Finance Manager at The People Practice

Job role

• Our client, a major stakeholder in the Energy sector is looking to hire a seasoned Finance Manager to run a tight financial ship.
• In this role, you will bridge the gap between maintaining the speed, accuracy, and tech-forward efficiency of a top-tier firm, while flawlessly navigating the strict regulatory landscape of Nigerian public sector finance.
• If you are a finance professional who thrives under pressure, prides themselves on clean audits, and knows how to navigate public treasury systems without breaking a sweat, this is your arena.

Role Purpose

• You will oversee and execute the day-to-day financial operations of the organisation.
• Your mission is to ensure absolute financial integrity by managing payroll, processing vendor payments, maintaining bulletproof records, and preparing strategic budget defenses.
• You will ensure that every single naira allocated to each project is tracked, compliant, and deployed with maximum efficiency.

Responsibilities
Financial Operations and Treasury Management:

• Manage day-to-day transactions, expense claims, and vendor payments, ensuring they align strictly with approved budgets.
• Seamlessly handle all inflows, allocations, and disbursements through the Treasury Single Account system.
• Coordinate the accurate preparation, tax withholding, and timely disbursement of payroll for all office staff and consultants.

Budgeting and High-Level Budget Defense:

• Work closely with the CEO and Chief of Staff to project annual operational costs, consultant fees, and capital expenditures.
• Draft, structure, and package clear financial justifications and documentation for bilateral budget defenses with the relevant stakeholders.

Procurement and Regulatory Compliance:

• Oversee and document all office procurements, ensuring absolute compliance with applicable guidelines.
• Establish and enforce rigorous internal control checks to prevent errors, double-payments, or unauthorized spending.

Reconciliations, Reporting and Audit:

• Deliver precise monthly bank and ledger reconciliations, ensuring all balances match by the fifth of every month.
• Keep the general ledger and physical or digital filing systems in a constant state of audit readiness. 
• Act as the primary point of contact for auditors and external independent reviewers.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Economics, or a highly quantitative business discipline.
• Certified member of a recognized professional accounting body (such as ICAN, ACCA, or ANAN).
• MBA or a Master’s degree in Finance, Financial Management, or Public Sector Treasury Management.
• A minimum of 7 years of progressive post-qualification experience in financial management, displaying a robust track record in both structured corporate settings (e.g., multinational, advisory firm) and public sector environments.
• Direct, hands-on experience actively using the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) portals.
• Demonstrated experience preparing technical budget papers and supporting senior leadership in bilateral budget defense sessions with federal government ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
• Proven success leading end-to-end financial audits and acting as the primary focal point for external, independent, or federal regulatory auditors.
• Prior finance experience within a major energy developer, utility, public power body, or oil and gas regulatory framework.
• Deep working knowledge of the Nigerian Public Procurement Act and Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) guidelines, particularly concerning bids, contract documentation, and vendor thresholds.
• Solid grasp of Nigerian tax laws, including withholding tax (WHT), Value Added Tax (VAT), PAYE, and their respective compliance processes in both private and public structures.
• Complete mastery of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS).
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel (complex formulas, financial modeling, forecasting) and modern ERP/accounting platforms (e.g., QuickBooks, SAP, SAGE).
• Outstanding capability to design, maintain, and digitize robust bookkeeping, transaction tracking, and voucher filing frameworks.
• Highly developed ability to synthesize intricate financial spreadsheets and regulatory text into clear, plain-language business narratives for non-finance executives.

Must have skills:

• Zero tolerance for financial indiscipline, double-payments, or unauthorized spending. 
• Methodical, highly precise approach, compliance trails, and payment verification. 
• Maintains absolute composure under tight regulatory deadlines and urgent transaction turnarounds.
•  A strong drive to identify operational bottlenecks in treasury, cash flow, or procurement.