Finance Controller, South Africa at UPL

Role Summary

• To provide financial and operational analysis to FD and Exco, as well as to ensure optimised reporting to all stakeholders, payment to suppliers, collection of cash and internal controls surrounding these.

Role Responsibilities

Financial Management – Local/Exports

• Ensure the timely, accurate monthly delivery of results, management information and financial reporting packs.
• Review of regional, head office & company balance sheet reconciliations and sign off the numbers.
• Debtor management review and overview.
• Monitor and review the results of quarterly stock counts.
• Ensure all Stock adjustments are authorised and accurate.
• Ensure the correct recording and protection of all assets of the Company.
• Weekly review of the debtor department’s KPI’s, reports and corrective actions.
• Ensure that creditors are recorded correctly and paid timeously.
• Weekly review and implementation of accounts payable KPI’s and reports.
• Review the calculation of under recovery and recording of purchase price variances for the Company and incorporate into the accounts.
• Making recommendations w.r.t monthly results in respect of IFRS
• Ensure intercompany accounts reconcile and all differences are resolved in a timely manner.
• Ensure Associate entities are correctly accounted for in Group reports and the AFS.
• Ensure correct accounting treatment of FEC’s.
• Review and authorisation of all manual journal entries.
• Review and authorisation of all balance sheet reconciliations.
• Review and approval of Foreign exchange rates.
• Calculation of Inventory provision
• Review of open purchase orders
• Review of Intangible assets capitalized
• Review of Leases ensuring correct classification and accounting treatment
• Review of changes to chart of accounts
• Review of Fixed Assets to ensure correct classification and valuation

Operation Function

• Attend and advise monthly Forecast and demand review meeting, reviewing and calculating financial consequences of the operational issues.
• Participate in weekly Global controllers’ calls.
• Co-ordinate and participate in monthly Credit management meetings.
• Co-ordinate and participate in monthly Quarantine stock meetings.
• Co-ordinate and participate in quarterly Tax compliance meetings.
• Co-ordinate and participate in quarterly Legal compliance meetings.

Templates for meetings

• Compile Quarantine stock template Review and analyse any financial templates that are used by the business.

Project Management

• Carry out adhoc projects for FD including minority valuations etc, participate in negotiations with minority acquisitions including business case
• Carry out ad hoc financial accounting projects eg. SAP ERP system

Strategic

• Contribute strategic financial expertise and information that ensures FD is able to take sound and informed decisions
• All local and asset insurance negotiations and cover for Arysta SA
• Planning and negotiation of cash loans in SA and overdrafts with banks and Japan subject to global authorisation table.
• Planning of external audit, hard-close and annual audit with auditors

Enterprise Risk management

• Involvement in planning of three yearly internal audit and designing and improving on weaknesses of controls from a financial perspective.
• Co-ordinate and with the Internal audit function and ensure compliance with internal audit requirements.

Treasury Control

• Ensuring that cash is managed in accordance with business requirements and cash forecast.
• Bank liaison and negations in rates and facilities
• Create Guidelines for statutory payments.
• Review and analyse, working capital improvement identification opportunities.
• Review and implement hedging options to mitigate foreign currency exposure(FEC’s)
• Ensure compliance with Treasury.

Statutory and Audit

• Ensure that statutory statements are completed and compiled and audited.
• Monitor and manage the different audits, interim, annual audit and internal, ensuring sign off financials by auditors 6 months after year end.
• Ensure timeous submission of all statutory returns required by the Companies Act.

Tax

• Review of all tax calculations for UPL Group companies.
• Ensure accurate and timeous completion of all SARS templates/returns.
• Ensure adequate tax planning and optimisation procedures are followed. (Transfer pricing policy/R&D allowances)

Insurance

• Manage all Insurance claims together with the Legal department.
• Ensure all claims are dealt with timeously and efficiently.
• Review Insurance policies to ensure adequate asset/risk coverage.
• Liaise with UPL Corp Insurance teams.

Manage People

• Ensure the Finance Department is fully staffed with appropriately experienced employees.
• Train and develop employees based on identified training needs in accordance with the Workplace Skills Plan.
• Ensure Performance Appraisals are conducted as per Company Policy.
• Ensure general discipline in the department and ensure corrective action is taken on all misconduct incidents.
• Adhere to all HR policies, procedures and requirements to ensure sound people practices.
•  Management of external stakeholder requirements

Financial Accountability

• CAPEX, loans, write offs, insurance claims, budget adjustments, petty cash, disposal of company assets.

Internal Stakeholders

• Commercial department
• Supply Chain Division?
• Logistics
• Financial departments of affiliates e.g. France, Japan, North America, Brazil
• IT department

External Interactions

• Suppliers
• Foreign and Local Creditors
• Banking Institutions
• External and Internal Auditors
• Commercial Distributors

Knowledge, Skills and Experience Required

Technical Requirements:

• BCom Acounting degree or similar , CA (SA) / or CIMA qualified
• 5 years’ experience in chemical or similar industry
• Analyst Experience in manufacturing environment
• Standard financial costing experience
• Staff management experience preferable
• ERP system experience
• SAP and BI reporting
• Analytical Skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Lateral thinking skills

Behavioural Requirements

• Decision Making
• Accountability
• Communication
• Patient
• Level headed
• Target driven
• Flexible
• Stress tolerant