Financial Planning and Analyst job at Kijani Forestry

Description

Kijani Forestry is hiring a Financial Planning and Analyst responsible for building and strengthening our financial planning, forecasting, and reporting capabilities in a complex, decentralised environment. This role goes beyond traditional FP&A – it requires someone who can operate with incomplete information, build structure from ambiguity, and translate operational realities into clear financial insight. You will work closely with the Finance Director and cross-functional teams (operations, carbon, procurement, field teams, and leadership) to drive data-led decision-making as the business scales.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Financial Planning & Forecasting

• Lead and continuously improve the annual budgeting and rolling forecast processes
• Maintain integrated financial forecasts across P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow
• Develop and refine driver-based financial models, linking operational metrics (e.g. planting volumes, headcount, logistics) to financial outcomes
• Support long-term planning and scenario modelling for growth and funding strategies

Analysis & Insight

• Deliver high-quality budget vs actual (BvA) analysis, clearly explaining key drivers, risks, and variances
• Analyse operational and financial data to identify trends, inefficiencies, and opportunities
• Translate complex data into clear, actionable insights for leadership
• Support strategic decisions through scenario, sensitivity, and investment analysis

Reporting

• Prepare monthly and quarterly management reporting packs for leadership and investors
• Support board and investor reporting with clear, concise financial narratives
• Develop dashboards and reporting frameworks to improve visibility on key KPIs
• Ensure consistency and accuracy across financial and operational reporting

Business Partnership

• Partner with teams across field operations, procurement, and central functions
• Translate operational plans into financial implications and vice versa
• Challenge assumptions, validate inputs, and improve financial discipline across the business
• Support planning for key cost areas including labour, logistics, and materials

Financial Modelling & Strategic Support

• Own and enhance the company’s core financial model
• Conduct scenario, sensitivity, and stress testing for strategic initiatives
• Support capital planning, cash flow management, and funding analysis
• Provide insights on cost structures, scaling dynamics, and operational efficiency

Process & Systems

• Build and improve FP&A processes, reporting frameworks, and planning tools from the ground up
• Drive automation and efficiency in reporting workflows (Excel, Google Sheets, Airtable, Xero integrations)
• Improve data quality and structure across financial and operational systems
• Establish scalable processes suitable for a high-growth, decentralised environment

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

You are a highly analytical and commercially minded finance professional who thrives in fast-moving, ambiguous environments.

• 3–6 years’ experience in FP&A, corporate finance, management accounting, or similar
• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field
• Strong financial modelling skills (advanced Excel required)
• Solid understanding of financial statements and how they link (P&L, BS, CF)
• Ability to work with imperfect data and evolving systems
• Comfortable building processes and models from scratch
• Strong stakeholder management skills with confidence to challenge assumptions
• Highly structured thinker with strong attention to detail
• Proactive, ownership-driven, and self-motivated

Highly Valued (but not required)

• Experience in startups, high-growth environments, or emerging markets
• Exposure to operationally complex businesses (logistics, agriculture, manufacturing, etc.)
• Experience with tools such as Xero, Airtable, Power BI/Tableau, Google Sheets
• Experience supporting investor or board-level reporting

What Success Looks Like

• Clear, reliable financial forecasts that reflect operational reality
• High-quality insights that influence decision-making across the business
• Strong financial discipline embedded in planning and execution
• Scalable FP&A processes that support rapid growth
• Improved visibility on key drivers of cost, performance, and cash flow

• Lead and continuously improve the annual budgeting and rolling forecast processes
• Maintain integrated financial forecasts across P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow
• Develop and refine driver-based financial models, linking operational metrics (e.g. planting volumes, headcount, logistics) to financial outcomes
• Support long-term planning and scenario modelling for growth and funding strategies
• Deliver high-quality budget vs actual (BvA) analysis, clearly explaining key drivers, risks, and variances
• Analyse operational and financial data to identify trends, inefficiencies, and opportunities
• Translate complex data into clear, actionable insights for leadership
• Support strategic decisions through scenario, sensitivity, and investment analysis
• Prepare monthly and quarterly management reporting packs for leadership and investors
• Support board and investor reporting with clear, concise financial narratives
• Develop dashboards and reporting frameworks to improve visibility on key KPIs
• Ensure consistency and accuracy across financial and operational reporting
• Partner with teams across field operations, procurement, and central functions
• Translate operational plans into financial implications and vice versa
• Challenge assumptions, validate inputs, and improve financial discipline across the business
• Support planning for key cost areas including labour, logistics, and materials
• Own and enhance the company’s core financial model
• Conduct scenario, sensitivity, and stress testing for strategic initiatives
• Support capital planning, cash flow management, and funding analysis
• Provide insights on cost structures, scaling dynamics, and operational efficiency
• Build and improve FP&A processes, reporting frameworks, and planning tools from the ground up
• Drive automation and efficiency in reporting workflows (Excel, Google Sheets, Airtable, Xero integrations)
• Improve data quality and structure across financial and operational systems
• Establish scalable processes suitable for a high-growth, decentralised environment

• Strong financial modelling skills (advanced Excel required)
• Solid understanding of financial statements and how they link (P&L, BS, CF)
• Ability to work with imperfect data and evolving systems
• Comfortable building processes and models from scratch
• Strong stakeholder management skills with confidence to challenge assumptions
• Highly structured thinker with strong attention to detail
• Proactive, ownership-driven, and self-motivated

• 3–6 years’ experience in FP&A, corporate finance, management accounting, or similar
• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field
• Experience in startups, high-growth environments, or emerging markets (Highly Valued)
• Exposure to operationally complex businesses (logistics, agriculture, manufacturing, etc.) (Highly Valued)
• Experience with tools such as Xero, Airtable, Power BI/Tableau, Google Sheets (Highly Valued)
• Experience supporting investor or board-level reporting (Highly Valued)