Associate, Finance Operations at Charles Ardor & Company

What this looks like in practice:

• You are the first check on the work. Review reconciliations, month-end close, schedules, and tax that the analysts and client teams prepare, confirm the figures are correct and nothing is missing, and send the work back for correction when needed, so that what reaches the Supervisor is already right.
• You tie the figures to the source. Before you prepare the report, you confirm that each figure agrees with the record it comes from, so the report uses only figures that have been checked.
• You prepare the monthly report. You set out clearly what the figures show for the client, and give your first read of what they mean, which the Supervisor then reviews.
• You develop the Analysts. When you send work back, you show them what was wrong and why, so they get it right themselves next time.
• You keep the clients on schedule. You carry several clients through the monthly cycle at once, so each one is closed, reviewed, and reported on time. As the firm grows, the balance between what you prepare and what you review will shift. Also, you will take on work across the operational and reporting cycle as the team requires

Requirements

• A strong foundation in bookkeeping, reconciliations, month-end close and tax, with solid and accurate hands-on experience.
• Able to prepare a clear report that explains what the figures show, not only present them.
• A professional accounting qualification, ACA or ACCA, or steady progress towards one, is an advantage rather than a requirement.
• Solid working knowledge of accounting software. Zoho Books experience is an advantage.
• Careful and accurate in your own work, and quick to notice when something in someone else's work is not right, even when it looks right on the surface.
• Able to manage several clients' deadlines within a structured monthly cycle without being chased.
• Someone who takes ownership of their work and follows it through.
• Able to give a colleague feedback that makes their work better, not only point out what is wrong.