Finance Manager (National Position)

Location: Kyiv, Ukraine with trips to other CARE Ukraine offices 

Reporting line manager: Deputy Country Director - Support Services  

Responsible for Managing: (Direct) Finance Coordinator, Budget and reporting Coordinator and Chief Accountant & (Indirect) 4 Finance officers, 1 Accountant 

Duration: 12 months (National Contract), starting 1st of January 2025 (or sooner

Conditions: Employment contract, gross monthly salary starting from €4,263, Risks allowance of €200/month (medium risks area), medical insurance and PSS.  Annual leave of 28 days per calendar year. 

CARE INTERNATIONAL 

CARE International (CI) is among the world's largest international non-governmental humanitarian relief and development confederations. Drawing on more than 75 years of experience, CI's work reaches over 110 countries worldwide to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice. CARE's vision is to seek a world of hope, inclusion, and social justice; where poverty has been overcome and people live in dignity and security. CARE focuses heavily on women and girls, and the areas of gender equality, diversity, and inclusion are at the center of our work because we know that we cannot overcome poverty and social injustice until all people have equal rights and opportunities. 

CONTEXT IN UKRAINE 

On 24th February 2022, the invasion of Ukraine marked a significant escalation to the conflict that started in 2014. It continues to profoundly impact the lives of people across the country at various levels. The front line is continuously shifting and there are areas under Russian military control, as well as cities under siege. Attacks on military installations and critical civilian infrastructures are conducted in the entire territory of Ukraine, often resulting in collateral civilian casualties. The conflict has caused the largest population movement in Europe since World War II, with over 5 million currently displaced within Ukraine and 6 million refugees across Europe. OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) had counted 14.6 million people in need of humanitarian assistance. An ongoing priority for the international humanitarian response is to reach newly accessible areas in the East and South of Ukraine, and to provide aid to previously unreachable and particularly hard-hit areas of Ukraine. 

CARE UKRAINE 

As CARE, we strongly believe in the importance of localization and recognize the invaluable skills and knowledge present in the local context. By working together, we can achieve quality responses and make a lasting impact on the lives of those we serve. CARE seeks to establish long-term, sustainable partnerships with civil society organizations especially WLOs/WROs that lead to more effective, locally driven, and impactful humanitarian responses, recovery, and development in Ukraine, improving the lives of the most vulnerable populations. In the first few weeks after the escalation of the war, virtually all humanitarian aid inside Ukraine was organized and implemented by local actors. These groups (together with local authorities) remain the principal aid providers but are quickly being exhausted of funds, fuel, and physical energy. Thereby, a considerable proportion of CARE's resources is dedicated to strengthening and supporting the capacities of local partners. As of September 2024, CARE Ukraine has established partnerships with over thirty local/national organizations (incl. WLO's/WRO's). From the more than 75 million euros that have been raised for Ukraine so far, more than 77% is allocated to national partners. Through the activities that have been implemented so far, CARE Ukraine has been able to reach more than 1.4 million people. While CARE Ukraine's country office is currently located in Kyiv, we also have offices in Lviv, Dnipro, Odesa, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv.       

Role  Objectives 

The basic function of the Country Office (CO) National Finance Manager is to develop, coordinate and administer the CO plans for proper recording, documentation, control, monitoring and reporting of financial and budgeting operations. The CO Finance Manager is responsible for leading the day-to-day financial operations at the CO level. The postholder plans, organizes, directs, and is responsible for providing quality financial services to all projects, units and staff in the CO. The postholder will work closely with the DCD - Support Services, Compliance and Legal Affairs and Senior Management Team (SMT) to ensure that a cross-partnership is developed between Finance, Program, HR and Program Support units. The Finance Manager assumes overall responsibility for the implementation of the organization's policies, procedures and donor rules and regulations at the CO level.

The Finance Manager's profile includes: strong accounting and finance knowledge, analytical skills, negotiation skills, attention to details, ability to work effectively under time pressure, very strong business partnering skills with ability to influence CO senior staff, team player, proactive individual with ability to offer structured guidance, ability to ensure that the right priorities are set for the CO finance team, proven experience of training both the finance and non-finance staff, proficiency in Excel and an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) financial system eg PeopleSoft, SAP etc would be an asset. This includes a very strong collaborative skills and work effectively with various teams in the organization. Strong knowledge of Ukrainian financial rules and regulations is mandatory.

The Country Finance Manager line manages a finance team comprising of 3 direct line reports and 5 indirect finance technical line reporting

Accounting 

• Ensure compliance with the Ukrainian finance regulations and CARE's accounting policies for humanitarian programs, adapting quality finance implementation rules and procedures.
• Overseeing all accounting activities, including fund transfers, budget development and implementation, liquidity planning, financial reporting, and month-end/year-end closing procedures.
• Lead financial risk management practices and ensure donor financial compliance for project offices, including maintaining proper controls over bank accounts, archival systems, and supporting documents.
• Supervise the protection of assets through internal controls, auditing procedures, and facilitation of internal/external audits, assigning focal points for audit coordination.
• Develop and implement CO accounts payable, accounts receivable and cash management modules including the cash disbursement policies, and accounting systems to ensure efficient financial operations.
• Review the payroll system to ensure accurate tax and deduction calculations, and assess leases and contracts related to CO assets, providing recommendations to the supervisor and the Country Director (CD).
• Manage financial systems, including accounting software parameters, exchange rate tables, cost pool allocations, and vendor/donor files, ensuring smooth operations and accurate financial records.
• Ensure the timely payment of invoices, proper booking of expenses, and approval of payroll, journal entries, and timesheet guidelines for CO staff.
• Supervise the monthly financial AP soft and hard closes, Shared Program Cost allocations, and ensure that journals are submitted and posted in PeopleSoft on a timely basis.

Budget and reporting 

• Support the DCD Support Services in the development of the annual budget framework, and monitor/revise it on a regular basis.
• Develop comprehensive annual budgets aligned with organizational objectives and strategic priorities.
• Review and ensure that the CO's Master Budget is prepared accurately and on a regular basis and which includes all donor funding with a clear determination of any gaps and/or surplus.
• Implement rolling forecasts to adjust budgets based on changing circumstances and financial performance.
• Formulate project budgets in alignment with donor-specific procedures, coordinating closely with relevant teams.
• Ensure cost coverage is directly linked to the proposed programs, while also fairly distributing Country Office (CO) operating costs across each project
• Ensure that each restricted donor budget includes a fair share of the Shared Program/overhead costs (SPC) and Indirect Cost Recovery (ICR) for the HQ based on the donor agreements.
• Oversee the preparation of Budget versus Actual (BvA) reports for each grant and ensure they are shared with relevant teams within 5 days after the monthly closure.
• Monitor the allocation of funds throughout each grant, ensuring compliance with the contractual framework, including donor eligibility rules, timelines, and procurement procedures, as well as adherence to reporting schedules.
• Ensure timely preparation of external financial reports for donors and coordinate their timely submission.

Treasury Management 

• Provide oversight for day-to-day financial operations, ensuring efficient processes and controls over Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable and the Cash Management including cash transfers, and other cash and bank journal entries.
• Review and approve the Cash Request Report before submitting it to the Country Director (CD) for final approval.
• Supervise and approve cash flow movements between the Country Office (CO) and Area Office, including monitoring the safe boxes' cash position.
• Lead coordination with CO bankers, overseeing banking operations and managing the collection of contractual and miscellaneous receivables.
• Ensure that the banking signatories are up to date together with a signatory list and sample signatures for all approvers and compliant with internal policies.
• Supervise the preparation of the CO's cash forecast report, ensuring timely submission of funds transfer requests to HQ.
• Monitor and ensure sufficient CO bank account balances to facilitate timely payments.
• Oversee the reconciliation of bank and cash accounts monthly, ensuring that all discrepancies are promptly addressed and explained.
• Conduct monthly and annual verification of accounting records in CARE's financial system for the CO, ensuring adherence to the accounting and budgetary framework as well as internal procedures.
• Ensure all digital and paper accounting archives comply with CARE standards and local legislative requirements.

Financial Operations Quality Review 

• Supervise and control the quality of the monthly closing process to include bank reconciliation reports, intra-company reconciliation, payroll reconciliation, sub-office reports, subledger and non-subledger accounts reconciliation. 
• Ensure quality review of balance sheet, income statement, grants and contracts receivable/payable accounts, in accordance with monthly closing procedures. 
• Support in the preparation of the quarterly MARCO reporting tool and sharing of the report with the SMT and HQ teams for further review and finalization.
• Ensure adherence to internal financial controls to prevent fraud, errors, and financial mismanagement. 
• Assess compliance with organizational policies, donor guidelines, and local regulations and share any recommendations with the Line Manager. 
• Conduct spot checks and audits of financial transactions to ensure accuracy and legitimacy. 
• Identify financial risks related to operations, including currency fluctuations, financial reporting, and funding gaps. 
• Review the organization's readiness for both internal and external audits, including documentation and compliance. 
• Ensure that all expenditures are properly authorized, documented, and aligned with budgetary allocation. 
• Evaluate the accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of internal and external financial reports. 
• Verify that financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting standards and organizational policies. Review donor-specific financial reports to ensure compliance with contractual requirements.
• Review the aging of all the receivables and payable balances as per the monthly trial balance and timely clearing of all the outstanding balances.

Compliance and Regulatory Reporting

• Ensure timely submission of statutory reports to regulatory authorities, including tax filings, social security contributions, and other legal requirements.
• Regularly review changes in local reporting standards to ensure compliance.
• Regularly monitor changes in Ukrainian legislation and regulatory updates from bodies like the Verkhovna Rada, NBU, SFS, and other relevant authorities
• Supervise the submission of monthly payroll tax reports to the tax authorities and ensure accurate reporting of benefits in kind.

Staff and talent management 

• Responsible for the supervision and development of CO finance team; Provide accounting and financial training to CO finance staff including area offices; Organize training in financial management to non-finance staff as necessary.
• Implement Annual Performance Assessment policy and process to include the preparation and monitoring of Individual Operating Plans (IOPs) for finance staff.
• Develop succession plan and departmental rotation of duties to ensure that Finance level of service will not suffer due to the loss of any personnel.
• Provide guidance to subordinate staff in implementing the staff development plan.
• Work with the Deputy Country Director – Support Services and the CO human resources unit to develop and manage talent in the CO finance unit.

General 

• Support in regulatory matters including registration, tax obligations, etc. in compliance with Ukrainian laws
• Develop financial and accounting training program to include manuals to meet the organizational goals for sustainable improved performance in financial management in CO.
• Assist CD and other senior CO staff in the review of donor contracts, negotiations and other financial commitments.
• Identify and communicate potential issues regarding financial statements of accounts to the CD and other senior, CO staff and management in the Headquarters.
• Assist the CD in preparing responses to audit findings, planning, and implementing audit recommendations.

Mandatory criteria for longlisting:

• Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, development finance, or related field is a distinct advantage. Master's degree and/or accounting designation (eg, a Certified Public Accountant) is preferred.
• At least 7 years of experience in operations management in international INGOs,
• Experience working in humanitarian sector minimum 5 years,
• Proven experience in managing large budgets and working with donors.
• Advanced skills in Microsoft Office applications and working knowledge of Peoplesoft Accounting Software.
• Excellent knowledge of Ukrainian Finance Laws and Regulations. 
• Excellent command of the English and Ukrainian languages is required. 

Technical Skills :

• Thorough understanding of financial accounting, reporting and grants and contract management processes.
• Facilitation skills to conduct training sessions for small, medium and large sized groups.
• Solid analytical and problem solving, financial troubleshooting and audit experience.
• Ability to maintain customer focus while handling multiple priorities.
• Ability to quickly learn new systems, processes and procedures and adapt local practices to global standards.
• Excellent leadership, coaching and negotiation skills.
• Ability to work in teams, work at a detailed level and understand the larger picture.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office including Excel and Word and good skills in using financial software applications.

Expected

• Excellent interpersonal, communication and listening skills,
• Ability to take on a significant workload and work under pressure,
• Willingness to travel occasionally to the field location (Dnipro, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv)
• Proven experience in working with national partners, local/government authorities.
• Adaptability, cultural awareness and ability to work with various nationalities and cultural patterns.
• Skills in capacity building of the national team.
• Fluency in English both in writing and speaking.
• Proven leadership skills and a competence in people management
• Competence in providing technical guidance and training.
• Proven analytical and critical thinking skills.
• Ability to take on a significant workload and work under pressure,
• Excellent interpersonal skills, ability to work on one's own and complete tasks and produce high quality output.
• Proactive in problem solving, initiating actions and making operational decisions.

Accountability 

A commitment to CARE values and CARE's integrity framework is critical to working with CARE. Any candidate offered a job with CARE will be expected to adhere to the following key areas of accountability: 

• Comply with CARE's policies and procedures with respect to safeguarding, code of conduct, health and safety, confidentiality, do no harm principles and unacceptable behavior protocols. 
• Report any concerns about the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult or any wrongdoings within our programming area. 
• Report any concerns about inappropriate behavior of a CARE staff or partner.  

Safeguarding 

Children and vulnerable adults who come into contact with CARE as a result of our activities must be safeguarded to the maximum possible extent from deliberate or inadvertent actions and failings that place them at risk of abuse, sexual exploitation, injury, and any other harm. One of the ways that CARE shows this ongoing commitment to safeguarding is to include rigorous background and reference checks in the selection process for all candidates.  

Gender equality 

CARE is committed to meeting the standards of the CARE International Gender Policy (2019). Through this policy, CARE seeks to promote the equal realization of dignity and human rights for girls, women, boys and men in all diversities, and the elimination of poverty and injustice. Specifically, this policy seeks to improve the explicit incorporation of gender in programmatic and organizational practices. 

How to Apply

CARE values equal opportunities and diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability. 

Please send your CV (in pdf format max. 4 pages) and a cover letter in English to < Відправити резюме >, no later than 27 November 2024. Please name your documents Surname_CV, Surname_Cover Letter. Put  Finance Manager as the subject title of your email. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. 

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.