Finance Officer - Account Payable

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With over 100 years of rich history and strongly positioned as a local bank with regional and international expertise, a career with our family offers the opportunity to be part of this exciting growth journey, to reset our future and shape our destiny as a proudly African group.

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Job Summary

• Job holder is responsible for ensuring that all vendor invoices and staff reimbursements are prepared and processed accurately, efficiently, and in accordance with Absa bank’s policies, and all required regulations.
• Job holder will be directly responsible for effective cost accounting by ensuring cost are accurately booked and accounted as per required accounting standards and regulations.
• The jobholder also maintains the Head Office creditors’ payments (accounts payable) and the Bank’s fixed assets system.
• Work closely with the Financial controller and provide support during auditing exercise.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities:

Account payable activities and reporting:

• Maintain sound control and process flow of the vendors’ invoice processing under accounts payable.
• Daily processing of the vendors’ invoices for payments
• Follow up on the status of the unapproved invoices in the system and advice financial controller on the issues on cockpit.
• Preparing and processing cash advances to staff and retirements as and when requested, in alignment with bank’s policy.
• Managing and processing branch expenditures and corporate credit cards as per bank’s policy and procedures.
• Monthly preparation of the amortization entries for prepaid expenses
• Preparing monthly accruals journals for major costs
• Periodical review of the cost accruals against actual costs booked in a month
• Maintain accurate and organized accounts payable records and documentation.
• Communicate with vendors and internal departments to address queries and payment issues.
• Contribute to process improvements to enhance efficiency and accuracy in payable operations.
• Assisting financial controller in month end closing process
• Work closely with CRES and IT and assist in processing all fixed assets related items
• Perform GL accounts reconciliations for all accounts attached to Accounts payable activities including the payments control account as per bank’s policy
• Support audits by providing required documentation and reconciliations
• Any other duties as directed by the line manager

Skills required undertaking the role:

• Understanding of short, medium- and long-term strategies, goals and objectives
• Understanding of Governance and controls
• An Appreciation of the external economic, political, legal and regulatory environment and their impact to the business.
• Cost accounting knowledge
• Strong analytical skills
• Interpersonal skills – Time & stakeholders’ management
• PC skills
• Ability to work to tight deadlines without compromising accuracy

Risk and Control Objective:

• Manage risk and control effectively by applying applicable risk frameworks and embedding a positive risk culture
• Understanding of own role in the end to end processes in which you play a part, including applicable risks and controls.
• Adhere to Absa’s policies and procedures applicable to own role, demonstrating sound judgment and responsible risk management.
• Report all risk events / incidents / issues using the defined process for your business area and help to understand why these happened and how to prevent them in future. 
• Proactively look for ways to improve the control environment by considering what could go wrong in the processes you operate and how errors could be prevented.
• All mandatory training completed to deadline All mandatory training completed to deadline

• Product knowledge
• Good knowledge of the bank’s products
• Fair knowledge of the accounting software (System operations) – SAP, Core banking etc

Specific requirements(Qualifications/experience)

• Advanced Diploma or bachelor’s degree in accounting, Finance, or related field.
• Experience in accounts payable or general accounting.
• Professional certification (CPA, ACCA)
• Cost accounting skills

Training required

• Product / Service knowledge
• Stakeholders’ management
• Vendors SLA agreements

Personal Attributes

• Team player
• Analysis and judgement
• Proactive
• Information gathering
• Thoroughness
• Business awareness
• Persuasive
• Good communication, report writing and presentation skills.
• Quality conscious
• Adaptability

Absa Values

Absa’s Values and Behaviours represent the set of standards which governs the actions of all of us who work for the bank and against which the performance of every one of us in Absa are being assessed and rewarded:

• Trust
• Resourceful
• Stewardship
• Inclusive
• Courage