Senior Manager, Integrated Finance Services (Shared Services)

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Job Summary

Reporting to the Director, Integrated Finance Services, the Senior Manager, Integrated Finance Services leads Finance Service delivery across a faculty or unit. This position is responsible and accountable for the senior finance relationship with each Dean, Vice-Provost, Vice-Principal, Executive Director or equivalent within the assigned unit and acts as the principal finance advisor on priorities, resource options, sustainability, scenarios and material financial risk.

The Senior Manager provides authoritative financial advice, formally manages a Finance team, integrates finance services, and balances approved capacity across finance functions and client requirements. The role independently resolves complex and ambiguous financial, control and service matters within delegated authority and advises on sustainability, affordability, scenarios, resource options and material financial risk.

The Senior Manager exercises delegated authority directly and keeps the Director informed of material developments. Matters exceeding that authority, requiring decisions across client areas, or having broader institutional implications are escalated to the Director. Routine decisions within delegated authority do not require Director re-approval.

Faculty, shared service and portfolio leaders retain accountability for academic and operational priorities, business and staffing decisions, budget approval, corrective business action and resource allocation within their delegated authorities. Integrated Finance Services supports these decisions through analysis, advice, controls and implementation of approved decisions.

Job Description

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
Leadership and Integrated Service Delivery
• Leads and is accountable for integrated Finance service delivery within the assigned client area.
• Is accountable for the senior finance relationship with each Dean, Vice-Provost, Vice-Principal, Executive Director or equivalent and maintains an appropriate governance and planning cadence.
• Maintains direct and regular communication with designated faculty or unit leaders about material financial risks, emerging pressures, significant service issues and matters requiring decisions or corrective action.
• Develops a comprehensive understanding of client priorities, strategic context,
organizational structures, financial scale, financial models, research and commercial
activity, risk profile and service requirements.
• Where supporting a faculty, serves as its senior Finance leader, with direct and regular
access to the Dean, Executive Director and designated senior leaders for financial planning
purposes.
• In consultation with client leaders, establishes unit finance priorities, workplans,
performance measures and cross-coverage arrangements.
• Plans and allocates approved Finance team capacity across the unit’s departments,
programs, research activities, financial workstreams and reporting cycles, or across
designated client units where applicable. Resolves competing Finance service priorities
within delegated authority and escalates matters requiring changes to approved service
commitments or resources beyond the assigned area.
• Escalates matters exceeding delegated authority, requiring changes to approved service
commitments or capacity across client areas, involving unresolved senior-client priority
conflicts, or having material implications beyond the assigned area. Keeps the Director
informed of significant matters managed within delegated authority.

Client Advice and Financial Planning
• Serves as the principal day-to-day Finance contact for designated leaders under the
relationship and delegation model established by the Director.
• Provides advice on complex budgets, forecasts, affordability, sustainability, resource
options, service issues, risks and the financial implications.
• Develops and presents options and recommendations and keeps the Director informed of
material risks, commitments and matters requiring escalation.
• Leads detailed development, consolidation and monitoring of annual and multi-year
budgets, and forecasts across the assigned area.
• Reviews complex forecasts, scenarios, business cases and financial models and challenges
assumptions.
• Evaluates the financial implications of strategic initiatives, program development,
infrastructure, shared resources and major investments, including cost allocation, lifecycle
costs, capacity constraints, alternative funding scenarios and long-term operating
commitments; challenges assumptions and develops options for client leaders.
• Provides advanced financial advice and decision support concerning the implementation
and financial implications of approved client priorities.
• Provides advanced financial advice on complex and interdependent funding arrangements
across multiple funding sources, external agreements, capital investments and multiyear
commitments, as applicable to the assignment. Assesses applicable restrictions, funding
timing, reporting obligations and financial sustainability.

Finance Services, Controls and Risk
• Provides management oversight for assigned operational Finance services and ensures
information is complete, accurate, useful and timely.
• Interprets and applies policy in complex circumstances and adapts work practices within
approved institutional and portfolio frameworks.
• Resolves complex accounting, control, compliance and service issues within delegated
authority and escalates matters beyond authority.
• Ensures the integrity and validation of information used for reporting, forecasting and
decision support.

People, Workload and Resilience
• Leads a finance team, including team leads or senior professionals, and establishes clear
performance and accountability expectations.
• Establishes performance expectations, allocates work and capacity, and holds employees
and team leads accountable for quality and timelines.
• Conducts performance reviews and addresses people matters within delegated authority
and University requirements.
• Makes effective recommendations regarding recruitment, workforce requirements,
development, discipline and organization of work.
• Builds resilience through cross-training, documentation, knowledge transfer and backup
arrangements.
• Creates an inclusive, respectful, accountable and service-oriented work environment.
• Fosters, promotes and drives equity and inclusion.

Continuous Improvement
• Leads implementation within the assigned portfolio of service improvements, process
redesign, automation initiatives, finance systems, and service standards, in accordance with
Integrated Finance Services’ approved priorities and direction.
• Uses service data, and client feedback to prioritize corrective action and capability
improvements.
• Uses reconciliations, audit and compliance findings, service performance information and
client feedback to identify risks, corrective actions and opportunities to improve service
quality.
• Contributes expertise to portfolio-wide and University-wide transformation and
communities of practice.
• Other duties as required in support of the department and/or unit.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
• University degree in Commerce, Business Administration, Accounting, Finance or a related
field.
• Chartered Professional accounting designation.
• Minimum seven years progressively responsible experience spanning financial
management, planning, budgeting, forecasting, modelling, reporting, controls, operations,
compliance, risk management, and advisory services.
• Experience with diverse funding sources, complex client groups or regulated/research intensive
environments is an asset.
• Experience implementing financial systems, process improvements, service standards or
organizational change.
• Advanced proficiency with enterprise financial systems, Microsoft Excel, reporting, analytics
and visualization tools.
• Demonstrated experience leading a team, team leads or multiple interconnected financial
workstreams in a complex environment.
• Demonstrated experience serving as a principal Finance adviser to senior leaders,
integrating financial planning and operations, and resolving complex or ambiguous issues
within delegated authority.
• Criminal Sector Check required.

SPECIAL SKILLS:
• Advanced financial, analytical and operational judgement and the ability to integrate
detailed information into forward-looking advice.
• Ability to lead teams, influence senior clients and reconcile competing priorities.
• Excellent communication, facilitation and presentation skills for complex non-financial
audiences.
• Sound judgement in recognizing matters requiring Director or institutional escalation.
• Strong client-service orientation balanced with institutional stewardship, consistency and
compliance.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills; ability to deal
effectively with diverse groups of people; strong organizational and planning skills; ability to
cope with multiple demands and manage competing priorities.
• Advanced analytical, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills.

DECISION MAKING:
• Establishes workplans, service priorities and performance expectations and allocates
capacity within the assigned area.
• Makes complex assignment-level service, capacity and financial-management decisions
within delegated authority.
• Determines the analyses, models, scenarios and assumptions required to advise senior
client leaders on complex financial matters, selecting and adapting approaches within
approved institutional frameworks and professional standards.
• Provides recommendations on budgets, forecasts, affordability, sustainability, resource
options, risks and corrective action; client leaders retain final authority.
• Interprets policy in complex circumstances and adapts assignment-level process, reporting
and work practices within approved frameworks.
• Determines when matters require Director involvement based on agreed escalation
thresholds. Provides recommendations for business representatives and other analysts.
• Evaluates job candidates and makes effective recommendations on suitable hires.
• Makes decisions and/or effective recommendations regarding transfers and promotions.
• Evaluates employee performance and decides on appropriate training or coaching to
address lack of proficiency in carrying out responsibilities, or remedial action for staff
disciplinary situations.
• Assesses investigation outcome of grievances and makes effective recommendations on
appropriate course of action or next steps on grievances.
• Makes effective recommendations on level of discipline up to discharge and probationary
termination.

Employment Equity and Accessibility Statement

The University invites applications from all qualified individuals. Queen's is strongly committed to employment equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace and encourages applications from Black, racialized persons, Indigenous people, women, persons with disabilities, and 2SLGBTQI+ persons. In accordance with Canadian Immigration requirements, priority will be given to those who are legally eligible to work in Canada.

The University provides support in its recruitment processes to all applicants who require accommodation due to a protected ground under the Ontario Human Rights Code, including those with disabilities. Candidates requiring accommodation during the recruitment process are asked to contact Human Resources at [email protected].