KickStart is
an award-winning, global nonprofit social enterprise that develops and
mass-markets low-cost irrigation solutions that are bought by thousands of
small-holder farmers in developing countries and used to increase their income
by up to a factor of ten, enabling them to lift themselves sustainably out of
poverty.
Using an entrepreneurial business model, KickStart has proven its cost- effective solution to poverty in Kenya, Tanzania, Mali and Burkina Faso, as well as in a dozen of other African countries.
KickStart plans to enhance its Financial Management and as a result it is seeking to recruit a Country Accountant to take on that role and responsibility.
Job Title: Country Accountant - Kenya Program
Function: Finance &
Admin
Location: KickStart HQ Office - Nairobi
Grade:
4
Type of
Contract: Open Ended
Role
Purpose:
The Country
Accountant has responsibility to undertake the day to day administration of
accounting and financial management of KickStart operations.
The position
will work to ensure KickStart maintains high standards of financial integrity
and accountability.
The role is
integral at the program level and is responsible for the day to day management
of the financial functions of the country office
Scope of
Role:
Reports to: Director Of Finance & Admin
Staff directly reporting to this post: Accounts Assistants
Works with: Program Staff responsible for managing the programmatic aspects of the organization.
Key Areas of Accountability:
Financial Management
Reports to: Director Of Finance & Admin
Staff directly reporting to this post: Accounts Assistants
Works with: Program Staff responsible for managing the programmatic aspects of the organization.
Key Areas of Accountability:
Financial Management
- Prepare, examine, and analyze
accounting records, financial statements, and other financial reports to
assess accuracy, completeness, and conformance to reporting and procedural
standards.
- Maintain and reconcile all
records of income and expenditure and preparation of monthly and annual
financial reports. Ensure that there is proper accounting and financial
control over all income received and expenses incurred.
- Ensure strong systems of
internal control are implemented and followed, specifically:
- Maintenance of an effective and
controlled ordering/procurement, sales and inventory processing systems.
- Maintenance of a system to
ensure goods received are matched against orders and that variations to
orders are reconciled.
- Payment of all creditor
accounts on a timely basis taking advantage of discounts where ever
possible.
- Control of expenditure against
budget.
- Maintenance of systems to
account for all incoming and outgoing monies.
- Payment of accounts and banking
of cash receipts in a timely manner.
- Maintain a petty cash system
and reconcile monthly.
- Maintaining an up to date
record of transactions within the Asset Register/ledger. Ensure the
organisation’s Asset Register is maintained on a regular basis and
appropriate depreciation schedules are completed on monthly basis.
- Supervision of daily payments
and receipts.
- Maintaining the Financial
Policy and Procedures Manual on a continual basis. Develop and review accounting
policies and procedures to ensure optimum effectiveness across all aspects
of the organisation’s operations.
- Assist in preparation of
elements of the annual budget in consultation with the Program Manager and
other functional managers, Budget & Grants Finance Manager and the
Director of Finance in the context of goals set by the organisation.
- Management of weekly and
monthly cash and cash flow process by keeping all the finance/accounts
books up to date to a point where it would be easy to extract current cash
balances on a day-to-day basis.
- Payroll activities; such as
payment of all salaries, payment of tax and other monthly deductions
as required by legislation, timely preparation of annual payment
summary reconciliation, monitor compliance with all tax Legislation.
- In coordination with the Sales
& Marketing Managers, develop a credit management policy for debtors
that ensure all outstanding debts are collected on time and that any
disbursement of KickStart equipments is done following the laid down
procedure.
- Reviewing business/field
advances taken by employees and ensure that KickStart’s policies regarding
these advances are adhered to and that all monies are accounted and ensure
staff are provided with regular updates of their personal accounts.
- Ensuring that all the bank
accounts held by KickStart are reconciled on month-to-month basis. All
these should be reviewed by the Grants & Budget Finance Manager every
month before more funds are released into the accounts.
- Ensure that book of accounts
are audited by external auditors yearly and at any other intervals as
necessary. Ensuring all recommendations from such audits is implemented.
Preparation of financial records for the annual Audit.
- All the finance staff in the
country program fall under the instruction of the Country Accountant.
He/She is to ensure that they are well supervised, trained and
coordinated. They should also be working and ensure their smart goals are
reviewed in order for them to give the desired results.
- Establish and maintain office
systems for the sound operation of the organisation, including:
- Ensure legal and regulatory
obligations of the organisation are met including compliance with
taxation, insurance and to keep current with changes in these areas.
- Ensure that proper and accurate
administration of records are maintained, including
- Asset register.
- Customer, Vendor data base.
- Adequate and effective filling.
- Ensuring all accounting
activities as specified in the monthly activity log are completed and
signed off.
- Prepare periodic financial
reports and statements
Key
Performance Criteria
- Timely and accurate recording
of transactions,
- Timely and accurate production
of financial reports,
- Zero tolerance of
non-compliance with internal controls, systems and policies,
- Timely and accurate production
of financial reports.
Qualifications
and Experience
- University degree in
Accounting, Finance or related field. Advanced degree preferred;
- Minimum 4-6 years in Book
keeping or Accounting experience necessary;
- Minimum 3-5 years of progressive
experience in donor funded organisations;
- Highly proficient in word
processing and spreadsheet applications;
- Excellent analytical, verbal
and written communication skills required;
- Extremely detail oriented;
- Familiarity financial
management information systems, Microsoft Navision’s suites such as Donor
Vision, Award Vision, ERP and grant accounting preferred.
- Must have the ability to work
in a fast paced environment with strict deadlines and be able to
- Sound working knowledge of
quality management systems and internal auditing processes
Skills and
Behaviours
- Demonstrated experience in
managing and maintaining full financial accountability of an organisation
with experience in bookkeeping and use of computers and computerized
accounting software.
- Demonstrated experience and
skills in all aspects of office administration procedures.
- Demonstrated experience in, or
knowledge of, the functioning of donor funded non-governmental
organizations.
- Demonstrated organisational
skills including ability to prioritise, manage time and develop and
maintain systems.
- Ability to work effectively at
an individual and team level as well as within a multicultural
organization.
- Ability to communicate
effectively with/to people.
If you
posses the above skills and believe you are the right candidate for this
position, e-mail your application and CV with the position title on the subject
line to our HR Director at: hr@kickstart.org no later than COB Friday, 11th
July 2013.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
For more information about KickStart visit our website: www.kickstart.org
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
For more information about KickStart visit our website: www.kickstart.org