Commercial Finance Advisor – Billing and Collection

The Finance team is aligned with the Firm's strategy and has the vision to be one global team connected within a robust control environment, collaborating to deliver value for clients and colleagues across the Firm.

One Finance Team is composed of Commercial teams (Working capital management, including client/matter profitability) and Accounting/Reporting, also supported by specialist teams across Tax, Treasury, Partner Remuneration, Controls, Governance, and Systems​.​

We are looking for a Commercial Finance Advisor in the Paris office.

The specific purpose of this role is to participate proactively in working capital management and enable efficient ways in doing so. The role also involves providing timely and accurate billing information to the Commercial Finance Manager to assist with billing and collection forecasts and the resolution of key issues. Therefore, the ability to understand the importance of billing and collection targets and their achievement in relation to the financial management of a large professional services firm is essential.

Key Responsibilities

New Matters Check:

• Ensure there is an engagement letter and compliance to Firm expectation.
• Ensure matter configuration is correctly applied, including pricing agreement and eBilling requirements, allowing bills to be "right first time".

Monthly meetings with Partners:

• Review meetings and follow up - challenge Partners to accelerate billing and collection with a reminder of their individual billing and collection targets. Offer support should they need help to action billing/collection.
• Discuss and challenge WIP and Debtors balances in order to achieve accurate WIP/Debtors valuation.
• Promote working capital management tools such as Dashboards and MBR (Matter Balance Report)
• Follow-up of billing and collection commitments and chase.

Billing:

• Support the Commercial Finance Assistants team in billing activities (prepare, amend, authorise and print bills) and eBilling (eBilling workflow, run adhoc reports to anticipate eBilling issues, help solve eBilling issues).
• Make sure bills are issued in timely manner, in accordance with the Firm's billing policy and clients' billing guidelines.

Collection:

• Follow up on overdue invoices when automatic reminders are unsuccessful
• Contact client in the most appropriate way (email/call) to get payment

Provide early warning to Partners on any matter financial variance to profitability targets and work closely with Commercial Finance Manager and Pricing Specialists on potential solution

Provide timely and accurate feedback to the Commercial Finance Manager, escalation of issues/problems/concerns

Deliver a collaborative and pro-active approach in working with the Partners and Commercial Finance team throughout the billing and collections process

Through liaison with Finance Commercial communities, ensure continuous improvement of working practices and controls, with a focus on optimisation and safeguarding of efficient processes

Various adhoc queries and problem solving.

Skills

• You will have a pro-active approach and be able to influence Partners in their working capital management, in order to achieve billing and cash targets.
• You will be able to demonstrate excellent organisational and interpersonal skills, with an aptitude to understand new concepts and processes quickly. You will also be required to delegate tasks throughout the billing team structure, with a view to developing and enhancing billing efficiencies.
• You will be able to demonstrate a very high level of attention to detail.
• You will need a flexible working approach and the confidence to communicate, both written and verbally, with people at all levels, in both French and English.
• You are curious and eager to propose process improvements to build up every day work

Experience

You will be able to demonstrate substantial experience of working within a billing team, ideally within a Professional Service firm environment.

Knowledge

You will be able to demonstrate technical knowledge and expertise of a global professional services practice management system, together with a sound knowledge of Excel and Word.

You will have a good understanding of the financial processes that underpin billing and collection activities and the ability to apply these; dealing with the requirements of Partners and the clients with whom they work.

Qualifications

You will have a Master Degree or equivalent, in Accounting and Finance, or Business Degree.

Clifford Chance is one of the world's leading law firms, helping clients achieve their goals by combining the highest global standards with local expertise. The firm has unrivalled scale and depth of legal resources across the three key markets of the Americas, Asia and Europe and focuses on the core areas of commercial activity: capital markets; corporate and M&A; finance and banking; real estate; tax pensions and employment; litigation and dispute resolution.

Clifford Chance has 33 offices around the world. Every day, around 6000 staff members worldwide work together and with our clients to find solutions to issues arising in all aspects of business law. In our Paris office, more than 200 lawyers work on all types of complex, innovative matters, each one needing specialist understanding of the specific context of the relevant market.

Our Code :

Our values-based Code of Conduct consists of five Principles that embody who we are and what we stand for. Our Code is not a list of dos and don'ts but a living document that will guide ethical decision-making, the right behaviours and advice on how we can live it in our everyday roles.

PRINCIPLES OF OUR CODE:

1. Act with Integrity - Our reputation as a Firm and as individuals is built on trust, honesty, integrity, decency and adherence to strong moral principles and is the cornerstone on which our business, our livelihoods and the wellbeing of our families and those who rely on us, depend. Each of us, regardless of our actual or perceived seniority or position, play a critical role in safeguarding the integrity of our business and our reputation.
2. Be Inclusive - We are inclusive and celebrate diversity – inclusion and diversity are essential for our pursuit of excellence. We embrace our differences. We ensure all voices are heard, and everyone is treated with fairness, dignity, respect and empathy.
3. Embrace Challenge - We want to foster an environment where everyone has the freedom to question the status quo. We provide each other with honest, thoughtful and constructive feedback, so that every member of the team can develop and thrive. Failure to provide genuine feedback is a missed opportunity for everyone.
4. Speak up – We are all encouraged to speak up and to create an environment in which we can be confident that our concerns and views will be taken seriously. If we witness bad, inappropriate, disrespectful, aggressive or unethical behaviour, as well as any potential or actual misconduct internally or externally, we should call it out and report it through the relevant channels of the Firm.

Act Responsibly – We always strive to bring positive, responsible and lasting impact and seek to contribute to building a just, fair, sustainable and prosperous society. We consider the impact of our work on our clients and their multiple stakeholders, as well as the wider community. We promote human rights. We encourage and enable environmentally sustainable practices and minimise our own negative impact on the environment.

How we will support you?

You will have the opportunity to continuously develop your skills and knowledge, with the support of the range of initiatives offered by the Academy.

Equal opportunities 

At Clifford Chance we understand that our true asset is our people. Inclusion is good for our team and their families, our Firm and society.

We are committed to treating all employees and applicants fairly and equally regardless of their gender, gender identity and expression, marital or civil partnership status, race, colour, national or ethnic origin, social or economic background, disability, religious belief, sexual orientation, or age.  This applies to recruitment and selection, terms and conditions of employment including pay, promotion, training, transfer, and every other aspect of employment.

Our goal is to deliver an equality of opportunity, an equality of aspiration and an equality of experience to everyone who works in our Firm.