Business Controller - Rotterdam

Business Controller

Location: Netherlands (Rotterdam), hybrid. Ideally 2 days per week in the office.

Tired of explaining the numbers after the decisions have been made? Want to be in the room when they're made instead? Do you see a business still building its structure as an opportunity, not a headache?

Our client is looking for a Business Controller to join its Business Controlling team in Rotterdam. This is a hands-on, insight-first role: you'll own key parts of the monthly reporting and forecasting cycle, and act as a true sparring partner to the business. Your work will land in front of senior leadership fast.

About Our Client

Our client is a global clinical research and laboratory services business, part of a larger international healthcare group. It supports pharmaceutical, biotech and non-profit organisations through a worldwide laboratory network across Europe, North America, Africa and Asia-Pacific.

Backed by private equity and with ambitious growth plans, both organic and through acquisitions, the business turns over more than €150 million and employs over 700 people. Its finance function is investing in better insight, better tools and better business partnering, and this role is a key part of that.

Why Join Us?

• Real Influence: A small, sharp team means your analysis gets seen and acted on. You won't be a cog in a reporting machine.
• Growth Environment: A PE-backed business with ambitious plans, where finance is building what good looks like, not just maintaining it.
• Transformation Exposure: Get involved in a group-wide SAP implementation and the move to more automated, forward-looking reporting.
• International Scope: Work daily with finance and business stakeholders across Europe, North America and South Africa.

How You Will Add Value

As Business Controller, you will contribute to:

• Increasing financial predictability through sharp forecasting, landings and deep-dive analysis
• Turning numbers into decisions by translating complex data into clear, managerial insight
• Defining the KPIs that matter, including operational and lab efficiency metrics and lead indicators
• Professionalising reporting through automation, dashboarding and better data tools

Your Responsibilities

• Contribute to the month-end closing and monthly reporting process, including content for the monthly board deck
• Drive the quarterly forecasting and full-year landing processes, consolidating bottom-up input from departments
• Review project, business unit and company performance versus budget, and run deep-dive analyses on the drivers
• Provide proactive and ad-hoc analysis and recommendations to support management decision-making
• Introduce and maintain automated reports and dashboards that give new, forward-looking insight
• Support the implementation and improvement of systems, including the group-wide SAP rollout
• Act as a trusted business partner to stakeholders across finance, operations and commercial teams

About You

You're a business-minded controller who's happiest when the analysis leads somewhere. You question figures without judging people, you deliver to deadlines, and you don't need everything set in stone to do your best work.

• University degree in Finance, Business Administration, Economics or a related field
• 5+ years of experience in business control, FP&A or a similar role. A background in audit with a Big 4 or top-10 firm is a strong plus
• Strong analytical skills: structured, accurate and pragmatic about deadlines
• Excellent Excel skills and hands-on experience with BI tooling (e.g. Power BI). SAP experience is an advantage
• Confident communicator who can turn complexity into clear steering information
• A team player with a hands-on, low-ego approach, comfortable in a fast-paced, evolving matrix environment
• Experience in a laboratory, healthcare, supply chain or operations environment is a nice-to-have
• Fluent in English

Travel:

Occasional travel within Europe may be required.