IT Systems Administrator (Finance)
- Location:
- RGU Garthdee, Aberdeen, AB10 7GJ
- Salary:
- £47,389 - £56,535 per year
- Contract Type:
- Permanent
- Position Type:
- Full Time
- Hours:
- 35 hours per week
- Work From Home:
- Hybrid
Job Summary
Robert Gordon University has a well-established reputation as an innovative, friendly and thoroughly modern university.
We are seeking a skilled and business‑aware Finance Systems Administrator to join our IT team to provide specialist support to the Finance function. This is a pivotal role that sits at the intersection of Finance and IT, ensuring that core financial systems are stable, secure, well‑controlled, and responsive to evolving business needs.
You will be a technically capable systems professional with a strong understanding of finance operations and the critical importance of accuracy, control, and auditability. You will support and administer finance systems with care and discipline, recognising the impact these systems have on statutory reporting, governance, and institutional trust. Working closely with Finance colleagues, vendors, and IT peers, you will manage system configuration, integrations, upgrades, and change in a structured and risk‑aware manner.
Crucially, this role requires you to build strong relationships and communicate effectively with non‑technical stakeholders. Acting as a trusted bridge between Finance and IT, you will translate business requirements into robust technical solutions, manage expectations, and provide clear, practical advice. You will bring a calm, methodical approach, particularly during critical periods such as month‑end, year‑end, and audit cycles.
This is an excellent opportunity for an individual who takes pride in keeping essential systems running smoothly, reducing risk and surprises, and enabling Finance colleagues to work with confidence. Success in the role will be reflected in stable systems, high‑quality data, and a Finance function that feels well supported by technology.
In keeping with RGU's commitment to work/life balance you will have the opportunity to work from home for a portion of the working week and also benefit from a generous pension scheme, 46 days annual leave (including statutory days) an onsite nursery and sports centre, as well as a range of voluntary health and travel benefits.
We are committed to attracting and engaging a diverse range of staff and fostering a culture where everyone feels welcome, comfortable to express their ideas, and can reach their full potential. For more information, please visit Our Diverse Workforce pages.
As per the UKVI immigration rules, this role may be eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route. Sponsorship under this route is dependent on factors specific to the applicant and if tradeable points can be used under the rules.
Job Description
RESPONSIBLE TO: Head of Strategy, Development & Projects, IT and Digital
RESPONSIBLE FOR: No Supervisory Responsibility
PURPOSE OF POST: Responsible for the technical stewardship, development, and optimisation of the University’s core financial systems. The role ensures secure, stable, and efficient system operation while enabling high-quality data governance and interoperability across institutional platforms. Working within IT & Digital, the postholder provides deep technical expertise to integrate finance systems with HR, Payroll, Student Records, CRM, and analytics environments, supporting the University’s digital maturity ambitions.
PRINCIPAL DUTIES:
Financial Systems Technical Ownership
Administer, configure, and maintain the University’s finance systems, ensuring reliability, security, and optimal performance.
Oversee system development, test, and production environments, including and manage release cycles and controlled deployments.
Act as the technical product owner for finance-related digital platforms within the IT & Digital architecture.
Continuous Improvement & Innovation
Develop and implement a financial systems roadmap aligned with Finance and the wider University’s strategic objectives.
Identify opportunities for automation and workflow optimisation, reducing manual processing and improving data consistency.
Lead on business process reviews in collaboration with Finance and other departments.
Evaluate sector trends, vendor roadmaps, and new technologies to recommend improvements to financial systems architecture and best practise.
Systems Integration & Interoperability
Maintain and implement integrations between finance systems and enterprise platforms such as HR, Payroll, Student Records, and data warehouse systems.
Align interfaces and workflows with institutional data models and governance requirements and ensure data integrity.
Data Governance & Reporting
Implement and enforce technical controls that maintain data integrity, accuracy, and compliance with institutional data governance policies.
Support Finance and Planning teams by ensuring underlying system data structures enable effective reporting, analytics and statutory returns.
Security, Access Control & Compliance
Administer system access using role-based access control (RBAC), ensuring alignment with cyber security standards.
Collaborate with governance teams teams to ensure compliance with internal and external audit requirements.
Monitor system logs, security alerts, and unusual data activity, escalating risks appropriately.
Stakeholder Collaboration & Supplier Management
Serve as the primary IT liaison to the Finance Department, translating functional requirements into technical designs and system improvements.
Engage with external system vendors, cloud providers, and implementation partners to resolve system issues and progress enhancements.
Collaborate to align financial system changes with institutional priorities.
Person Specification
ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS
Qualifications and Professional Memberships
- Degree or equivalent professional experience in a related subject (Finance, IT, Data)
Knowledge and skills
- Strong understanding of financial processes, internal controls, and data structures.
- Knowledge of cyber security principles, identity management, and audit compliance.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with attention to detail.
- Ability to communicate complex technical information effectively to non-technical stakeholders.
- Ability to manage competing priorities across multiple projects and operational demands.
- Ability to work independently and lead change across departments.
- Strong data analysis and financial reporting capability.
Experience
- Significant experience administering and supporting enterprise finance systems (e.g. OneAdvanced, Cedar, E5, Unit4, Oracle, SAP, Workday).
- Hands-on experience with system integrations, APIs, ETL tools, or data flows across enterprise platforms.
- Experience delivering technical projects such as upgrades, migrations, or system enhancements.
DESIRABLE REQUIREMENTS
Knowledge and skills
- Knowledge of reporting and analytics tools (e.g. Power BI, SQL, dashboards).
- Knowledge of enterprise data governance frameworks and architectural standards.
- Familiarity with cloud-based finance platforms and modern API integration patterns.
Experience
- Experience in Higher Education or public sector organisations.
Behaviours
Behaviour 1: Communication - Ability to receive, understand and convey information requiring careful explanation and information of a complex or conceptual nature, in a clear and accurate manner
Behaviour 2: Service Delivery - Experience of exploring and adapting a service to meet customers’ expectations and also identifying ways of improving standards
Behaviour 3: Initiative and Problem Solving - Experience of resolving new problems where there is a mass of information or diverse, partial and conflicting data with a range of potential suitable options
Behaviour 4: Decision Making - Experience of using own judgement to make decisions, making collaborative decisions with others to reach conclusions and providing advice or information that will influence the decisions of others
Behaviour 5: Planning and Organising Resources - Experience of planning, prioritising and organising the work of yourself and others (within own area) on a daily, weekly or monthly basis, whilst ensuring the effective use of resources
Behaviour 6: Team Development - Experience of providing advice or guidance to new starts delivering training or instruction to others on specific tasks or activities