概要

A former colleague once shared with me an Albert Einstein quote in which he describes himself as 'passionately curious', He told me my thirst for knowledge and desire to research reminded him of this. I'd like to think he was likening me to Einstein.

Hi, I'm Arslan Zahid and I am passionately curious.

I have almost 7 years of experience in financial planning & analysis. Currently, I work as Assistant Manager Budgeting & Planning at ECS Pvt Ltd, where I create, implement and monitor the company's budget, & help them to control their expenses and create financial models for decision making. I'm deeply passionate about creating such models that can help the company to decide their future actions.

Previously, I worked at Sefam Pvt Ltd as a Financial Analyst & as a Budget Controller at FAST Cables.

My specialties include Financial Planning & Analysis, Financial Modeling, Budgeting & Controlling, Forecasting & Rolling Estimates, and Cashflow Projections.

Competencies: Advanced Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Visio, Power BI. Also, hand-on experience in Oracle, SAP, and MS Dynamics AX.

I've started learning VBA & Tableau. I'm also enhancing my existing skills to keep myself up to date. I'm enthusiastically grabbing onto any other technique & software I can integrate into my work that can add value.

If you catch me outside of work, you'll find me at the gym, watching TV shows, reading books, watching finance-related tutorials/lectures, listening biographies or TED Talks, sketching/painting, spending time with my family and exploring my beautiful country. I enjoy meeting new people and hearing new perspectives.

I look forward to connecting with you here on LinkedIn or you can email me at [email protected].

工作经历

公司标识
Financial Business Analyst
HAC Agri Ltd
Jul 2020 - 代表 | Lahore, Pakistan

HAC Agri Ltd. was incorporated in 2015 with the intention of setting up new innovative standards in pioneering a CA (controlled atmosphere) storage facility, the first and only one of its kind in Pakistan. HAC Agri is committed to serving the agricultural sector in Pakistan by providing high-quality fresh and hygienic fruits and vegetables to national and international customers.ABOUT ROLE:• Developing strategies for long-term business growth; developed a 10-year business plan (three statements) for management that supports long-term business success. Additionally, I created multiple financial models for investment purposes.• Providing recommendations based on the analysis as to what would be the best investment option that would yield more profit margins for the organization. Developed a thorough understanding of the core business and suggested opportunities for improvement; by creating a product portfolio and recommending sales tactics, revenue increased by 109% in FY21 and 50% in FY22.• Implementing zero-based budgeting and cost-cutting strategies for reduction in leakages to a manageable level which resulted in yearly operating cost savings of PKR 12 million.• Preparing Cashflow projections with 12 months horizon (rolling estimates) every month for cash flow management.• Conducting detailed financial analysis, which may include advanced financial modeling, profitability analysis, return on investment, monitoring business issues, and impact on the bottom line. Preparing presentation materials to be used in both internal and external meetings. Stayed abreast of macro developments as well as key trends and drivers for the company.

公司标识
Assistant Manager Budgeting & Planning
Ehsan Chappal Store (Pvt.) Ltd
Jul 2019 - Jul 2020 | Lahore, Pakistan

ECS is one of the most recognized names in the Pakistani footwear industry that has around 80 brand outlets in more than 40 cities in Pakistan.ABOUT ROLE:• Prepared financial feasibilities for new projects including shops & ensured annual budgets are derived from & in line with those feasibilities to maximize the company\'s profit; created detailed financial feasibilities (using the DCF model) to evaluate investment in multiple new retail stores valued more than PKR 250 million.• Prepared Cashflow projections with 12 months horizon (Rolling estimates) for cashflow management and beforehand financing needs for the new investments.• Developed & Implemented the Company\'s budget and analyzed the financial information (OPEX, CAPEX) to ensure all are within budget. Identified & report variances between budgeted and actual financial results; implemented Zero-based budgeting that saved leakages up to PKR 3.5 million (Annual).• Automated Financial Statements & other financial reports in Power BI (Service) with professional assistance.• Identified any loss-making shops by carefully examining each existing shop\'s profitability; provided recommendations that turned 2 existing loss-making shops into profitable ones.

公司标识
Financial Analyst
Sefam Pvt Limited
May 2018 - Jun 2019 | Lahore, Pakistan

Sefam was established in 1985 with the aim of manufacturing and retailing quality embroidered fabrics, equal in quality to the best in the world, made in Pakistan. Sefam started out with the Bareeze brand of embroidered designer fabrics but has now grown to a family of 11 brands (Bareeze, Bareeze Man, Home Expressions, Minnie Minors, Chinyere, Rang Ja, Super Squad, The Entertainer, Kayseria, Shahnameh, Leisure Club) each of which is the largest in their category in the Pakistani market.ABOUT ROLE:• Prepared financial feasibilities for new projects including shops & ensured annual budgets are in line with those feasibilities to maximize the company\'s profit; developed detailed financial feasibilities (using the DCF model) to evaluate investment in multiple new retail stores valued at more than PKR 450 million.• Prepared Cashflow projections with 12 months horizon (Rolling estimates) for cashflow management and beforehand financing needs for the new investments.• Planned & Implemented the Company\'s budget and analyzed the financial information (OPEX, CAPEX) to ensure all are within budget. Identified & reported the variances between budgeted and actual financial results; prepared each of 11 brands\' annual hybrid budget (incremental & zero-based) and consolidated it into a master budget.

公司标识
Budget Controller
Fast Cables Limited
Jan 2018 - May 2018 | Lahore, Pakistan

Fast Cables Limited is Pakistan’s leading and most trusted electrical cable manufacturer and one of the most reliable brands in the Cable Industry of Pakistan and the choice of leading electrical consultants, engineers, and architects in the country.ABOUT ROLE:• Prepared monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports; initiated detailed monthly sales reports to the board highlighting issues in specific segments and provided recommendations.• Reviewed and recommended changes to SOPS; highlighted weak internal controls and revised SOPs to overcome those weaknesses.• Prepared annual budget according to company guidelines and in a manner that caters to all departments. Identified variances & reasons for the discrepancies between actual vs budget; implemented hybrid budgeting by replacing incremental budget and reduced 12% operational expenses.• Performed month-end closing tasks including preparation of various journal entries in addition to other assigned corporate accounting functions.• Assisted the manager in automating the various financial reports.

公司标识
Sr. Accounts Executive
Fast Cables Limited
Jan 2017 - Dec 2017 | Lahore, Pakistan

I was responsible to perform month-end closing tasks including preparation of
various journal entries in addition to other assigned corporate accounting
functions, Analysis of financial statement, Variance Analysis & reasons for discrepancies between actual vs budget, Expense Matrix Analysis, Reviewing and recommending changes to SOPS.

公司标识
Internship
Ernst & Young
Jan 2016 - Dec 2016 | Lahore, Pakistan

Ernst & Young
Ford Rhodes Sidat Hyder & Co. Chartered Accountants

I was responsible for conducting Internal Audit and other related
engagements through planning, execution and conclusion stages in
accordance with International Accounting Standards and the EY
Global Audit methodology.

Some of my major clients and areas of work were:
Pakistan Stock Exchange (formerly LSE)
Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC)
Servis Industries Limited (SIL)

学历

Oxford Brookes University, UK
学士, 贸易学士, BSc (Hons) in Applied Accounting‎
Accounting & Finance
所占比重 70%
2021
SKANS
证书, ACCA‎
Accounting & Finance, Strategic Financial Management, Auditing
Completed
2018
HEC Equivalence
硕士, 贸易硕士学位, M.COM‎
Accounting & Finance
CGPA 3.0/5
2018
Center of Financial Excellence
证书, CAT‎
Accounting & Finance
Completed
2011
Forman Christian College
中级/A级, 计算机科学学生, ICS‎
computer, mathematics, statistics
等级 A
2008

技能

中级 Audit Management
熟练 Budgeting & Forecasting
熟练 Cashflow Management
熟练 Consolidated Financial Statements
熟练 Financial Analysis
熟练 Financial Modeling
熟练 Financial Statement Analysis
中级 GAAP
熟练 MS Excel
中级 MS Power BI
熟练 MS PowerPoint
熟练 PPC Command
熟练 Project Feasibility Analysis
熟练 Receptionist Task Management

语言

熟练 英语
熟练 乌尔都语