NEA Controller – Finance

NEA Controller – Finance

Reports To: Senior Director – Finance (NEA & Iraq)

Business Unit: ACCBC – North East Africa (NEA)

Function: Finance (Controllership & Governance)

Grade: TBC

Location: NEA (Primary)

Purpose of the Job

The NEA Controller is the senior controllership authority for ACCBC’s North East Africa (NEA) markets , accountable for financial integrity, statutory compliance, internal control effectiveness, and balance sheet discipline across the NEA cluster.

Reporting to the Senior Director – Finance (NEA & Iraq) , the role operates as the first line of financial assurance for NEA , ensuring that financial results are accurate, risks are surfaced early, controls are effective, and enterprise accounting standards are applied consistently—while enabling timely decision-making and operational execution.

This role ensures that actuals, statutory numbers, and balance sheet positions are reliable, defensible, and audit-ready .

Operating Context

The NEA cluster operates within a demanding finance and governance environment:

• Multi-country footprint with diverse statutory, tax, and regulatory regimes
• Manufacturing, commercial, and distribution operations with high working-capital intensity
• ERP-enabled finance processes requiring strong configuration and control discipline
• Significant exposure to provisions, estimates, intercompany balances, and inventory valuation
• Increasing scrutiny from auditors, regulators, and enterprise finance leadership

Success in this role requires hands-on controllership leadership , strong technical judgment, and calm execution discipline, with zero tolerance for control breaches or undocumented exposures .

Key Roles and Responsibilities

1. Financial Controllership & Accounting Governance

• Own NEA accounting integrity in line with IFRS, Group Accounting Policies, and local GAAP .
• Ensure consistent application of accounting standards across all NEA legal entities.
• Review and approve complex accounting judgments, estimates, and provisions.
• Maintain accounting manuals, close checklists, and documentation standards for NEA.

2. Statutory Reporting, Close & Audit Management

• Own monthly, quarterly, and annual close for all NEA entities.
• Ensure timely, accurate statutory financial statements and management actuals.
• Act as the primary NEA interface for external auditors and regulators .
• Deliver unqualified audit outcomes and ensure timely closure of audit findings.

3. Balance Sheet Integrity & Risk Discipline

• Own balance sheet governance, reconciliations, and substantiation discipline.
• Oversee intercompany balances, accruals, provisions, impairments, and write-offs.
• Identify balance sheet and accounting risks early and escalate with mitigation plans.
• Partner with FP&A and Treasury to ensure working capital accuracy and visibility.

4. Internal Controls & Compliance

• Implement and enforce internal control frameworks across NEA finance processes.
• Ensure adherence to Delegation of Authority (DoA), approval matrices, and financial policies.
• Partner with Internal Audit on risk assessments and remediation actions.
• Maintain audit-ready operations with strong documentation discipline.

5. Performance Enablement & Finance Partnership

• Support NEA finance leadership with clean, reliable financial actuals.
• Enable fact-based performance reviews through disciplined variance analysis.
• Provide controllership input into pricing, cost, and commercial decisions.
• Ensure forecasts and plans are grounded in credible actuals.

6. ERP, Systems & Process Standardization

• Own finance control requirements within ERP processes (R2R, O2C, P2P).
• Ensure system configurations support strong controls and reporting accuracy.
• Standardize close processes, templates, and reconciliation frameworks across NEA.
• Reduce manual workarounds and eliminate control weaknesses.

7. Team Leadership & Capability Development

• Lead and develop NEA controllership and accounting teams.
• Build technical depth, succession pipelines, and a strong control mindset.
• Set expectations for precision, accountability, and ethical conduct.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• On-time and accurate month-end and year-end close
• Unqualified statutory audit outcomes
• Reduction in repeat audit and control findings
• Balance sheet reconciliation completeness and quality
• Accuracy of provisions, accruals, and intercompany balances
• ERP control effectiveness and reduction in manual adjustments
• Finance team capability and succession readiness

Experience, Knowledge & Qualifications

Experience

• 10–14+ years total finance experience , with strong controllership focus
• 5+ years in senior controllership or finance leadership roles
• Experience in multi-entity, multi-country environments
• FMCG, manufacturing, or complex trading background preferred
• Strong exposure to audit-intensive and ERP-enabled finance environments

Knowledge

• Deep expertise in IFRS, statutory reporting, and audit management
• Strong balance sheet, control, and risk awareness
• Understanding of working capital and intercompany governance
• Familiarity with tax coordination and regulatory reporting

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or related discipline (mandatory)
• Professional qualification required: CPA, ACCA, CA, CMA, or equivalent

Direct Reports

• NEA Accounting / Controllership Team
• Finance Managers / Senior Accountants (as applicable)