Job Title
Head of Controlling – 6‑Month Contract
Location – Brussels
Contract Type – 6‑month fixed‑term / interim contract
Reports to
CFO / Finance Director
Role Purpose
The Head of Controlling (6‑month contract) will lead the controlling and FP&A function during a critical period of focus on performance, forecasting accuracy, and insight generation. This role requires a senior, hands‑on finance leader who can quickly assess the current setup, stabilise and optimise processes, and deliver immediate value.
The role combines strategic oversight with operational execution, translating financial data into clear business insights and driving improvements in decision‑making, efficiency, and financial transparency. The Head of Controlling will manage a team of approximately five professionals and act as a trusted finance partner to senior stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities
Leadership & Team Management
- Lead, coach, and manage a team of ~5 controllers and analysts during the contract period
- Quickly assess team structure, roles, and ways of working; implement pragmatic improvements
- Review analyses and conclusions, challenging outcomes and raising analytical quality
- Identify where the team loses time due to inefficient processes or tooling and implement short‑term, high‑impact solutions
- Strengthen ownership, prioritisation, and delivery focus across the team
Controlling, FP&A & Financial Governance
- Take ownership of end‑to‑end controlling and FP&A activities, including budgeting, re‑forecasting, and scenario planning
- Ensure continuity, accuracy, and timeliness of financial reporting
- Steer controlling activities through a fast‑paced and potentially volatile business environment
- Lead variance analysis and performance reviews, clearly explaining movements and implications
- Improve forecasting reliability and transparency within the contract timeframe
Business Partnering & Decision Support
- Act as a senior finance partner to key business stakeholders
- Translate complex financial information into clear, actionable business language
- Support short‑term performance improvement initiatives and cost‑optimisation efforts
- Provide fact‑based insights to support management decisions
- Challenge assumptions constructively and focus discussions on outcomes and impact
Finance Transformation & Systems
- Stabilise and optimise existing FP&A and controlling tools (e.g. Pigment or similar platforms)
- Improve planning models, reporting structures, and scenario analysis
- Drive targeted finance transformation initiatives deliverable within six months, such as:
- Process simplification and automation
- Business or pricing model enhancements
- Transfer pricing or order‑to‑cash improvements
- Embed data‑driven decision‑making and efficient reporting practices
Performance & Profitability Insight
- Deliver end‑to‑end performance and profitability analyses
- Refine KPIs, dashboards, and management reporting
- Identify key performance and cost drivers, inefficiencies, and improvement levers
- Propose pragmatic solutions and clearly track results during the contract period
Key Skills & Experience
Experience
- Senior experience in controlling / FP&A, ideally in fast‑moving environments
- Proven track record in interim or transformation roles is a strong advantage
- Experience leading and developing finance teams
- Strong background in forecasting, scenario planning, and performance analysis
- Hands‑on experience with FP&A and reporting systems
Skills & Competencies
- Strategic yet highly execution‑oriented
- Able to make impact quickly and operate effectively with limited onboarding time
- Strong analytical skills and the ability to explain the meaning behind the numbers
- Confident communicator who can influence senior stakeholders
- Process‑driven, pragmatic, and improvement‑focused
- Comfortable working under pressure and managing multiple priorities
Languages
- English: fluent
- Dutch: fluent