Alfanar UK Financial Representative – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Financial Commissioner UK

Salary: Up to 32,000 (GBP)

Report to: Head of Finance (UK)

Location: London

Type of job: Full time

Start date: As soon as possible

Contract duration: One year (at the beginning)

Application deadline: September 2024

Participation requirements: Right to Work UK

Location: London – Hybrid role (3 days in the office)

Do you believe in the power of social enterprise to create meaningful and scalable social change in disadvantaged communities across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)? Do you want to join and grow a movement that supports sustainable social change across the Arab region?

ABOUT ALFANAR

Founded in 2004, Alfanar is the Arab region’s oldest venture philanthropy organization. We are a UK-based charity with offices in Cairo, Beirut and Amman, as well as offices in the US and the Netherlands. Our goal is to transform the lives of disadvantaged communities across the Arab world by ambitious social enterprises Responding to urgent needs, particularly in the area of Children’s education, youth employment and women’s economic empowerment. Alfanar provides grants, repayable grants, and impact investments (through a soon-to-be-launched sister impact fund), as well as technical assistance, to social enterprises so they can expand their impact in disadvantaged communities while increasing sales of goods and services to achieve greater financial sustainability. Alfanar’s highly engaged venture philanthropy approach applies the principles of private investment to charitable giving, generating social returns that are sustainable, scalable, and game-changing. For more information on Alfanar’s venture philanthropy work, see our Annual Report 2021 and our website at: www.alfanar.org.

Area of ​​responsibility

The Finance Officer at Alfanar will play a critical role in delivering an effective and efficient finance function across the company’s corporate structure. Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer, the Finance Officer will support various finance functions including budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, cash and reserve management, accounting processes and financial risk mitigation. The role requires a focus on continuous improvement, problem solving and development to ensure high performance standards and exceptional financial services for Alfanar’s teams.

**Reports to:**Head of Finance

Main responsibilities

• Manage all accounts receivable and accounts payable according to agreed processes and ensure timely payment.
• Prepare the monthly payroll and set up salary payments
• Reconcile bank accounts monthly
• Create monthly management accounts using the financial system and Excel templates.
• Review the donor reports prepared by the country office for accuracy and cost allocation
• Apply for gift assistance regularly
• Support the organizational budget and budget proposal process.
• Support the organizational audit process.
• All other tasks will be agreed with the Finance Manager.

Financial accounting

• They are an essential part of ensuring an effective and efficient financial control environment throughout the Alfanar Group structure.
• Perform key financial controls, including balance sheet plans, intercompany and earnings reconciliations
• Support the continuous development of effective financial management processes and increase automation and efficiency
• Ensure accurate and complete records for earmarked funds
• Actively participate in payroll processing to ensure accurate and up-to-date payroll
• Manage the payment process with Xero financial software, review payments and set them up with the bank
• Support the Finance Director in the development and implementation of financial processes across the Alfanar Group.
• Ensure Alfanar is up to date and complies with its legal obligations relating to payroll, pensions, VAT, corporation tax and other statutory documentation.

reporting

• Support the Chief Financial Officer in preparing audit-ready financial statements in accordance with financial reporting standards, including consolidation of future group companies.
• Supporting the Chief Financial Officer during the external audit of the organization
• Cooperation with external accountants, also with regard to all reporting obligations
• Prepare financial information for the Trustee’s annual report and coordinate with the communications function on the presentation.

Financial management reporting and finance business partnering

• Support the budgeting and reforecasting process under the direction of the Chief Financial Officer. Ensure relevant team members receive guidance and documentation related to the budget and forecasting processes and templates.
• Manage month-end closing, including preparing journals to record required provisions and fund transfers.
• Prepare, review and analyze management accounts, seek explanations for variances, prepare comments and summaries based on responses from budget owners, and ensure that management understands all required actions.
• Continue to develop monthly management reports and budget-actual comparison reports for budget officers.
• Work with the fundraising team to ensure that income data flows are documented and financial and fundraising metrics are clearly defined and accurately calculated and reported

Tax, cash, risk and reserve management as well as group business administration

• In collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer, you will manage, review and improve Alfanar’s (online) banking operations and relationships across the entire corporate structure.
• Prepare monthly cash flow forecasts and requirements and ensure appropriate cash management and cash transfers within the group structure.
• If required, you will assist Alfanar with VAT registration, set up and implement the necessary changes to the accounting systems, and prepare and submit VAT returns, including to other companies within the VAT group.

Qualifications & Experience

Essential

• Experience in supporting accounting, payments, transaction processing, financial reporting, taxes and cash management with international operations, ideally in a growing group.
• Experience in automating financial processes and developing reporting functions from accounting systems
• Knowledge and experience of using Xero or other cloud-based accounting software.
• Experience in providing financial management support/business partnering to managers/budget holders who may not have a financial background.
• Qualified Affiliate Accountant or working towards a qualification (UK ACA, CIMA, ACCA, AAT or equivalent)
• Knowledge of data protection laws, risk management and other governance requirements including confidentiality.

Desired

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in accounting or finance.
• Experience in a finance function in a non-profit environment, whether paid or volunteer

Experience in working with supplier systems for large volume payment processing and integration the associated data flows into internal databases

• Knowledge of UK requirements for accounting for earmarked funds
• Interest in developing social enterprises and impact investments
• Willingness to travel to the MENA region if required

Skills and abilities

• Excellent skills in policy and process development
• Clear thinking and excellent logical skills, able to decipher and simplify complexity
• Self-motivated and self-organized, with good problem-solving skills
• Ability to work flexibly in a team
• Able to contribute from a financial perspective in a multidisciplinary team
• You are able to work on time and deliver results, manage priorities and clearly communicate changes in the schedule to the manager and the team.
• Flexibility and adaptability in your attitude and approach to work, with a willingness to get involved and support the team in whatever comes up to work towards a common goal
• Excellent and clear communication in English, in person, in writing and via phone/Zoom

Confident and able to take initiative, but also work effectively within a formal governance structure

Personal characteristics

• Honesty, reliability, attention to detail
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Exemplary skills in organisation and time management
• Ability to present information accurately and effectively both orally and in writing
• Ability to work on your own initiative and in changing environments
• Passion for the mission and values ​​of the organization

SUCCESS FACTORS

The successful candidate will be able to multitask, make decisions quickly, have initiative, drive and high energy, and have high emotional intelligence. He/she will be committed to supporting and empowering high-impact, sustainable social enterprises in the Arab world. The ability to work independently and prioritize different deliverables with tight deadlines will be paramount to the success of this opportunity. Working with a diverse team across multiple locations means the ability to collaborate effectively online with people across multiple time zones is a must. This is an exciting opportunity to join a dedicated and growing team at a crucial point in our growth.