Senior Finance Manager

We are Lightsource bp – and we’re on a mission to become a global leader in onshore renewables, anchored by our proven track record in solar development.
For over a decade we’ve been actively working to diversify the way our world is powered with sustainable and responsible renewable power. We work to safely deliver affordable, reliable, large-scale onshore renewable and energy storage solutions to help the world decarbonize.
Our growing business is constantly innovating and investing to help drive the energy transition. Our people and projects are focused on supporting long-term sustainable growth and energy security.
Lightsource bp was fully acquired by bp in 2024.

What You’ll do 

The Senior Finance Manager will be supporting the US Senior Finance Director with activities under all operational site business units including line management of 6 current employees and liaising with external investors and or owners of the operational site portfolios. Lightsource bp has several operational portfolios and a pipeline that includes several more to come online. The various portfolios are made up of multiple solar sites that vary on size, complexity, offtake, etc, and may have different external owners or JV partners. The Senior Finance Manager will be responsible for the accounting, reporting, and control of all legal entities/projects within these business units, and will be a key internal and external business partner.

Key Deliverables
•    Financial Accounting & Performance Management 
•    Financial Compliance & Control
•    Business Partnering & Support
•    Team Leadership & Development

Duties and responsibilities

Management Accounts 
•    Review monthly management accounts falling under the Operational Solar Site Business Units, including shared services entities 
•    Ensure the accuracy of financial figures through a thorough monthly and quarterly review with the team members
•    Help drive a smooth month end close process by supporting team members through questions, review of journal entries, and enforcing deadlines
•    Help Senior Finance Director with monthly technical reviews and reporting commentary by understanding the detail behind the numbers and be able to form a narrative 
•    Have ownership over business units  - be proactive in reviewing
•    Enforce group policies and work with group finance where necessary for technical accounting support and to ensure consistencies in accounting, reporting, and control
•    Review material and sensitive balance sheet reconciliations; provide training and feedback to team on same.  
Business Partnering and Team Development
•    Business partner with Asset Management to understand any activity at the solar site that may impact financial figures (ie severe weather impacts, site malfunctions, or major repairs) 
•    Business partner with Investment Management to understand lender/investor requirements and agreements, particularly as they may relate to debt payments, financial reporting requirements, and swap arrangements
•    Business partner with Power Marketing team to understand revenue contracts and how to account for them
•    Gain an understanding of the differing transmission markets and how that might impact revenue agreements and other solar site operations 
•    Work closely with group finance and technical accounting to ensure corporate accounting is in line with all policies and pay close attention to results 
•    Prioritize developing team members and be a voice to their opinions 
•    Delegate in an efficient manner to the team and help to prioritize tasks 
Reporting and Distributions 
•    Review team prepared internal and external financial reporting. Be prepared to step in and assist where necessary. 
•    Unaudited quarterly financial statements are required of all assets – the Senior Finance Manager should ensure the accuracy of all financial statements and the timeliness in delivering as in accordance with any lender/investor agreements.
•    Support the team on any additional schedules required under lender agreements and or owner arrangements.
•    Assist the team in playing a support role for quarterly distributions – working with Asset Management and Investment Management 
Audit, and Other
•    Lead team in local and group audits. Play a main role in the annual audit process, which includes several sets of audited financial statements required under lender arrangements. 
•    Review all schedules prepared by the team for the local audits and ensured accurate numbers are delivered in a timely manner
•    Help drive improvement processes by empowering the team to take the lead and be a part of the change
•    Support cross functional teams in the creation of annual budgets and forecasts
•    Work closely with Senior Finance Manager of Dev/Con US Accounting, Reporting, & Control (ARC) to drive consistencies and  collaboration across the team
•    Partner with other ARC functions globally to create synergies and improve relationships across the full group

Who we’re looking for    

Knowledge
•    The ability to work in a fast paced, dynamic environment interfacing with internal teams and external clients.
•    Ability to produce management accounts and analysis over a high volume of legal entities
•    Understand how to manage a team effectively  
Qualifications 
•    CPA preferred, US GAAP and IFRS knowledge
•    Ability to organize workload and prioritize to maximum effect
•    Excellent attention to detail when checking information with an ability to recognize and question anomalies
•    Set high standards of performance for yourself and the broader finance team
•    Demonstrate excellent MS Excel skills
Experience
•    8-15 years of experience ideally with renewable energy, project infrastructure and/or manufacturing experience
•    4 years of experience managing a team
•    Experience of tax equity preferred
•    Experience of accounts consolidation and reporting
•    Experience of an accounting and reporting system desirable
•    Experience working with a global company
•    SAP experience preferred

EXPERIENCE WORKING IN A GLOBAL COMPANY DESIRABLE

Why you’ll make a great member of the team    

Personal qualities 
•    Keen problem solver who can focus on appropriate detail when solving problems and propose effective solutions
•    Ability to pick up systems and processes quickly
•    Strong interpersonal, communication and presentation skills, dealing with different levels in the organization
•    Positive can-do attitude, ability to maintain a positive attitude in demanding situations 
•    Work effectively as part of a team, share information with relevant parties
•    Willingness to take on a variety of duties as required
•    Be adaptable and open to change 

FLEXIBLE APPROACH IN A FAST-PACED BUSINESS WHICH IS CONSTANTLY CHANGING, KEEP A CLEAR HEAD UNDER PRESSURE

Why you’ll want to work for us    

Our company is a place where you can be yourself and grow – a place where your ideas and opinions matter.
Be you
We pride ourselves on being an inclusive community, where every individual is valued and treated with respect.
Be responsible
Our culture is driven by our core values. From operating safely to ensuring our solar projects are responsible and promote biodiversity. 
Be recognised
Alongside a competitive salary, we offer a variety of benefits including annual bonus, retention bank, health insurance, pension, and other local benefits.
Be inspired
Join an agile, international team working across 15 countries to power the future and positively impact people, communities, ecosystems and biodiversity across the world.
Our core values
Lightsource bp truly cares about creating a sustainable future through safe, responsible and meaningful low-carbon energy projects. Our core values of Safety, Integrity, Respect, Sustainability and Drive are the guiding principles for everything we do.  
https://www.lightsourcebp.com/careers/

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company.  We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, socioeconomic status, neurodiversity/neurocognitive functioning, veteran status or disability status.   Individuals with disabilities may request a reasonable accommodation related to LSbp’s recruiting process (e.g., accessing the job application, completing required assessments, participating in telephone screenings or interviews, etc.).  If you would like to request an accommodation related to the recruitment process, please contact us to request accommodations.