Financial Planning & Analysis Specialist (Data Analytics)

Job Description

About the Role

The FPA Specialist (Data Analytics) sits within the Regional FPA Centre of Excellence (MEDEBA) and supports 19 markets acrossMediterranean Europe and Baltics. Reporting to the Regional FPA Lead, this role combines financial planning expertise with strong technical and analytical capabilities to support forecasting, planning systems, management reporting, and continuous process improvement.

Unlike a traditional FPA business partnering role, this position has a strong focus on data management, financial systems, reporting automation, and planning processes. The successful candidate will work closely with local finance teams and regional FPA colleagues to ensure the accuracy, integrity, and efficient flow of financial data across forecasting and reporting cycles.

This role offers an excellent opportunity for finance professionals, FPA analysts, controllers, or data analysts with an interest in finance who are looking to develop broader FPA expertise in a multinational environment.

Primary Responsibilities

Financial Planning, Analysis Reporting

• Partner with finance teams and business stakeholders across multiple markets to support annual budgets, periodic forecasts, and business planning activities.
• Coordinate, consolidate, and validate planning inputs, ensuring accuracy and consistency of key assumptions, including sales, pricing, expenses, headcount, and profitability drivers.
• Load, maintain, reconcile, and troubleshoot planning and reporting data within financial systems.
• Perform variance, trend, profitability, and driver-based analyses to evaluate business performance and identify risks and opportunities.
• Prepare and distribute recurring and ad hoc financial reports, translating complex datasets into actionable insights that support decision-making.
• Support monthly reporting cycles, forecast submissions, performance reviews, and peak planning periods through timely analysis and business support.

Data Management Systems Administration

• Maintain financial planning and management reporting systems, master data structures, and planning hierarchies.
• Support data uploads, system validations, and integrity checks across planning and reporting platforms.
• Serve as a key point of contact for finance users on data-related and system-related queries.
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of planning dashboards, reporting solutions, and Power BI visualizations.
• Collaborate with regional teams to enhance reporting tools and improve system efficiency.

Continuous Improvement, AI Automation

• Foster a continuous improvement mindset by identifying opportunities to simplify processes, improve data quality, and reduce manual activities across FPA operations.
• Leverage AI-powered tools, automation, and advanced analytics in day-to-day work to enhance productivity, strengthen financial insights, and improve the quality of planning, reporting, and analysis.
• Support the adoption and implementation of digital, automation, and AI-enabled solutions that drive efficiency and innovation across FPA processes.
• Share best practices and contribute to the standardization and continuous evolution of FPA processes, tools, and ways of working.

What Were Looking For

Required Qualifications

• Bachelors degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Analytics, Information Systems, or a related field.
• 2-5 years of relevant experience in FPA, Controlling, Financial Analysis, Accounting, Business Analytics, or Data Analytics.
• Strong Excel skills, including advanced formulas, data manipulation, and analytical modelling.
• Solid understanding of financial statements, PL structures, and basic accounting principles.
• Strong analytical mindset with the ability to work with large datasets and identify key business drivers.
• Experience working in multinational or matrix organizations.
• Excellent problem-solving, organizational, and prioritization skills.
• Fluent English communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with financial planning and reporting tools such as SAP, BPC, Power BI, planning dashboards, or similar systems.
• Experience supporting budgeting, forecasting, or management reporting processes.
• Background in FPA, controlling, management accounting, data analytics, or business intelligence.
• Familiarity with AI, automation, or process improvement initiatives.
• Experience working with Power BI or other reporting and visualization tools.

Success in This Role

Successful candidates will:

• Enjoy working with data and analytical problem-solving.
• Be comfortable navigating financial systems and large datasets.
• Thrive in a dynamic environment with periodic forecasting and reporting peaks.
• Demonstrate a strong learning mindset and willingness to build expertise in FPA processes and planning systems.
• Be motivated to develop into broader FPA and senior specialist roles over time.

What we offer

• Exciting work in a great team, global projects, international environment
• Opportunity to learn and grow professionally within the company globally
• Hybrid working model, flexible role pattern
• Competitive salary incentive pay
• Pension and health insurance contributions
• Internal reward system and referral scheme
• 5 weeks annual leave, 5 sick days, 15 days of certified sick leave paid above statutory requirements annually, 40 paid hours annually for volunteering activities, 12 weeks of parental contribution
• Cafeteria for tax free benefits according to your choice (meal vouchers, sport, culture, health, travel, etc.), Multisport Card
• Vodafone, Raiffeisen Bank, Foodora, and discount programmes
• Up-to-date laptop and iPhone
• Parking in the garage, showers, refreshments, massage chairs, library, music corner

Ready to take up the challenge? Apply now!

Know anybody who might be interested? Refer this job!

Required Skills:
Budgeting, Data Analysis, Financial Planning, Financial Reports, Management Controls, Stakeholder Management, Variance Analysis

Preferred Skills:
Current Employees applyHERE

Current Contingent Workers applyHERE

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully

Merck Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:
Regular

Relocation:
No relocation

VISA Sponsorship:
No

Travel Requirements:
No Travel Required

Flexible Work Arrangements:
Not Applicable

Shift:
Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:
No

Hazardous Material(s):
n/s

Job Posting End Date:
09/21/2026*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the dayBEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the dayBEFORE the job posting end date.

Requisition ID: R414002