Contracts negotiator
Total years of experience :25 years, 6 Months
• Act as a strategic business partner to senior sales management proactively and creatively helping them structure and analyze complex deals requiring an in-depth evaluation of multiple factors to maximize revenue yield and limit economic exposure. Participate in strategic opportunity planning and customer contract negotiations;
• Prepare pricing models in cooperation with Sales teams and draft customer proposals;
• Drive contract negotiations and seek internal approvals during the contract negotiation process;
• Build productive relationships and feedback loops with internal Google teams to drive efficiencies;
• Develop and manage scalable solutions for managing the end-to-end agreement process.
• Contribute to internal negotiation playbooks and objection handling guidelines.
• Suggest new fallback positions to be approved by Legal and stakeholders based on previous redlines and commonly negotiated terms.
• Own deals through the financial and terms approval process and accountable for final sign off prior to contract release with the goal of limiting risk/exposure to the business.
During my time at Google, I was the key negotiator for all Apigee related deals in EMEA and APAC within the following industries: banking, financial accounting and reporting, fashion, retail, IT, electrical engineering, car manufacturing, consumer products manufacturing, aviation, Oil/Gas and hospitality. My work also involved heavily working with the public sector in Saudi, UK, Singapore and the Netherlands.
• Setting up company and ensuring compliance with all regulatory requirements.
• Devising a structured business plan to ensure optimal levels of funding from banks and investors
• Playing pivotal role in negotiations in relation to leases, suppliers, contracts to obtain optimal benefits to the company
• Analyzing marketplace to ensure pricing and product strategies are in line with company objectives to meet financial business plan
• Analyzing and reviewing business strategies to ensure alignment to business plan
• Developing operating manuals to ensure proper delegation of duties and ensuring regular updates are introduced at set intervals to ensure alignment to business plan
• Playing a pivotal role in hiring managers in order to help run the day to day operations.
• Ensuring compliance with all legal, financial, environmental and health and hygiene obligations.
• Ensuring that financial obligations are met through working closely with company accountants and auditors, funders and investors.
• Strategically growing the business through developing new streams of revenue mainly through product differentiation, B2B and online sales.
• Acting as marketing director in devising marketing budgetary requirements and the marketing strategy.
• Acting as HR director to ensure all HR related matters are dealt with according to company’s operating manual.
• Protecting company reputation and principles.
• Lead DUTECH finance department and guide the overall DUTECH strategy and business decisions by providing financial insights and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Responsible for financial reporting and operations according to IFRS and DW policies.
• Lead dept. strategic thinking and ensure translation and alignment of management implementation plans with objectives and targets of the functional area/dept./team and individuals.
• Financial Planning and Budgeting.
• Talent Management.
• Continuous Improvements of departmental systems, processes and practices taking into account ‘international best practice’, changes in international standards and changes in business environment.
• Security and Environment: Direct the compliance of IT security policies, procedures and controls .
• Governance: Support the development of the company’s policies, abide by them as well as functions within the delegation of authority and boundaries of the organizational governance frameworks.
• Business partnership with Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Pakistan MDs to drive Go-To-Market model, Strategy and Execution plans (short & med term), providing the right visibility of business trends, offering experienced advice and suggesting areas of improvement to support growth plans and allow for timely decision making
• Meeting key customers and partners to help solve business issues, negotiate
business opportunities and align field business practices to contractual agreements and Cisco policies
• Gross Margin and profitability management by controlling discounts and OPEX to optimize Expense/Booking ratio, prioritizing investments and promoting save-to-invest practices
• Manage and approve non-standard deals, contracts and letters to customers and partners to ensure compliance, obtain favorable terms & conditions and optimize deals’ financial outlook
• Fiduciary leadership and single point of contact for Corporate Revenue, Legal, Tax and Credit & Collection related issues in close collaboration with associated cross-functional business partners
● Managing the operations of the Revenue Accounting and Operations (RAO) team for Emerging Markets.
● Ensure that non-standard deals are accounted for in accordance with US GAAP and Cisco accounting policies which have a direct impact on revenue reserves.
● Managing the relationship - operational and strategic - with sales operations, Customer Solutions Finance (CSF), Rev PGD and FP&A.
● Acting as a point of contact with CSF to ensure accuracy of management/financial accounting for products and services as they relate to revenue.
● Revenue forecasting, corporate balance sheet review, rebates and special discounts which have a direct impact on revenue accounting.
● Assist and ensure that all SOX related documentation and testing have been fulfilled relating to revenue accounting.
● Participating in identifying and driving process improvements throughout the team.
● Liaise and research with IT for system improvements and solutions.
● Responsible for preparing and documentation for internal and external audit purposes.
● Review financial reports to ensure compliance with IFRS and SEC stipulated rules and regulations.
● Review and report on the accuracy, timeliness and relevance of financial and other information that is provided to management.
● Make recommendations on independent schools’ accounting systems and procedures and monitor management’s response and implementation.
● Oversee financial audit of independent schools through working and coordinating with international accounting firms such as KPMG and Deloitte & Touché.
Achievement:
I was responsible for monitoring a budget that exceeded US $ 500 million for funding public schools. I devised a reporting system that systematically monitors spending patterns in schools. This led to the Finance Office to put forth a recommendation that was approved by the SEC. This monitoring system achieved a 20% savings for schools by the setting of compulsory limits on specific budgetary line items.
● Review and approve school budgets to ensure compliance with SEC rules and regulations (start up budgets and operational).
● Review and analyze student enrollment reports and initiate and process start up and operational fund transfers.
● Maintain up-to-date working papers on schools.
● Plan and supervise compliance/financial audits.
● Monitor schools’ financial health through analyzing periodic financial reports and ensuring compliance with IFRS and SEC rules and regulations.
● Report on the cost effectiveness and efficiency of schools’ activities.
● Directing & coordinating accounting operational functions.
● Managing the accumulation and consolidation of all financial data necessary for an accurate accounting of consolidated business results.
● Coordinating and preparing internal and external financial statements.
● Providing management with information vital to the decision-making process.
● Assessing current accounting operations and offering recommendations for improvement and implementing new processes.
● Evaluating accounting and internal control systems
● Overseeing regulatory reporting
●Assisted controller in month-end and year-end closing functions.
●Prepared adjusting journal entries.
●Prepared and analyzed numerous bank reconciliations on a monthly basis.
●Managed employee health insurance benefits and property/casualty insurance issues.
●Documented all aspects of workmen’s compensation claims.
●Preparing journal entries.
●Assisting with audit fieldwork for both operational and financial audits.
●Reconciling and balancing general ledger accounts.
●Researching and correcting account discrepancies.
●Providing written summaries of statistical sampling findings for review by senior staff.
Core Subjects included: Ownership, compensation and performance, corporate enterprise and financial decision making, accounting and organisational performance, research methodology, information, organization and design, financial analysis, international business finance and financial reporting and regulation