Role Purpose: The Accounting Manager is responsible for all areas relating KickStart’s financial reporting – both accounting and managerial as well as the overall accounting activities.
The holder of this position is to provide a full range of financial, compliance, and operational audits, business advisory, internal audits and investigations, internal control structures review and ensure accountability, and proper use of KickStart resources.
The Manager supervises the work of an accounting team and is responsible for managing the team to ensure work is properly allocated and completed.
This position addresses tight deadlines and a multitude of accounting activities including month-end-close process, internal reporting, year-end audit preparation and the support of budget and forecast activities.
The ideal candidate will be passionate about the value of ongoing process improvement within an advanced cloud accounting environment.
KickStart uses Serenic navigator’s accounting applications and the candidate must be confident of their ability to thrive in an evolving, fast-paced environment.
Scope of Role: Reports to: Director of Finance
Staff directly reporting to this post: None
Works with: Country/Program Accountants, Project Accountants and the Budget & Grants Finance Manager
Key Areas of Accountability:
The position is responsible for overseeing most of the accounting activities related to the maintenance of a clean General Ledger to ensure data integrity and compliance with established procedures.
The Accounting Manager’s key focus includes:
Obtaining and maintaining a thorough understanding of the financial reporting and GL structure.
Ensuring an accurate and timely monthly, quarterly and year-end close.
Ensuring the timely reporting of all monthly financial information.
Management of Internal and Annual Audits
Project Accounting Management
Maintenance of the general ledger and reporting
Co-lead the annual budget process and support monthly forecasting activities.
Lead process and system improvement initiatives to enhance the workflow of the department.
Maintenance of the ERP System and training accounting staff
Assist in training new and existing accounting staff to support overall department goals.
Respond to inquiries about financial results, special reporting requests and ad hoc projects
Key Performance Criteria:
Timely and accurate production of financial reports with full integrity of data
Strengthening of the Country programs / field programs accounting functions / capacity and development of field program accountants
Proper planning, coordination and management of the annual audit process to ensure that these are done and completed on time as scheduled and agreed with the external auditors.
Ensures action plans for responses to management letters across offices and monitor execution of these plans by giving guidance to the program staff.
Ensuring compliance to established accounting and auditing standards such GAAP, IFRS and other international accounting and auditing standards.
Ensuring internal audits are done on time and management reviews acted upon accordingly with proper guidance and direction to the program staff.
Ensuring the accounting functions of the Country Offices are operating optimally by assisting the Country Accountants to coordinate and manage the accounting activities at their offices
Ensuring regular review of the General Ledger to ensure timely production of financial reports with data that is full of integrity.
Demonstrate and help institute high standards of conduct and ethics as well as appropriate judgment, independence and discretion amongst finance and other key staff.
Help compose, type, and maintain correspondence, reports, and various other materials and projects and submit reports and documents as deemed necessary for projects such as Board Reports, Budget Reports etc.
Qualifications and Experience
Bachelor’s degree with major course work in Accounting or Finance, CPA training a strong plus.
Over six years of progressively responsible accounting and auditing experience, with 2+ year’s supervisory experience.
Knowledge of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), Generally Accepted Auditing Standards (GAAS).
Ability to understand and apply some government laws, regulations and compliance requirements on issues such as taxes.
Experience working fund accounting in a U.S. NGO is preferred.
Public accounting experience a plus.
Skills and Behaviours
Fluent in oral and written English with ability to read, analyze, and interpret common scientific and technical financial tools such as journals, Ledgers, Trial Balance and reports such as Balance Sheet and Income Statement, and financial and legal documents.
Ability to work with departments throughout the organization and respond effectively to common inquiries or complaints from management and other staff, external auditors or regulatory agencies.
Ability to write reports that conform to prescribed style and format such as Board Reports, Budget Reports, Donor Reports and Financial Statements.
Excellent communication and customer service skills, with the ability to simplify and explain complex accounting guidance to stakeholders of all levels across multiple functions.
Self-starter who can work with minimal supervision in a fast -pace setting Mathematical Skills
Meticulous and attentive to details and high degree of discerning financial information.
Ability to work with mathematical concepts as they relate to auditing and fiscal analysis to include accounting and the budget.
Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.
Ability to interpret an extensive variety of technical instructions in mathematical or diagram form and deal with several abstract and concrete variables.
Exceptional analytical and problem-solving skills.
Advanced Excel skills