.
- Demonstrated experience in Higher Education financial performance reporting, including understanding of funding models, government appropriations, tuition revenue dynamics, research funding and academic cost structures.
- Strong experience in executive and board-level reporting, financial performance frameworks and governance, variance and trend analysis, and scenario modelling with driver-based planning.
- Proven ability to translate financial results into clear performance insights for senior stakeholders.
- Strong technical experience with Oracle EPBCS.
- Hands-on experience developing dashboards and analytics using tools such as Power BI, Tableau, or equivalent.
- Advanced financial data modeling and strong SQL capability to support reporting and analysis.
- Familiarity with cloud-based analytics environments and modern data platforms.
Preferred
- Chartered Financial Analyst and/or Certified Public Accountant will be preferred.
- Understanding of Middle Eastern working practices and culture.
