Director of Finance

Position: Director of Finance

Reports to: Country Director, with a dotted-line report to the WCS Comptroller and Global CFO (based in New York headquarters [WCS-NY])

Location: Antananarivo, Madagascar

Specific Relationships: Regional Business Manager, Regional Controller, Regional Grants Manager

Direct Reports: Finance Officer, Finance Specialist, Finance Officers based in Antananarivo and Maroantsetra and the Procurement Officer

Contract Type: Permanent & Pensionable

Purpose

Support the Country Director and the Senior Management Team (SMT) in all financial management activities of WCS Madagascar. Further, this role is responsible for coordinating all financial and accounting management activities of the WCS Madagascar Country Programme (CP), to ensure compliance with GAAP and WCS financial policies & procedures, donor and statutory requirements, payments, receipts and cash management, and ensure completeness and accuracy of Madagascar CP financial accounts.

This role will prepare accurate and complete financial reports of all WCS activities in compliance with WCS accounting policies & procedures and appropriate grant donor requirements. The Director of Finance will lead in ensuring that resources are secured, safeguarded and utilised for intended purposes. The role will ensure the provision of financial performance insight, support for financial planning, funds management and insurance over the financial control environment.

Responsibilities

Financial Planning and Budgeting

• Coordinate annual institutional financial planning process (BPC) ensuring adequate guidance and support is provided to PIs (Project Investigators) to develop their annual plans and the country program annual budget in line with organisational policies and donor commitments.
• Provide adequate tools to support project and financial planning as well as monitoring of these plans in WCS Madagascar
• Produce and disseminate the necessary procedures and guidelines to support the planning and monitoring process.
• Ensure the global planning tools are adequately explained to users and support them through training and coaching the use of these tools.
• Support the Directors of program and Site Coordinators to consolidate all plans and proposals
• Assists PIs in producing CP budgets and budgets for new proposals.
• Take a leading role in preparing cost summaries
• Upload and update the budgets into the computerised financial management system (currently BPC)

Finance management

• Approval of all DAC (purchasing request), OM (document travel/ travel authorization) and DE (Hiring request) related to expenditures for Head Office in Antananarivo, South West and North West sites.
• Approval of payments (verification of allocations and finance supporting documents including vouchers for each payment)
• Supervision of all finance staff and accountant of WCS Madagascar
• Check the SAP monthly recording
• Ensure monthly reconciliation of balance sheet accounts
• Responsible for monthly budgeting for monthly cash request to New York
• Review of financial aspects to develop specific contracts with service providers
• Review finance supporting documents from service providers
• Work closely with the administrative department for an accurate asset inventory list with all relevant information required in the asset management

Management, reporting and Budgetary Control

• Analyse the budgeting and the burn rate of the country program, the funds of each grant by working closely with PIs, Finance Officers and carry out adjustments as necessary.
• At year end, providing adequate financial and management analysis for decision making
• Prepare and submit timely monthly and year-end reports and required schedules to the Head Office in New York, timely and accurate reports to all donors and the Malagasy government
• Develop a specific finance report to Malagasy government
• Manage the budget controls of all projects in the three sites (MaMaBay, South West and North West)
• Manage all communication and specific financial requests from New York and the Malagasy government

Internal Controls, Risk Management and Statutory compliance

• Ensure implementation of the CP finance policies and procedures as required in order that changes introduced by WCS globally, accounting standards and local laws are complied with.
• Ensure proper segregation of duties is maintained in designing financial processes and assigning tasks among positions.
• Ensure compliance with all statutory and regulatory requirements of local government and donors e.g. withholding taxes for contracts, per diem within statutory limits, etc.
• Monitor and ensure compliance with financial controls and taxation for all financial transactions
• Ensure all data is accurate, complete, and relevant for WCS, donor, and PI information requirements
• Supports the process of communicating and training staff to become familiar with the revised policies and procedures as well as operationalizing and socializing these with program staff.
• Supports the process of ensuring that WCS Madagascar is in compliance with local legislation that may be applicable including those relating to taxation, financial reporting, custom duties and rates.

Audit

• Co-ordinate internal and external audits
• Check all specific donor restrictive requirements for each new contract
• Train the staff members on specific donor requirements and provide communication on key procedures
• Visit the three sites (MaMaBay, South West and North West) for finance internal controls.
• Support the implementation of the action plan to address external and internal audit recommendations.

Funding & Grants Management

• Working closely with the Regional Grants Manager, ensure that all funding proposals are properly costed, do not expose the CP to excessive risks and that WCS full cost coverage policies are adhered to
• Supports and reviews the development of financial plans for funding proposals and monitor expenditure against grant agreements, working with the Country Director and SMT members to resolve issues as necessary.
• Monitor expenditure against grant agreements, working with the PIs to resolve issues as necessary
• Prepare Pipeline (Grant Management Form) in a quarterly basis
• Check the budget related to a specific finance request to particular donor
• Ensure all processes for full cost coverage, staff time and support cost recovery are implemented.

Financial Systems

• Provides support in managing the CP financial systems (SAP) ensuring information captured in these systems are accurate, complete and adequate.
• Assists to address any technical issues that may be hindering the effective operation of financial systems
• Responsible for tracking issues that arise in the SAP system in conjunction with the Regional Finance Manager and providing advice to address them.
• Ensures SAP system activities are coordinated for effective support, skill development and successful upgrade.
• Takes the lead in the maintenance of financial systems – facilitating Month-ends, Year-ends, User and Accounts set up etc. as well as reconciling data with SAP.

People Leadership

• Effectively manage performance; developing team members in order to maximize their contribution to the team and organization
• Supervision of the works of the Finance Officer , Finance Specialist, Finance Officers for Antananarivo and Maroantsetra and the Procurement Officer
• Support staff engagement through maintaining a positive team environment

Qualification Requirements

• Bachelor of Accountancy Degree or equivalent accounting qualifications from recognized institutions.
• Minimum of 5 years post qualification experience, of which at least 2 years must be at a senior management level
• Experience in monitoring budgets, cash flow management and systems development.
• Demonstrated sound and in-depth knowledge of GAAP, Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Financial Management, and Taxation Law of Madagascar.
• Experience using an ERP system
• Advanced knowledge of Excel desirable
• People management experience desirable.
• Knowledge of accounting for non-profit organizations and donor regulations are desirable