Finance Specialist – Proposal Budget Development & Income Forecasting

TITLE: Finance Specialist – Proposal Budget Development & Income Forecasting

ROLE PURPOSE

Save the Children Indonesia (SC Indonesia) is a full member of Save the Children International and is committed to strengthening its position as a strong, locally rooted and financially sustainable national organisation that delivers greater impact for children in Indonesia. As a full member, SC Indonesia continues to strengthen its organisational capacity, financial sustainability, local fundraising and resource mobilisation, while ensuring strong governance, accountability and effective stewardship of resources in support of its strategic priorities and the Save the Children global strategy. 

The Finance Specialist – Proposal Budget Development & Income Forecasting will work under the direction of the Senior FP&A Manager and support the organisation in strengthening the linkage between resource mobilisation, proposal budget development, income forecasting, financial planning and portfolio sustainability. The post holder will work closely with the CFO, Grant Finance Manager, Resource Mobilisation, Fundraising, Program Impact & Operations (PIO) and other relevant functions to provide financial leadership, analysis and coordination throughout the proposal budgeting and income planning cycle. The position will ensure that financial assumptions, proposal budgets, funding pipelines and income forecasts are appropriately aligned with organisational priorities, programme plans and financial sustainability objectives. 

A key responsibility of the position is to lead the financial and budget workstream of proposal development, working closely with the Proposal Lead and relevant contributors across the organisation. The post holder will develop and consolidate proposal budgets, coordinate financial inputs and costing assumptions from relevant functions, and ensure that budgets appropriately reflect programme design, implementation requirements, donor requirements and organisational financial policies and methodologies. The position will also support the organisation's income planning and forecasting by maintaining visibility of the funding pipeline, validating key assumptions, supporting income phasing and identifying financial risks, opportunities and potential impacts on the organisation's portfolio and financial outlook. 

The post holder will contribute to strengthening collaboration between Finance and other functions, ensuring that financial information is translated into meaningful management information and supports informed decision-making. The role will act as a finance business partner throughout proposal budget development, funding pipeline review, forecasting and organisational financial planning.

Ensuring the quality, accuracy and timeliness of proposal budgets and income forecasts, while maintaining appropriate financial governance and alignment with Save the Children policies and donor requirements, will be central to the role. The position will contribute to the organisation's ability to grow and diversify its income, develop a sustainable portfolio and maximise resources available to deliver programmes and impact for children. 

The post holder will contribute to organisational and Global KPIs through: 

• Supporting quality and timely proposal budget development and financial planning. 
• Contributing to effective income planning and forecasting through accurate and timely financial information. 
• Supporting strong alignment between resource mobilisation, proposal budgeting, programme planning, award management and financial planning. 
• Providing relevant financial analysis and management information to support informed decision-making. 
• Supporting financial governance, compliance and risk management throughout proposal budgeting and forecasting processes.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Strategy and Leadership 

• Support the Senior FP&A Manager in strengthening effective synergies between Finance and Resource Mobilisation, Fundraising, PIO, REALM, Award Management and other relevant functions to support organisational growth and maximise Save the Children's impact. 
• Support the development and implementation of effective internal processes for proposal budget development and income forecasting, ensuring clear roles, accountability and ownership across relevant stakeholders. 
• Act as a finance business partner to relevant functions throughout the proposal budgeting and income planning cycle. 
• Provide timely financial analysis and advice to support management decision-making on funding opportunities, proposal budgets, income forecasts and portfolio planning. 
• Promote effective collaboration between Finance and non-finance functions to improve the quality and use of financial information in organisational planning and decision-making.

Proposal Budget Development and Financial Planning 

• Lead the financial and budget workstream of proposal development, working closely with the Proposal Lead and relevant contributors from PIO, REALM, Awards, Partnerships, Resource Mobilisation/Fundraising and other relevant functions or subject matter experts, as required.
• Develop and consolidate proposal budgets and financial models based on programme design, implementation plans, staffing requirements, operational needs, partner engagement, donor requirements and agreed financial assumptions. 
• Coordinate with relevant functions to obtain and validate the financial inputs, costing assumptions and resource requirements required for proposal budget development. 
• Ensure that proposal budgets are appropriately aligned with programme design, implementation approach, geographic coverage, implementation timelines, staffing structure and operational requirements. 
• Ensure that all relevant direct, shared and support costs are appropriately identified, costed and reflected in proposal budgets. 
• Ensure appropriate application of organisational cost recovery methodologies, including CAM, ICR, other support costs and other applicable cost recovery mechanisms. 
• Review and assess the financial implications of different programme design and implementation options and provide financial advice to the proposal development team. 
• Ensure that budget assumptions are realistic, complete, internally consistent and aligned with organisational financial planning and sustainability objectives. 
• Ensure appropriate consideration of donor rules, cost eligibility, budget structures, cost classifications and other financial requirements in proposal budgets, in coordination with Awards and Grant Finance. 
• Lead the preparation of budget narratives, financial assumptions and other financial information required as part of proposal submissions, where applicable. 
• Support the Proposal Lead and relevant functions during donor budget negotiations, clarification requests and subsequent budget revisions. 
• Coordinate the financial review and consolidation of revised proposal budgets arising from donor feedback, programme design changes or negotiation processes. 
• Ensure that required financial reviews and approvals are obtained in accordance with organisational policies and delegated authorities before proposal submission. 
• Maintain appropriate documentation and audit trail for proposal budgets, financial assumptions, costing inputs, approvals and revisions. 
• Provide financial analysis on the potential impact of new proposals and funding opportunities on the organisation's portfolio, income, cost recovery and financial sustainability.

Income Forecasting and Funding Pipeline 

• Maintain and monitor the financial aspects of the funding and proposal pipeline, including proposal value, funding status, probability, expected award date, implementation period, income value and other relevant financial assumptions. 
• Support the development and maintenance of income forecasts, ensuring that expected funding, proposal pipeline, grants, amendments, extensions and other income movements are accurately reflected.
• Liaise with Resource Mobilisation, Fundraising, PIO, Award and other relevant functions to obtain, validate and update key assumptions for income forecasting. 
• Ensure appropriate income phasing based on expected award timing, implementation schedules and other relevant assumptions.
• Perform regular reconciliation between the funding pipeline, proposal information, award information, income forecast and organisational financial plans and highlight significant differences or changes. 
• Identify key risks, opportunities and sensitivities affecting the income forecast and escalate significant matters to the Senior FP&A Manager and relevant stakeholders. 
• Support periodic forecast exercises by providing updated proposal pipeline, award and income assumptions. 
• Analyse actual income against forecast and support identification of the underlying drivers of significant variances. 
• Support scenario analysis relating to significant funding opportunities, pipeline changes and potential funding gap.

Financial Planning, Analysis and Business Partnering 

• Support the Senior FP&A Manager in the preparation of annual budgets, forecasts, outlooks and other organisational financial planning exercises, particularly in relation to income assumptions and funding pipeline. 
• Provide timely financial analysis and management information relating to proposal pipeline, income forecast, portfolio performance and financial sustainability. 
• Support regular portfolio and forecast reviews, highlighting significant movements, risks, opportunities and areas requiring management attention. 
• Support the preparation of financial dashboards, reports and analysis for management and relevant stakeholders. 
• Translate financial and pipeline information into clear and practical insights to support management decision-making.
•  Work closely with the FP&A team to ensure that approved proposals and awards are appropriately incorporated into organisational budgets and forecasts. 
• Support analysis of funding gaps, portfolio composition, income concentration and other factors affecting organisational financial sustainability. 
• Contribute to continuous improvement in the quality, consistency and timeliness of financial planning and management information.

Financial Governance, Compliance and Internal Control 

• Ensure that proposal budgets and financial forecasts comply with Save the Children policies, procedures and applicable donor requirements. 
• Ensure appropriate financial review and approval processes are followed during proposal budget development and forecasting. 
• Ensure financial risks and compliance issues identified during proposal budget development are appropriately escalated to the Grant Finance Manager, Senior FP&A Manager and other relevant stakeholders.
• Maintain appropriate documentation and audit trail for proposal budgets, financial assumptions, approvals, forecast adjustments and related analysis. 
• Support internal and external audits, reviews and other assurance activities relating to proposal budgeting, financial planning and forecasting. 
• Ensure appropriate confidentiality and management of sensitive financial, donor and funding pipeline information.

Systems, Data and Process Improvement 

• Maintain and improve financial tools, templates and trackers supporting proposal budget development and income forecasting. 
• Support the development and standardisation of financial assumptions, templates and methodologies for proposal budgeting and income forecasting. 
• Ensure accuracy, consistency and integrity of financial and pipeline data used in forecasting and management reporting. 
• Support reconciliation and alignment of relevant data between fundraising, proposal, grant and financial management systems.
• Identify opportunities to improve automation, data quality, reporting efficiency and integration between proposal, fundraising, grant and financial planning processes. 
• Support the FP&A Manager in strengthening the use of financial data and analysis for strategic decision-making. 
• Promote consistent application of financial planning and forecasting methodologies across relevant functions.

Cross Functional Working Groups & KPIs 

• The post holder may be assigned to lead or participate in the work of cross-functional working groups. 
• The post holder will actively contribute to and be held accountable for achievement of organisational KPIs and those agreed with management. 
• Actively participate in relevant proposal budgeting, resource mobilisation, fundraising, portfolio planning, forecasting and organisational financial planning forums. 
• Promote effective collaboration between Finance and other functions and contribute to the achievement of organisational objectives through effective financial planning and analysis.

QUALIFICATIONS 

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, Economics or a related field. 
• Professional qualification or certification in accounting, finance or a related discipline is desirable.

Essential

• Minimum 5 (five) years of relevant professional experience in finance, financial planning and analysis, budgeting, proposal budgeting, grant finance or a related function, preferably within an NGO or international development organisation. 
• Demonstrated experience in budget development, financial analysis and forecasting. 
• Experience in developing and reviewing budgets, preferably including donor-funded project or proposal budgets. 
• Experience working effectively with cross-functional teams, including Finance, Programme, Resource Mobilisation/Fundraising and Award/Grant Management. 
• Strong understanding of financial management principles, budgeting, forecasting and financial controls. 
• Good understanding of donor funding, project costing and financial requirements within an NGO or international development environment. 
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to analyse complex financial information and translate it into clear and useful management information. 
• Strong Excel skills and experience working with financial systems, reporting tools and databases. 
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and presentation skills, with the ability to work effectively with stakeholders at different levels. 
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, work independently and meet tight deadlines. 
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy and quality. 
• Ability to identify financial risks, challenge assumptions constructively and provide practical solutions. 
• Fluency in written and spoken Indonesian and strong written and spoken English. 
• Ability to work collaboratively and provide support, advice and guidance to colleagues. 
• Understanding of Save the Children’s vision and mission and a commitment to its values. 
• Willingness and ability to adapt working practices and hours, and support incoming surge teams in the event of emergencies.

Desirable

• Experience working with proposal budget development and donor budgeting in an international NGO. 
• Experience with income forecasting, fundraising pipeline analysis or portfolio financial planning. 
• Experience with financial modelling, scenario analysis and management dashboards. 
• Experience with ERP, grant management, fundraising or financial planning systems. 
• Experience working with institutional donors, foundations, corporates or other development funding sources. 
• Experience in developing or improving financial planning, forecasting or reporting processes and tools.