Duty station: To be based in, Amman (Jordan), Bangkok (Thailand), Geneva ( Switzerland) or Nairobi (Kenya) 

Contract type: Staff position  

Duration: Indefinite  

Worktime: 80-100% FTE 

Target start date: 1st April – 1st May 

Reports to: Director of Operations  

Languages required: English 

Experience: Minimum 7 years of relevant work experience 

Application deadline: 05.03.2023 

 

About ACT Alliance 

ACT Alliance is one of the world’s largest coalition of churches and church-related organisations engaged in humanitarian, development and advocacy work. It consists of 144 members working together in over 120 countries, with headquarters in 73 countries, whose aim is to create a positive and sustainable change in the lives of poor and marginalised people regardless of their religion, politics, gender, sexual orientation, race or nationality in keeping with the highest international codes and standards. 64% of our members are headquartered in the Global South, 30% in the Global North, and 6% are Global members. For more details about the general work of ACT, please refer to http://www.actalliance.org/.  

ACT Alliance’s structure is unique, with national, sub-regional and regional forums that bring local, national, regional, and international church-related organisations to work together under the same principles and standards, bringing different skills and expertise to support each other and leverage collective action in humanitarian, development, and advocacy engagement. Thanks to the presence of national ACT forums in over 50 countries, and of its global secretariat in strategic locations (Geneva, New York, Nairobi, Bangkok, Amman, Brussels, Toronto, and Bogota), ACT Alliance is able to bring local and regional concerns to the global arena.  

 

Major functions summary 

The Finance Manager is under the direct supervision of the Director of Operations. The Finance Manager is responsible for overseeing the work of the ACT Secretariat’s finance team and enhancing financial management and efficiency, including ensuring accurate and timely financial accounting and reporting, and minimizing financial risks. S/He ensures that the internal financial systems, policies and procedures work optimally to meet the requirements of the ACT Alliance as well as those of external donors and diverse regulatory environments in which ACT operates. 

 

Duties and responsibilities 

Finance and Cash Management 

• Assume responsibility for the organisation’s financial management and reporting. 
• Develop and manage relevant financial policies, procedures and control systems. 
• Lead the development of operating and donor project budgets ensuring a collaborative process with relative stakeholders. 
• Provide advice on Swiss and other relevant local accounting and financial management practices to ensure full compliance with standards in vigour. 
• Analyse, consolidate and report quarterly on the ACT Secretariat’s financial income and expenditure. Ensure that, at minimum, quarterly “Budget vs. Actual” reports are presented to all programme managers and main stakeholders for regular review and monitoring of costs. 
• Develop financial modelling, financial forecasts and financial analysis to support and monitor the annual financial plan and long-term strategy. 
• Provide regular and critical financial information to the Director of Operations and Core Management Team (CMT) and make actionable recommendations on both strategy and operations. 
• Oversee long-term budgetary planning, cost management, and reserve build-up in alignment with the organisation’s strategic plan.  
• Ensure that cash-flow forecasting is developed, and that accurate cash forecasting is maintained. 
• Maintain external relations, partnerships and networks, including those with banks, auditors, donors, and other INGOs. 

 

Financial risk management 

• In coordination with the finance team and budget holders, monitor budget execution of all grant contracts and ensure compliance. 
• Analyse all foreign exchange risk and, in coordination with Managers, monitor Forex gains/losses on all grant contracts. Review foreign exchange reporting policy on all foreign currency grants to ensure minimal exposure to the organisation. 
• Ensure that all appropriate closure processes are used to guarantee the accuracy of financial data. 
• Ensure that adequate internal controls are functioning to guarantee accurate transaction entry in the accounting system and that the potential for fraud is reduced to a minimum. 
• Oversee and ensure continual improvement of ACT’s financial accounting system for both operational and humanitarian finance.  

 

Audit, Internal Controls and Compliance  

• Produce consolidated ACT Secretariat accounts in accordance with IFRS & Swiss GAAP. Support and oversee audits and use the outcomes from the different reviews to improve internal financial processes. 
• Prepare the reporting, in cooperation with the Director of Operations, to the Board and the Finance Committee. 
• Serve as key point of contact for external financial auditors in coordination with the Director of Operations and ensure that external and project audits are adequately supported and monitor the evolution of the audit to minimize potential risks. 
• Oversee continuous improvement of the finance internal control systems. 

 

Team Management 

• Oversee the development of the finance team, based currently in Switzerland and Bangkok, to achieve best practices and optimal output, while reducing costs where appropriate and possible; this includes ongoing review of the various financial processes for efficiency (including automation where possible) and appropriate controls. 
• Ensure that the finance team have the required tools and skills to perform their work to a high standard and that they work efficiently and effectively. 

 

Skills and experience: 

• BA or Masters Degree in finance, financial audit and/or Certified Accountant. 
• At least seven years of accounting, financial management and/or financial audit experience. 
• Good knowledge of IFRS, Swiss GAAP or similar accounting standard(s). 
• Experience in financial controls and process development in a Swiss and/or Non-profit environment. 
• Knowledge of, and experience in, working with grants from key international donors. 
• Excel and financial systems proficiency – preferably with experience in Office 365 Dynamics (previously Navision) and Continia expense reporting system. 
• Strong skills in analysing and producing financial overviews and financial forecasting.  
• Strong organizational and project/process management skills. 
• Ability to present complex financial data in a format easily comprehensible to people with little or no finance background. 
• Flexible, innovative and effective in working collaboratively as part of a multicultural team. 
• Willingness and drive to work independently with limited supervision. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English; good knowledge of French or other languages is a strong asset.  

 

HOW TO APPLY 

ACT provides equitable compensation and pension packages and flexible working conditions. ACT also applies a non-discriminatory approach to recruitment and celebrates a diverse workforce. Interested and qualified candidates should send their CV and a cover letter (no certificates or other documents at initial application stage), in English and by email only, to recruitment@actalliance.org by 05.03.2023 (24.00 CET). Please put “Finance Manager” in the subject line and name your documents: “Firstname Lastname CV” and “Firstname Lastname Cover letter”.   

Please note that ACT adheres to the SCHR misconduct scheme https://www.schr.info/the-misconduct-disclosure-scheme. As part of reference checking, ACT will contact the current and former employer(s) of the preferred candidate, asking them to complete a Statement of Conduct form.  

We ask for your understanding that we are only able to contact shortlisted candidates.