Job Purpose:
The Financial Specialist is responsible for developing annual budget plan, guidelines, and templates in line with set policies and procedures, and ensure implementation of corrective actions for deviations highlighted in developed reports.
Responsibilities:
- Contribute to the design and implementation of Budget and Planning policies and procedures covering all areas of activity.
- Supervise day-to-day activities to ensure compliance with stipulated policies and procedures.
- Identify opportunities for continuous improvement of systems and processes taking into account leading practices, changes in business environment, cost reduction and productivity improvement.
- Establish working relationships with relevant internal and external stakeholders.
- Collect feedback from internal and external stakeholders on issues being faced and other requirements.
- Contribute to the preparation of progress reports directed to all relevant stakeholders to keep them informed of progress.
- Actively gain exposure and insights to local market development, business opportunities and the existing regulatory landscape.
- Actively participate in on-the-job training, mentoring, and coaching of subordinates.
- Provide clear direction, prioritise tasks, assign and delegate responsibility and monitor the workflow.
- Promote a high-performance working environment embracing GASTAT’s values.
- Develop and update financial planning and budgeting policies, procedures, guidelines, and tools / system in line with GASTAT strategy and plans.
- Develop financial plan and timetable in line with defined strategy and financial planning policies and guidelines.
- Lead and follow up on workshops to ensure proper understanding and communication of budget tools and templates.
- Forecast GASTAT finances through leveraging analysed data and building relevant financial models in line with best practices.
- Meet with functions to challenge individual budget proposals according to agreed terms and guidelines and accordingly finalise function specific budgets.
- Apply necessary amendments to drafted budget based on meeting outcomes and accordingly finalise function specific budgets.
- Oversee upload of set budget in the financial system and ensure archiving of all approved budgets and documents.
- Develop a comprehensive annual budget plan using received budget proposals and foretasted finances in line with set policies and procedures to be submitted for approval.
- Approve budget needed for purchase requisition in coordination with Procurement function.
- Track budget expenditure to ensure effective use of budget resources and avoid any budget deficit and overruns.
- Monitor GASTAT expenses through periodically tracking budget and develop budget monitoring reports in line with set guidelines and forms.
- Assess functions’ deviating from planned budget, investigate root causes for identified discrepancies and ensure implementation of corrective actions in coordination with concerned functions.
- Manage budget modification requests by reviewing conducted assessment and securing needed approval.
- Ensure constant follow-up on implementation of requested budget modification to detect any deviations and develop appropriate actions in a timely manner.
- Assess budget transfer requests and compare to budget savings to forward to top management for approval / rejection.
- Update annual budget plan according to approved budget modification and budget transfer requests and amend in General Ledger system.
Job Qualifications and Requirements:
- 6+ years of experience in a Finance field.
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance or equivalent is required.
