Accountant

Job description / Role

The role holder is responsible for executing the various activities pertaining to accounts payable, fixed assets, accounts receivable, general ledger, treasury, payroll and financial planning for GMG business units under the guidance of the manager/superiors. The role holder is responsible for executing day today tasks as assigned by the superiors in compliance with the policies and procedures of the GMG group.

Core Responsibilities:

General Ledger
• Executes all monthly general ledger procedures including journal entry preparation, discrepancy resolution, and account analysis for GMG’s respective business unit:
• Entering direct journal vouchers (e.g. related to Payroll)
• Reconciling Sub ledgers with General Ledger
• Performs General Ledger reconciliation with sub ledgers (all subsidiary accounts and records will be reconciled to the general ledger) monthly and at year-end closing
• Informs and follows-up with the Manager if reconciliation between general ledgers accounts and subsidiary ledgers are not met. Records all adjusting, closing and reversing entries to attain reconciliation in such cases (after the requisite approval)

Accounts Payable
• Executes for all monthly accounts payable procedures, for GMG’s respective business unit, including preparing journal vouchers and batches for entry of payment transactions (payments, debit notes, credit notes, invoices) related to accounts payable into the General Ledger with respect to all the purchases, expenses and goods outwards:
• Entering invoices in system
• Invoice matching
• Invoice discrepancies
• Creating payments (Cheques, Cash etc. as required) or applying prepayments
• Creating debit/credit Notes
• Stopping payments
• Payment Reconciliation
• Receives invoices and perform invoice matching and reconciling with delivery notes against invoices and purchase order
• Prepares accounts payable cheques and wire-transfers with payment vouchers for necessary approval
• Periodically makes reconciliations with major suppliers/vendors/contractors and arranges for balance confirmations

Accounts Receivable
• Executes for all monthly accounts receivables procedures, for GMG’s respective business unit, including preparing journal vouchers and batches for entry of receivables transactions (receipts, debit notes, credit notes) into the General Ledger
• Entering information in the system
• Payment discrepancies
• Maintaining customer files
• Following up on collections
• Validates customer (commercial) history, credit ceiling or aging reports and updates the stakeholders on late receipts
• Maintain the Account Receivable Ledger and process Account Receivable Closing and Reporting
• Receives payments and receipts, record them and performs matching and remittance

Fixed Asset
• Executes all monthly fixed assets procedures including maintaining the Fixed Assets master file to ensure the accurate tracking of all fixed assets for the GMG’s respective business units
• Receives invoices of fixed assets in order to match with the addition/capitalization of a new fixed asset into the system
• Assists with the preparation of the yearly statement of capital assets written off during the year for different departments to show how they were disposed of for management information

Treasury
• Performs daily reconciliation between banks accounts (all currencies) as per the bank statement and own records of treasury transactions
• Conducts, periodic, maturity analysis for the lines of credit obtained by GMG Group and updates the manager to ensures the availability of funds to meet the matured amount
• Executes as per the policies for hedging strategies and for managing foreign currency requirements
• Directs the cash balances available in GMG Group's various (Banks/Correspondences) accounts by all currencies and performs the re-allocation of funds to ensure that the optimum return on the GMG Group's funds is always attained

Payroll
• Processes salary and benefits entitlements and ensures authorization of monthly payroll as per established policies and procedures
• Verifies a variety of payroll related information (e.g. time sheets, direct deposits, wage attachments, benefits, etc.) for the purpose of ensuring accurate distribution of funds and payroll and escalates any discrepancy to the senior authorities
• Executes as per the established controls and procedures while performing reconciliation checks in the payroll processing and payments to ensure quality of delivery and compliance with standard processes
• Provides the interpretation of the payroll policy related to employee entitlements and concerns regarding benefits, leave, pension as and when required in collaboration with the Human Resources Department

Financial Planning
• Prepares and submits financial analysis to the departments and develops all types of short and long term financial projections/forecasts/plans in accordance with the department’s strategies and GMG’s overall objectives and directions, as guided by the seniors
• Conducts feasibility studies, financial due diligence, financial modeling & valuations, financial projections and other type of financial analysis to support decisions related to acquisitions, projects development etc.
• Prepares forecasts of demand and estimates of revenue for the group, or assigned business unit, or assigned stores in the group
• Performs budgeting activities in compliance with GMG’s approved Budgeting Policies & Procedures reflecting the department’s strategies and GMG’s overall objectives and directions

Other responsibilities
• Prepares the necessary monthly reports and the requested ad-hoc summaries/reports as may be requested by the seniors, related to –
• Sales, Margins
• Customers
• Stocks, Inventory, Port Shipments, Distributions, Freight, Customs, Shipment Delays etc.
• Budget Utilization
• Business Performance including Cash Flow, P&L statements
• Retail Productivity Metrics
• Ensures that all accounting entries are supported with valid documentation
• Coordinates with auditors as needed on research/resolution of any accounting issues/discrepancies

Self-Management:
• Defines performance goals at the start of the year in discussion with the reporting manager and ensures that the goals are achieved during the course of the year
• Takes ownership of his/her own learning agenda by identifying development needs in consultation with the manager and agreeing on the individual development plan which goes beyond just training and development
• Keeps abreast of professional developments, new techniques and current issues through continued education and professional growth

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting or Business Administration
• Master’s degree in Finance, Accounting or Business Administration, is preferred
• Knowledge of International accounting Standards (e.g. IFRS)
• Knowledge of Accounting systems and software
• 1-3 years of relevant experience across the financial accounting functions

About the Company

Established in 1978, by the Baker family who still own and manage the company today, Gulf Marketing Group is one of the Middle East's leading, family owned companies. Gulf Marketing Group operates regionally, across the GCC and boasts a diverse portfolio of brands, retail outlets and services. Gulf Marketing Group subsidiaries operate in key sectors such as retail and distribution of sporting goods and lifestyle brands, health and fitness, food and food processing, integrated 3PL logistics, real estate, healthcare and pharmacies, education and technology. Since 1978, Gulf Marketing Group has introduced more than 90 international brands into the Middle East, as well as building the reputation of our homegrown brands as reliable and quality driven companies.

We are proud to be one of the top 10 retailers in the Gulf region with:

• More than three decades experience managing international brands in local environments
• A prestigious portfolio of world class brand partners
• Anchor tenancy in all major GCC shopping malls
• A proven track record of securing exclusive retail and distributor agreements
• An experienced management team
• Strong customer relationships