About WPP Media 

WPP is the creative transformation company. We use the power of creativity to build better futures for our people, planet, clients and communities. For more information, visit wpp.com. 

WPP Media is WPP’s global media collective. In a world where media is everywhere and in everything, we bring the best platform, people, and partners together to create limitless opportunities for growth. For more information, visit wppmedia.com 

At WPP Media, we believe in the power of our culture and our people. It’s what elevates us to deliver exceptional experiences for both our clients and each other. In this role it will be critical to embrace WPP & WPP Media’s shared core values: 

• Be Extraordinary by Leading Collectively to Inspire transformational Creativity. 
• Create an Open environment by Balancing People and Client Experiences by Cultivating Trust. 
• Lead Optimistically by Championing Growth and Development to Mobilize the Enterprise. 

Role purpose

At WPP, technology is at the heart of everything we do, and it is WPP Enterprise Technology’s mission to enable everyone to collaborate, create and thrive. WPP Enterprise Technology is undergoing a significant transformation to modernise ways of working, shift to cloud and micro-service-based architectures, drive automation, digitise colleague and client experiences and deliver insight from WPP’s petabytes of data.

WPP Media is the world’s leading media investment company responsible for more than $63B in annual media investment through agencies Mindshare, Wavemaker and Essence Mediacom as well as data and technology company Choreograph. WPP Media’s portfolio includes Data & Technology, Investment and Services, all united in a vision to shape the next era of media where advertising works better for people. By leveraging all the benefits of scale, the company innovates, differentiates and generates sustained value for our clients wherever they do business.

The Media Cluster in WPP Enterprise Technology are the technology solutions partner for the WPP Media group of agencies and are accountable for coordinating and assuring end-to-end change delivery, managing the WPP Media technology life-cycle and innovation pipeline.

We're looking for the next generation of technology leaders. You'll be bright, energetic, and engaging by nature. You'll lead the technology transformation activities in your market, working with both business and technology stakeholders on the engagement and delivery of the wider WPP Enterprise Technology portfolio projects and programmes within the market. You'll have a similar role in another company or be ready to step up into this role because your experience means you're ready for the challenge of leading a market’s technology transformation activities for the world's largest media buying company. 

Key Responsibilities

• You’ll develop and maintain a strong awareness of business activity across the Media Cluster, and use this to drive insight into the value, business opportunity and strategy behind local and WPP IT portfolio projects.
• You’ll maintain and support the demand process within WPP Media through liaising with the Enablement lead to ensure activity is properly shaped and accounts for variation in location market processes.
• You’ll be responsible for applying agreed methods to carry out investigations, analysis, review, and documentation in terms of business functions & processes, the information used & the data on which the information is based.
• You’ll be responsible for defining requirements for improving any aspect of the processes and systems and quantification of potential business benefits.
• You’ll be responsible for creating viable business requirements and acceptance criteria suitable for procurement / construction of information and communication systems.
• You’ll be responsible for interpreting unstructured business needs and views into structured business requirements.
• You’ll be responsible for the quality of the analysis, requirements & acceptance criteria.
• You’ll ensure that requirements, traceability, and process mapping take place either proactively or through liaising with markets or vendor resources, providing examples of best practices and standards.
• You’ll build and maintain an understanding of business processes across the region and liaise with the process transformation hub to ensure WPP IT deployments to help market resources engage and co-operate with the transformation hub.

Skill Requirements

• Strong analytic skills, excellent communication & stakeholder relationship management skills
• Able to question & challenge users at all levels with confidence, to arrive at a clear, unambiguous view of requirements
• Must be willing & able to apply structured requirements analysis & modelling methods, in line with WPP Security, Risk, Policies & Standards.
• Strong business process mapping and improvement skills and data analysis
• Change implementation, planning and management
• Benefits assessment and management
• Non-functional needs analysis
• A tertiary degree in Computing or a similar discipline
• Fluent English oral and written communication skills

Life at WPP Media & Benefits 

Our passion for shaping the next era of media includes investing in our employees to help them do their best work, and we’re just as committed to employee growth as we are to responsible media investment. WPP Media employees can tap into the global WPP Media & WPP networks to pursue their passions, grow their networks, and learn at the cutting edge of marketing and advertising. We have a variety of employee resource groups and host frequent in-office events showcasing team wins, sharing thought leadership, and celebrating holidays and milestone events. Our benefits include competitive medical, group retirement plans, vision, and dental insurance, significant paid time off, preferential partner discounts, and employee mental health awareness days.   

WPP Media is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. 

#LI - Promoted

Finance Manager/Head of reporting

Summary

Assist Director Finance on financial operations, governance, and reporting for the Sri Lanka market, ensuring compliance with WPP frameworks, statutory requirements, and APAC reporting cycles.

The role partners closely with business teams and senior leadership, providing strategic/operational financial insights, enhancing commercial discipline, and improving operational efficiency across the organisation. Head finance team  & provide direction on finance operations. 

Key Accountabilities

Financial Reporting & Control

• Lead month end close, including journal approvals, reconciliations, schedules, and financial controls.
• Maintain strict compliance with WPP financial governance, policies, and internal control frameworks.
• Manage and respond to Internal/External Audit queries, providing evidence, corrective actions, and remediation tracking.
• Ensure accuracy, completeness, and consistency across all financial submissions.
• Assist Director Finance on managing working capital.

Commercial & Operational Finance

• Overlook vendor invoice validation process and client invoicing process including credit notes, purchase orders for operational expenditures.
• Strengthen commercial governance by ensuring proper pricing, contract compliance, cost discipline, and margin protection.
• Support commercial teams with financial evaluation, profitability analysis, and deal modelling.
• Improve operational efficiency through financial insight, process optimisation, and risk mitigation.

Taxation & Statutory Compliance

• Oversee statutory filings, tax submissions, documentation reviews, and regulatory compliance.
• Provide consultancy to internal teams in all tax matters and, act as the liaison between internal teams, auditors, tax authorities, and external consultants where required.
• Monitor regulatory changes and ensure timely adherence to new compliance requirements.

Regional Reporting & APAC Cycle Management

• Manage Budgets, Forecasts, Net Sales Tracking, and APAC reporting cycles with accuracy and timeliness.
• Coordinate with APAC Finance teams and regional reporting heads to resolve queries and ensure alignment.
• Provide insightful commentary on variances, risks, and opportunities.

Vendor Due Diligence & Intermediary Governance

• Oversee the due diligence process for all vendors including influencers, digital partners, intermediaries, and vendors under Global compliance requirements.
• Ensure full documentation, financial checks, risk assessments, and compliance approvals are completed before onboarding.
• Maintain an up to date due diligence repository for audits and governance reviews.

Strategic Partnering & Business Advisory 

• Act as the trusted business advisor to business teams, providing strategic/operational insights, scenario analyses, and commercial support.
• Translate financial data into clear, actionable business recommendations.
• Influence operational decisions through data driven advice, risk assessment, and performance insights.
• Provide proactive guidance to strengthen profitability, cash flow discipline, and ROI across initiatives.

Strategic Financial Planning

• Lead forecasting, budgeting, and long-term planning processes with cross-functional alignment.
• Prepare strategic insights for senior leadership, highlighting trends, opportunities, and risks.

Team Leadership & Capability Building

• Lead and mentor a multidisciplinary finance team, providing guidance, coaching, and performance feedback.
• Support succession planning, upskilling initiatives, and capability development.
• Foster a high performance culture rooted in accountability, accuracy, and continuous improvement.

Skills & Competencies

Functional Competencies

• Financial reporting (IFRS), management accounting, audit readiness
• Tax compliance & statutory knowledge
• Forecasting, budgeting, planning & analysis
• ERP systems, SAP/BFC, tools expertise
• Internal controls & risk management

Leadership Competencies

• Thought leadership and strategic advisory capability
• Stakeholder management and influencing skills
• Effective communication and commercial storytelling
• People leadership and coaching

WPP Behavioural Competencies

• Collaboration across regions and functions
• Compliance and ethics mindset
• Continuous improvement and simplification

Scope & Impact

• Financial responsibility for the Sri Lanka operations including revenue, cost, statutory, and vendor spend oversight.
• Direct leadership impact on finance team performance and capability growth.
• Operational influence across commercial, operational and finance teams.
• Material contribution to business performance, compliance posture, and audit outcomes.

Key Stakeholders

• Market leadership (Managing Director, FD), commercial teams, HR, operations, APAC Fnance teams, Internal Audit
• External: Auditors, Tax Authorities, Banks, Vendors