About Merkator Group
Merkator Group BV is headquartered in Belgium (Zellik, near Brussels) and is composed of six operational companies in Belgium, The Netherlands and Spain. Over the past decade Merkator has evolved swiftly into a leading player in geospatial solutions that serve multiple market segments such as: Utilities, Telecom and Local Governments. Merkator has developed proprietary software MarlinDT to create a Digital Twin of networks and combine it with geographic data so that its customers can manage their complex networks more effectively. With Eaglebe we are delivering the most succesfull Belgian permitting SaaS platform for managing the public space.
In 2022, the Merkator Group was decisively strengthened with the arrival of GIM and its subsidiary GIM Wallonie, itself a leading player in the development of geospatial software and professional services in Belgium. Like Merkator, GIM specializes in offering customized geo-solutions to governments, utilities and private companies. The flagship data solution Belmap is used throughout very diverse markets including Banking & Insurance Companies.
Currently, the group has more than 180 employees, specialized experts in geospatial software and consulting, and realized c. €23 million in sales in 2023.
In December 2023, Merkator Group attracted Sofindev as an investor in the company. Sofindev is a leading independent private equity firm specializing in growth capital for medium-sized enterprises in the Benelux region. With this move, Merkator Group strengthened its financial basis and underpinned its ambition to taking a leading role in the further growth of the geospatial solutions landscape in Europe and beyond.
Opportunity
As Chief Financial Officer (CFO) you will be responsible for the group-wide organization of the financial, accounting, and all administrative processes within the Merkator Group. You will play an essential role in the further professionalization and the long term ambitions of the Group. The ideal candidate is a proactive, hands-on and independent finance professional who is eager to set-up and optimize a multi country financial reporting structure, act as a sparring partner for the management teams and actively support and execute potential new acquisitions.
Job Description
The Group CFO in collaboration with the finance, accounting & administration teams will be responsible for the following tasks:
Accounting
- Ultimate responsibility for the individual and consolidated accounts of the Group and coordination with external auditors;
- Oversee financial reporting, the group-wide audit process, and compliance with tax, regulatory and governance obligations;
- Structure and automate consolidation and reporting;
Financial controlling, management, reporting and decision making
- Set up and oversee the group’s financial & business controlling, including preparing and delivering financial reporting, formulating and monitoring KPIs, analyzing and improving business processes, and advising on strategic decisions;
- Forecast, monitor and optimize working capital and cash flow;
- Monitor and coordinate the treasury function and financings, maintain relationships with banks, auditors, insurers, various government agencies…;
- Prepare and coordinate the annual budget and/or multi-year forecasts;
- Point of contact for the board of directors and shareholders on financial matters;
Strategic growth and acquisitions
- Have a vision for the future (internal & external) growth and development of the organization and translate this into achievable objectives;
- Provide financial leadership for long-term focused transactions (acquisitions, mergers);
- Responsible for post-closing integration.
What we are looking for
- Excellent academic background in economics, commercial sciences, financial management, commercial engineering or similar;
- Minimum 7 to 10 years of experience as a finance professional, ideally starting in a highly structured environment such as a Big4 and then gaining operational experience as a business/financial controller, financial manager or finance director;
- Strong analytical and thorough understanding of reporting, financial flows, profitability;
- Experience in setting up and improving financial structures and processes;
- Experience in realizing acquisitions (i.e. post-closing integration);
- Fluent in Dutch and English, working proficiency in French;
- Previous experience in a private equity portfolio company is an asset;
- Proactive, hands-on and down to earth person that is able to communicate in a clear and positive way to different internal and external stakeholders;
- Excellent communicator in a context of multi-country accounting rules.
What do we offer?
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You will be joining a rapidly growing and succesfull SME with big international ambitions, characterized by a drive for innovation, a high degree of technical and industry expertise, a focus on service quality and flexibility. In the role of CFO, you will have the opportunity to take on the financial management of the Group with significant autonomy. You can expect an attractive salary package (including a company car and other benefits in kind), and over time there is the potential to profit from the company’s success through participation in its share capital.
Convinced of the opportunities that Merkator Group offers you? Then, please send your detailed résumé to our CPO Isabelle Gooris at isabelle.gooris@merkator.com