Job Title: Finance & Operations Manager
Hiring Organization: Act Change Transform (Act!)
Location – Locality: Nairobi
Location – Region:
Industry: NGO
Job Type: Full Time
Salary:
Date Posted: 06/10/2024
Act
Change Transform (Act!) is a local Non-Governmental Organization whose mission
is to facilitate the empowerment of marginalized people and communities in
Kenya and neighboring countries, to become active participants in their
development by enabling them to: stand up for their rights; demand good
governance in the management of resources; and participate in decision-making
processes. Act! does this through implementing partners, offering them capacity
development, management of grants so that value for money is achieved, and
providing strategic leadership in national advocacy for the benefit of women,
youth, people with disabilities and other marginalized communities.
Job Summary
Reporting
to the Chief Executive Officer, the Finance and Operations Manager will be
based in Nairobi and will provide leadership and strategic direction to the
operations functions of Act! including Finance, Grants and Administration. S/he
will be responsible for ensuring seamless operations in support of Act! and its
partner CSOs in achieving rigorous financial reporting and management systems.
The Finance and Operations Manager will also work in a peer relationship with
the Director of Programs, Heads of Divisions, Human Resources and Resource
Mobilization Managers on budgetary, donor compliance as well as statutory
requirements with regards to program staffing, financial and grants related
activities. The position holder will take overall responsibility for the
quality standards of the tools and materials Act!’ uses to deliver effective
grants, financial and operational services to our stakeholders.
Key
Responsibilities
Financial
Planning & Management:
Provides
leadership, vision and supervision roles for finance, grants and operations
personnel to ensure attainment of set finance goals. Develops finance
function’s short to medium term strategies in line with Act!’s corporate
strategies.
Ensure
that all financial documentation is maintained according to Act!’s standards
and donor requirements to the extent they can be fully audited with limited or
no adverse findings.
Leads the
development and implementation of financial policies, rules and procedures that
meet industry best practices and ensure full understanding by staff and
compliance of the financial management process at all levels within Act!.
Leads the
continuous improvement of internal control systems that minimize financial
risks, monitor the performance of Act!s flow of funds and adherence to approved
budgets.
Maintains
and strengthen a good working relationship with the Banks and other key
stakeholders.
Ensures
overall finance related statutory compliance for Act!.
Coordinates
the external audits (projects & institutional).
Lead the
development of annual organizational financial plan and budget process to
ensure reasonableness and donor compliance.
Oversee
the preparation of financial reports for internal management as well as
external purposes.
Review
and approval of invoices/ reports to donors for program, directly under him or
her or ensure proper systems for approval of invoices/ reports to donors are in
place for all programs.
Review
and analysis of monthly management accounts and management reports as required
by budget holders.
Tracking
of overall program budgets, follow up of funds disbursement from donors and
ensuring financial compliance during program implementation and program close
out.
Monitoring
of the overhead budget and unrestricted income.
Providing
guidance on best business practices on Act!’s consultancy assignments and
revenues generated from those assignments (offering support to Tenda Advisory
Services).
Monthly
review of financial data in the ACCPAC System.
Development
of project budgets (at proposal stage) in liaison with the New Business
Development Team.
Review of
Monthly Payroll, Quarterly and Annual Statutory Returns.
Review of
the year-end financial statements and statutory reports in readiness for annual
audits.
Develop
and ensure strict adherence to periodic (monthly quarterly & annual) cash
flow forecasts for the Organization.
Operations
(IT and Administrative) Management:
Provide
leadership, vision and supervision roles for Administration and IT personnel to
ensure attainment of Act!s strategic goals and standards.
Lead the
development of Administration, procurement and IT function’s short to medium
term plans/strategies in line with Act!’s organizational effectiveness
strategies.
Lead the
development and implementation of Administration, Procurement and IT policies,
rules and procedures that meet industry best practices and ensure full
understanding by staff and compliance of the policies, rules and procedures at
all levels within Act!.
Develop
operational systems to ensure efficient and effective running of all office
operations at both the main and field office levels.
Lead the
establishment and implementation of an assets management system that safeguards
Act!’s assets including insurance underwriting to ensure Act! assets remain
fully insured against all risks at all times.
Ensure
annual audits of the assets management system to match the procured verses
actual assets available through the purchase records.
Oversee
the development and implementation of a security management system and
protocols to support Act!s operations both at the main and field offices.
Strategic
Leadership and Management
Provide
inputs and regular advice the CEO on fiduciary, statutory compliance and risk
management matters of the whole organization.
Support
development and review of Act!’s Strategic Plan, Risk Management Strategy, and
Corporate Sustainability initiatives.
Support
the enhancement of efficiency and effectiveness of Act!’s business model and
pathway to institutional sustainability.
Provide
technical support to the CEO in preparation of and adherence to budget,
financial projections and other financial reports for the Board and other
purposes.
Lead the
implementation of Act!’s Strategic Plan in matters of finance, risk management,
funds management and new business development.
Maintain
up-to-date knowledge of major donors’ rules and regulations and ensure
implementation at all times.
Capacity
Building & Coordination:
Oversee
the development of training materials for staff/grantees on understanding the
financial management system and compliance with donor regulations.
Coordinate
training needs assessments and facilitation of relevant training courses for
staff and Act! grantees on financial management, proposal budget development,
and other capacity enhancement interventions.
In
liaison with the grants team in charge, coordinate, organize and facilitate (as
necessary) financial management mentoring and or workshops for partners to
provide guidance on good financial management practices.
Financial
Monitoring, Donor and Grantee Reporting:
Oversee
monitoring of grantee advance and liquidation balances closely and ensure
timely liquidations.
Oversee
review of cost share reports from partner organizations to ensure compliance
against grant commitments.
Oversee
the compilation of data and preparation of monthly, quarterly and annual
reports.
Closely
monitor obligations from donors and grant obligations to ensure that Act! never
commits more funds than allowable.
Work with
the Head of Programs to ensure that the grantees projects are implemented as
per the proposal and donor specifications.
Academic
Qualifications
A
Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, Accounting or a business field, and a Master’s
degree (in a relevant subject) are a requirement.
Professional
Qualifications
Certified
Public Accountant of Kenya (CPA-K) or ACCA qualifications is mandatory.
Additional
certifications in finance are/is added advantage.
Must be a
member of ICPAK with a valid practicing license.
Indicative
level of Experience
Relevant
work experience in finance and operations in a busy multi-donor grants and
contracts environment.
At least
five years’ consecutive years of experience managing or leading a team,
administering grants and contracts.
Experience
in staff supervision and management of large programme operations.
Good
experience working with financial applications (e.g. ACCPAC) and/or any other
large computerized financial system.
Essential
Skills and Competencies
Familiarity
with major donors’ auditing requirements and demonstrated ability to exercise
basic financial and administrative oversight.
Ability
to train CSOs & Staff on financial management and required reporting
preferred.
Good
analytical skills to successfully perform financial reviews and other
quantitative analyses.
Task and
results oriented and must possess good follow through skills.
Ability
to independently prioritize and successfully perform assigned tasks.
Ability
to work on short deadlines and prioritize multiple tasks.
Effective
written and oral communications skills.
Highly
organized and able to develop and streamline systems for efficient conduct of
day-to-day tasks.
Ability
to say no when professionalism is not being followed by senior and overbearing
members of staff.
Highly
proficient in the use of Microsoft office suite products especially spread
sheets for budget preparation purposes.
How to
Apply:
If you meet the requirements as
contained in the position description, please submit (1) a detailed and current
CV; (2) an Application Cover Letter demonstrating why you qualify for the
position indicating the current or the last gross salary and three referees
including their most current contact details. All applications should be
submitted electronically to hr.admin@act.or.ke quoting the
reference number (ACT/FM/06/2024) and position on the e-mail subject line.