Senior Accountant: Tax Accounting - Absa Bank

Job Summary

• Accounting Control owns the processes that enables sustainable, accurate and timeous financial information in support of reporting to external and internal stakeholders. The individual will operate in the key processes in Accounting Control with primary focus being in the tax process.
• This is a key role in the AC tax team.  Team processes, reconciles and manages the tax ledger.  The team is very specialized in terms of skill and important for the reporting to SARS.

Key Accountabilities

Accountability: Manage financial information completion process (60%)

Act as a process executor for the completion of financial information, including the accountability for the following key processes:

• Journals and month-end close
• Reconciliation
• Completion of Supplementary information
• Interdiv and Elimination
• Tax
• Accounting Functions

Support to Subject Matter Expert (SME) on processes, resolution of issues and ad hoc requests from stakeholders including:

• Cluster Financial Controller
• Cluster CFO/BP&A team members
• Other Financial Control functions

Prepare month end tax calculations in line with current laws and Regulations;

• Post tax journals, review tax ledger and reconcile all tax ledger accounts in line with relevant internal policies;
• Prepare and report tax numbers to various stakeholders across the bank as well as audit;
• Prepare relevant information for Group tax for external reporting to authorities;
• Support SME on obtaining TAG opinions and ad hoc queries on accounting issues;
• Act as the process executor for implementation of new standardised processes where relevant;
• Provide feedback to stakeholders on results reflected in the financial accounting system, as well as issues identified where there are potential risks to numbers;
• Act pro-actively in correcting issues and implement a sustainable process;
• Ensure that principles of the Financial Control Operating Model are complied with and sustained;

Maintain and enhance processes:

• Identify areas of improvement in completion, review and or submission processes to drive and implement a sustainable and effective process in support of quality and accuracy
• Identify synergies between different reporting processes and implement new and or enhanced processes

Accountability: Provide support to other process executors through motivation and employee engagement (20%)

• Understanding and managing team dynamics to maximize performance;
• Escalate issues around allocation of resources to process architects tasks to ensure delivery of team objectives;
• Ensure continued development of resources, through coaching and mentoring, to empower value added delivery of tasks.

Accountability: Process Execution (20%)

• Execution of processes as designed;
• Constantly review, improve and maintain own activities to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of processes;
• Recommend areas for improvement in order to reduce cycle times, improve productivity, create capacity and improve process reliability and customer satisfaction;
• Assist in the implementation of new and/or enhanced processes;
• Identify activity-specific risks and work with Process Owner / Process Architect to mitigate risks;
• Maintain awareness of own activities and the impact thereof on related/interdependent activities.

Role/Person Specification

Knowledge & Skills

• Exceptional academic track record;
• Understanding of financial reporting processes and related controls (Expert);
• Ability to identify control gaps and weaknesses (Expert);
• Ability to analyse and interpret financial data (Expert);
• Ability to write concise effective reports (Expert);
• Advanced excel skills to contribute to the team;
• Good Communication Skills;
• Good understanding and experience in implementing automated solutions;
• Tax experience necessary
• Accounting standards relevant to the banking industry will be beneficial.

Education and Experience:

• CA(SA);
• 0-2 years PQE experience;
• Business experience in a Banking environment gained from a Finance, Product;
• Working South African Taxation and VAT knowledge.

Competencies:

• Deciding and initiating action
• Entrepreneurial and commercial thinking
• Relating and networking
• Adapting and responding to change
• Persuading and influencing
• Creating and highly innovating

Education

• Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Financial Sciences (Required)