Job Description

Area Finance Manager

TEAM/PROGRAMME: Finance

LOCATION:  Mogadishu

GRADE:  2

CONTRACT LENGTH:

12 months

Child Safeguarding:

Level 1:  the post holder will not have contact with children and/or young people, or access to personal data about children or young people, as part of their work; therefore, a police check will not be mandatory for this post unless the content of the post changes, in which case the Child Safeguarding level should be reviewed.

Level 2: either the post holder will have access to personal data about children and/or young people as part of their work; or the post holder will be working in a ‘regulated’ position (accountant, barrister, solicitor, legal executive); therefore, a police check will be required (at ‘standard’ level in the UK or equivalent in other countries).

ROLE PURPOSE:

The purpose of this post is to ensure that the area office adheres to all its financial management obligations internally within Save the Children and externally with donors.  The position will also function as a key and important link between the finance department and other functions within the area Operations and will work closely with the area representative, field staff, and Country Teams.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Direct Reports to:  Area Representative

Technically Reports to: Finance Director

Staff directly reporting to this post:  Area Finance Coordinator, Partnership Finance Coordinator

Working contacts:

Internal: Area Finance Team, Budget Holders, Support staff, internal audit and the Country Finance Office.

External: Tax Offices, External Auditors, Regulatory Bodies, Bank, Insurance, Suppliers, Transporters, partners

Key primary accountabilities

Strategic Financial Management

• Provide strategic finance support to the Area Senior Management Team; Forecast Budget development and monitoring in coordination with Awards, Operations, supply chain teams, and advice on how best to utilize the program’s funding portfolio.
• Monitor Area operations funding gab and ensure on time measures are in place for the Area and also field offices
• Provide a high standard financial accounting, ensuring compliance to local statutory law and donors regulations and consistent with Save the Children accounting policies, procedures and tools.

• Ensure that all Save the Children financial controls are in place, understood and enforced in the area. These will include key controls regarding balance sheet reconciliations, procurement controls, adherence to scheme of delegation limits and enforcement of finance manual policies and procedures.

Cost recovery, budgeting, and financial reporting

• Ensure all donor financial compliance requirements are complied with and reports are prepared on time with complete audit trial
• Prepare and disseminate timely and high quality monthly BVAs
• Maintain and update the staff funding trackers ‘Non thematic and cross thematic’ schedule for the area office on quarterly basis and share it with Head of Budgeting.
• Work with Budget holders to develop realistic and accurate phased budgets in line with the project implementation plans and monitor this monthly to ensure the relevant KPIs are met.

• Contribute to the budget development for new proposals by establishing close coordination with Budget Holders, Business development, and budgeting teams in line with donor/member guidance/templates and by ensuring full cost recovery for the area support costs in line with the nature of the project.
• Ensure full cost recovery is achieved (through strategic financial management and proposal budget development)
• Monitor shared costs charged through the Cost Allocation Methodology (CAM) and ensure that CAM budget utilization is monitored on monthly basis

Financial Accounting and Systems

• Overseeing and monitoring System (Agresso) payment KPI targets and ensuring payment performance KPI targets are met.
• Coordinate Solving System issues (Pro-Save & Agresso AP) between Finance & Supply Chain teams
• Ensuring that all Area System Payments are cleared within the month and monitor PO commitments
• Ensuring that online Scheme of Delegations is updated on Monthly basis and shared with Country Finance for system upload
• Work with field staff to ensure that all financial transactions are recorded in an accurate and consistent manner and in accordance with agreed timelines and ensure that the monthly financial work plan is adhered to.
• Monitor coding of expenditures and ensure timely adjustments when activation of new awards with relevant audit trail
• Check the correctness of payment vouchers and supporting documentation for all the area offices and/or local implementing partner, recommend the necessary improvements and follow up actions and ensure the supporting documents are fully compliance with SCI and donor requirements.
• Participation in internal and external audit exercises and subsequent implementation of the auditors’ recommendations
• Carry out regular reconciliations on Total Inventory Management System (TiM) and Agresso and ensure accurate inventory data is migrating to the Financial Management System

• Support the role out of upcoming system improvement projects such Fleet Service Charge, Coding etc.
• Collaborate with the Country Finance on month-end/Yearend process and checklists, and ensure that functional finance KPIs are observed green

Internal Controls

• Ensure that at all stages of the program implementation, the control framework of the operation is consistent with the situation and ensure that necessary risks are taken knowingly with appropriate mitigating actions.
• Support Cash Transfer programming activities from feasibility assessment to implementation, and ensure accountability by enforcing adequate controls
• Ensure the program is adhering to Finance quality framework minimum standards, Country Office Finance Manual and other SCI financial policies including circulars, memos and guidance from the Finance Director, Regional Finance Office and the Centre.
• Ensure that controls around procurement, cash management, asset management, stock management is adhered in line with SCI Financial and Procurement policies

Cash flow

• Prepare the monthly cash forecasts for the area office based on the planned programme activities and forward this to the Area Representative for approval with a breakdown for three trenches.
• Ensure access to cash for areas of operations by establishing effective banking arrangements or by ensuring safe cash in transit alternatives through implementation of emergency cash management guidelines
• Ensure that cash management KPIs are observed green, cash counts take place on weekly and monthly basis

Resources and capacity building

• Assess new partner financial capacity and provide financial capacity building when relevant

• Recruit, train, manage and retain high performing finance team in the area office and in the sub offices.
• Ensure that all new staff recruited are adequately inducted in Save the Children emergencies and financial systems

• Strengthen the non-finance staff knowledge and capacity to manage finance by providing induction, training and coaching consistent with their various roles and responsibilities.
• Run periodic trainings for all staff in the area, including budget holders and project staff, on efficient budget management and other SCI finance policies and procedures including Fraud and dishonesty and other compliance policies.
• Carry out periodic field visits in order to support and build capacities of the field finance teams in the area office and/or finance staff of local implementing partners.

• Comply with all relevant Save the Children policies and procedures with respect to health and safety, security, equal opportunities and other relevant policies.

Experiences and Qualifications

SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (our Values in Practice)

Developing Self and Others (Accomplished)

• Gives regular positive and constructive feedback to others
• Identifies clear development needs and development plans through regular constructive reviews of their own performance (and their team’s where appropriate)
• Creates space for others to learn and provides challenging and stretching tasks and assignments when people are ready for them

• Coaches others to learn from their experiences on the job and to use the resources available to them

Problem Solving and Decision Making (Accomplished)

• Uses data and evidence to drive decision making for quality improvement
• Analyses and exercises judgment in challenging situations where specific guidance or the full facts are not available
• Makes informed strategic decisions based on full evaluation of the opportunities and risks of each idea and solution

• Takes decisions when needed and is prepared to account for them

Delivering Result(Accomplished)

• Maintains a broad strategic perspective at the same time as an awareness of the detail of a situation
• Establishes clear and compelling objectives with teams and individuals and monitors progress and performance
• Creates and applies measures and metrics to track performance
• Holds others accountable for achieving results and challenges underperformance
• Demonstrates financial awareness and a concern for cost effectiveness.

Working Effectively with Others Accomplished)

• Enables people from a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives to contribute to positive outcomes
• Breaks down silo working and challenges behaviours that are not collaborative
• Knows when to follow and when to lend leadership to strengthen other leaders
• Recognizes when trust is broken and seeks to resolve conflict and re-establish trust

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• A University degree in Commerce, Accounting or Business Administration (Finance or Accounting option) from a recognised university.
• A minimum of 3 years of progressively mid-level management experience with INGO’s in professional accounting and financial management.
• Demonstrated experience in working with local partners and supporting in building their capacity.
• Excellent knowledge and understanding of generally accepted accounting procedures
• Experience of systems audit and articulating/implementing recommendations
• Good personal organisational skills, including time management, and ability to meet deadlines and work under pressure
• Ability to work within a multicultural setting
• Training skills
• Computers literate, proficient with excel and computerised accounting packages.
• High level of integrity and ability to work as part of a professional team
• Ability and willingness to travel to field offices and to meet tight deadlines.

Additional job responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

Equal Opportunities

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.

Child Safeguarding:

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

Adult Safeguarding.

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI anti-harassment policy, all employees are also expected to carry out their duties in accordance with SCI protection from sexual exploitation abuse.

Health and Safety

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

At SCI, we uphold the principle of equal rights and opportunities for all our employees. In our commitment to fostering a more inclusive workplace and addressing gender gaps, we have implemented additional efforts aimed at supporting female qualified candidates: -

• Maternity leave (6 months)
• Annual Leave 30 working days
• 10% *gross salary. (female allowance)
• 1.5 flexible working hours for lactating mothers

Skills Required

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