Finance Manager / Gerente Financiero

Job Description

FINANCE MANAGER

LOCATION - QUITO, ECUADOR

(Candidates must have a valid permit to work in Ecuador)

HYBRID - 2 DAYS IN OFFICE, 3 DAYS AT HOME.

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a US non-profit, tax-exempt, private organization established in 1895 that saves wildlife and wild places by understanding critical issues, crafting science-based solutions, and taking conservation actions that benefit nature and humanity. With more than a century of experience, long-term commitments in dozens of landscapes, presence in more than 60 nations, and experience helping to establish over 150 protected areas across the globe, WCS has amassed the biological knowledge, cultural understanding and partnerships to ensure that vibrant, wild places and wildlife thrive alongside local communities. Working with local communities and organizations, that knowledge is applied to address species, habitat and ecosystem management issues critical to improving the quality of life of poor rural people whose livelihoods depend on the direct utilization of natural resources.

Job Purpose

The Finance and Administration Manager will report directly to the Country Director and have a dotted-line reporting relationship with the WCS Global CFO. The primary objective of this role is to establish and oversee efficient financial and administrative management systems through strategic financial planning, oversight of accounting and budgetary operations, reporting to donors and internally, and implementing controls, monitoring and compliance for the WCS Country Program Office and Field Projects. The Manager will engage with WCS Project Leaders (including Directors, Managers, and Administrators), key donors, funding agencies, as per needed .

Major Responsibilities

General Responsibilities

• Overall supervision of the Finance and Administrative staff
• Ensure financial efficiency in all aspects of operations, advising the Country Director of any problems or weaknesses in financial controls and procedures, and any ways in which costs could be reduced.
• Ensure all project budget management and financial activities are in compliance with WCS and donor requirements
• Ensure that the highest standards of financial integrity are followed.
• Ensure that all projects/activities in the country program respect national legislation, including customs regulations, labor rights, taxes, and benefits.
• Lead all financial and administrative aspects related to the work of WCS, including Long-Range Business Planning, Annual Planning, and quarterly forecasts to support the Director of the Peru Program
• Advice the Country Director on the proper compliance of the Local and Global Policies applicable to WCS Ecuador.
  
  

Financial Management

• Responsible for preparing budgets for project proposals and annual budgeting in coordination with the Regional Business Manager and other departments in NY, accordingly, coordinating with the Country Director and Project and Programme Directors as needed
• Maintain the Budget updated, considering the pertinent Budget adjustments according to the procedures established for this, through processes as budgeting, forecast and cash flow management
• Ensure up-to-date figures for costs of staff salaries and benefits.
• Compile quarterly projections of expenditure and cash flow for projects and country office to ensure that sufficient funds are available for project operations.
• Maintain an accurate database of project funding, including contracts, project budgets and donor-specific procedures and regulations.
• Strengthen and document administrative and financial policies and procedures.
• Ensure along with the Country Director and Program Directors the program financial sustainability.
  
  

Audit - quality control- Risk management

• Ensure that all transactions entered into the SAP in the central office are correctly and consistently recorded, including grant, fund, project and other information where needed. Perform a monthly check of all financial data by the 10th day of the following month.
• Ensure that revenue and expenditure posted by WCS NY are correct and are assigned to the right project, grant/fund and account codes, and where problems are found, ensure that these are resolved with the appropriate staff in NY along with project staff as required.
• Supervise regular petty cash counts out weekly.
• Assess and mitigate the financial risks of the mission, ensure that reliable internal control systems are in place, and financial ethics is respected within the mission
• Coordinate and supervise local audits relating to accounting including donors and institutional audit, tax, and labor matters
• Ensure the correct and ontime communication with third parties of WCS, providing information on audits or any other type of requirement, as well as attend and address the observations and comments from the auditors.
  
  

Monitoring and managing expenditures

• Ensure that all expenditures are made in accordance with established procedures, including verification of supporting documents and budget availability.
• Monitor and review expenditure against budgets on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis by project and for country office as a whole and review it at least quarterly with the Regional Business Manager.
• Prepare monthly reports of expenditure against budgets for internal use, including monitoring of expenditure against project activity budgets as well as WCS project, grant/fund and account code.
• Where expenditures on projects are not in line with budgets, bring this to the attention of the project director and/or country director and regional business manager. Make recommendations to adjust spending accordingly.
• Monitor all bank transactions in coordination with WCS NY, and approve monthly bank reconciliations.
• Follow up of revenue received locally or in Headquarters to ensure are posted to the appropriate project, fund/grant and account code and oversee cross-charging to other country programs as per established procedures.
• Ensure complete accounting records are maintained including vouchers, authorizations, and reconciliations, including both paper and electronic records.
• Ensure proper tracking of project advances to staff, ensuring that advances are accounted for in a timely manner according to WCS procedures, and that an accurate balance sheet is kept of each staff member’s outstanding advances.
  
  

Reporting

• Oversee the general accounting reporting the expenses of the projects of the country to WCS NY according to the established deadlines and procedures.
• Oversee monthly and year-end closure of accounts, reports and bank reconciliations.
• Report to the Project Directors a comparative status of monthly and quarterly expenses of projects in execution.
  
  

Contracts and sub-awards

• Ensure contracts with third parties follows internal policies, procedures and local regulations are met (supplier – subawardees)
• Organise and lead the team dealing with contracts with third parties – partners and/or services providers – consultants, to ensure that contractees and sub-awardees meet all requirements.
• Review budgets for contracts and sub-awards to other organizations to verify that costs are reasonable and sufficient for proposed activities and meet donor requirements for budget presentation.
• Participate in all subaward processes (linked with technical team and leading its team including Subrecipient Risk Assessment and periodic monitoring).
• Where necessary, perform audits of contractee or sub-awardee financial systems and reports.
  
  

Staff Administration

• Assist the Country Director and coordinate with HRBP to monitor implementation of salary scales and other benefits, terms and conditions of employment, leave and work schedules in adherence with country program guidelines and following the national labor laws.
• Oversee expatriate staff administration and logistics (visas and work permits, travel) and other legal aspects in coordination with internal legal department
• Oversee preparation of payroll including taxes and other statutory deductions, ensure salary advances are paid and recovered according to WCS’s established procedures.
• Lead the team to follow up and monitor leave taken and medical licenses from the staff (among other), ensuring approvals are made and internal and local law compliance
• Assist Country Director in the evaluations of current national staff job levels and competence and assist in training and recruiting of new staff.
• Ensure that complete personnel files are kept for all staff employed by the country office.
  
  

General Administration and Logistic

• Oversee management of country office, including lease arrangements and payment of rent, property insurance, procurement of office supplies, furniture and equipment, security arrangements, and supervision of maintenance and cleaning.
• Ensure that equipment and supplies are procured according to project needs and budget, and that supplies and equipment are inventoried, issued and used in accordance with established procedures
• Oversee management of the country vehicle fleet (registration, insurance, repairs and maintenance, and trip scheduling); ensure that vehicles are used according to WCS’s vehicle regulations, and that fuel use is properly monitored.
  
  

Qualification Requirements

Minimum Requirements and Job Skills:

Minimum

• Bachelor's degree in finance, business administration, accounting, or related professional
• Demonstrated experience managing teams for over eight years.
• Demonstrated understanding of the international cooperation and its implications in taxation, SRI, UAFE and, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility reporting.
• Demonstrated understanding of local labour regulations.
• Conversational proficiency in English
  
  

Job Skills

• Demonstrated ability to independently establish and manage multiple currencies/donors/requirements.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate with a variety of partners and stakeholders, and to mediate and resolve complex issues that involve multiple actors and/or interest areas.
• Proactive and independent professional with keen attention to details and meeting deadlines.
• Ability to perform well in teams interacting others in a positive, respectful, and constructive way.
• Good communication skills, both written and verbal, as well as strong analytical skills
  
  

Preferred Requirements

• Minimum of five-year experience non-profit sector (NGO, International organisations) working financial and administrative management, and donors' knowledge.
• Good communications skills
  
  

Our Recruitment Process

• CV review
• Contact with qualified candidates via email
• Capabilities assessment
• First round of interviews
• Soft Skills assessment
• Interview with Global Finance
• Final interview with Country Director
  
  

Apply before: May 4th (11:59pm - Quito)

Candidates must submit Cover Letter and CV for the application to be considered.

WCS is an equal opportunity employer, and the organization complies with all employment and labor laws and regulations that prohibit discrimination in hiring and ensures that candidates from all backgrounds are fairly and consistently considered during the recruitment process. We are dedicated to hiring and engaging a diverse workforce. We are committed to cultivating an inclusive work environment and look for future team members who share that same value. The organization provides equal employment opportunities for all qualified candidates. The organization does not discriminate for employment based on gender, race/ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship status, caste, genetic information or any other covered status or characteristic protected by laws and regulations/and similar categories.

It is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that we do not tolerate discrimination or harassment based upon a person’s membership in one of these protected categories in areas such as recruitment, selection, job assignment, supervision, training, promotions, job grading, transfers, termination, compensation, benefits, educational opportunities, WCS sponsored recreational activities and facilities.

The organization complies with the spirit and intent of relevant local laws and WCS’s employment policies.

Salary Range

Competitive salary commensurate with experience