Labour Forecasting Lead

About the role

The Labour Forecasting Lead will shape, plan and optimise labour investment for Primark’s multi‑market retail business, covering roughly 70,000 colleagues. You will combine strong financial and analytical expertise to ensure labour is efficiently deployed, aligned to customer demand and delivers maximum value.

Key responsibilities

• Plan and forecast labour costs, ensuring alignment with budgets and business performance.
• Lead budgeting and forecasting cycles with clear assumptions and driver transparency.
• Deliver variance analysis to highlight cost, volume and productivity drivers.
• Develop a labour productivity framework and roadmap to offset wage inflation while protecting the customer experience.
• Partner with Finance to manage labour as a key P&L cost line with strong governance.
• Maintain financial models and scenario analysis across trading changes, wage inflation and hours mix.
• Build reporting and KPIs that track labour efficiency, utilisation and wage‑investment returns.
• Align forecast, scheduled and actual hours with Workforce Management, analysing root causes of variances.
• Support country teams with analysis and in‑store diagnostics to identify efficiency opportunities.
• Lead and develop a small analytical team, setting direction and building capability.

Required profile

• Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or CIMA) with approximately 1–4 years post‑qualification experience in FP&A.
• Proven ability to produce robust financial plans and clear cost driver analysis.
• Experience working in a retail or multi‑market environment is desirable.
• Strong stakeholder management and commercial challenge skills.

Required skills