Head of Finance & Accounting at Mastercard Foundation

Mastercard Foundation is a global foundation based across four hubs in Kigali, Rwanda, Nairobi, Kenya, Accra, Ghana and Toronto, Canada. Our programs promote financial inclusion and advance education and learning in Africa, primarily for young people, and in Canada for Indigenous youth. The Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. From inception, the Foundation was designed to be a separate entity and independent from Mastercard. Our policies, operations, and funding decisions are made by our President and Board of Directors.

The Foundation believes that youth employment is key to unlocking prosperity, both for youth and their societies. Enabling young women and men from disadvantaged communities to secure dignified and fulfilling work will ensure inclusive development and economic growth in Africa.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Head of Finance & Accounting

Location: Lagos, Nigeria

The Opportunity

• Reporting to the Head of Finance & Accounting, Africa, the Head of Finance & Accounting will lead the Foundation’s financial operations in Nigeria. This is an opportunity to influence and support our growth in Africa.
• A key element of this role will be building the accounting, finance and operations infrastructure in Nigeria as part of a multi-year growth strategy. This will include recruiting and training an Accounting team and Finance Leads who are responsible for managing financial matters related to our programs in Nigeria, developing our systems, procedures and internal processes, liaising with our country representatives with respect to operational matters, and helping to manage our relationships with external parties such as our bank and the local tax authorities.
• You will also be the primary Finance contact for the Country Representatives in the region.
• As the scope and scale of our work in Nigeria grows, the Finance and Accounting team, structure and processes will also change. Your ability to be flexible and adaptable, and your willingness to support wherever needed, are critical to our joint success.

Ways you can Contribute
Program Finance:

• Responsible for financial management of country program portfolios
• Be the primary Finance advisor and team contact for Country Representative in Nigeria
• Oversee full-cycle management of partner contracts, i.e. Expression of Interest (EOI), proposal and budget, contract approval, program execution and monitoring program completion
• Adopt a risk-based approach to assessing programs and partner contracts, and ensuring proper stewardship of Foundation resources
• Respond to innovative program interventions with new and creative solutions to meet Foundation goals

Accounting and Operations:

• Oversee the development, implementation and management of the accounting and finance infrastructure for the Foundation’s new office in Nigeria, including systems, accounting practices, policies and procedures.
• Build, support and / or manage relationships with external parties such as banks, local tax authorities, payroll service providers and legal counsel.
• Coordinate with the Toronto accounting team to ensure tax compliance for the Nigeria office, including statutory direct and indirect taxes filings and audits.
• Manage local insurance coverage and policies.
• Support month-end and year-end closing and assist the Toronto accounting team with the annual financial audit and any audits required in Africa.
• Work with the Financial Planning & Analysis team with the budgeting and forecasting activities.
• Manage the creation of procedure manuals as new offices become operational.
• Work closely with and support the Toronto staff with respect to facilities and IT to ensure our Nigeria office has what is required from this perspective.
• Recruit, develop and provide coaching and leadership to the Operations team as the Foundation expands and operations become more complex.
• Lead other ad hoc projects, as required.

Reporting and Analysis:

• Ensure ongoing accuracy of database tracking partner commitments and disbursements.
• Provide monthly reporting and analysis to Head of Finance & Accounting, Africa, and to the Country Representative on program expenses, partner disbursements, cash flow projections, value for money, and other ad hoc reports as needed.
• Prepare overall budget and forecast data for the country program portfolio.

Who You Are

• Professional accounting designation with a university degree in accounting or a related field. MBA an asset.
• Minimum 7 years in progressively senior financial roles within large and/or global organizations, with at least 3 in a management capacity.
• Experience in grant/fund management strongly preferred. Previous work in the development sector an asset.
• Experience building capabilities and capacity of accounting and operations teams in high growth organizations including supporting expansion in multi-jurisdictional and multi-currency environments.
• Ability to assess risks and exercise judgment in making important decisions.
• Innovative and able to formulate new or creative approaches to problems.
• French language skills are an asset
• Impeccable integrity.
• Travel required 10-15% throughout Africa and to Toronto.
• Flexible, adaptable, and able to execute a range of job duties and changing priorities.
• Excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures.
• Professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity that exemplify the Foundation’s values.

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.