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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Group Accountant

💰 $95,000 - $125,000

FinanceAccountingCorporate

🎯 Role Definition

The Group Accountant is a cornerstone of the corporate finance team, responsible for ensuring the integrity, accuracy, and timeliness of the consolidated financial information for the entire group of companies. This role serves as the technical accounting expert, managing the complex process of combining financial data from multiple subsidiaries, ensuring compliance with international accounting standards (like IFRS or GAAP), and producing insightful reports for senior leadership, the board, and external stakeholders. More than just a numbers expert, the Group Accountant is a key business partner to subsidiary finance teams, providing guidance, enforcing policy, and driving continuous improvement in financial reporting processes across the organization.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Senior Accountant (from a large or complex entity)
  • Financial Accountant
  • Audit Senior / Assistant Manager (Big 4 or Mid-Tier Practice)

Advancement To:

  • Group Reporting Manager
  • Finance Manager
  • Financial Controller

Lateral Moves:

  • Senior Financial Analyst (FP&A)
  • Internal Audit Manager

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Manage the complete month-end, quarter-end, and year-end group consolidation process, ensuring all subsidiary submissions are completed accurately and on schedule.
  • Prepare and deliver the group's consolidated financial statements (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow Statement) in compliance with IFRS and/or local GAAP.
  • Perform in-depth review and analysis of subsidiary financial data submissions, challenging assumptions and investigating significant variances to ensure data integrity.
  • Act as the primary point of contact for finance teams across all subsidiaries, providing technical accounting guidance and support on group policies and reporting requirements.
  • Develop, maintain, and enforce the group accounting policies manual, ensuring consistent application across all entities and communicating updates on new accounting standards.
  • Coordinate and manage the group's external audit process, acting as a key liaison with auditors, preparing detailed audit schedules, and resolving complex audit queries efficiently.
  • Research and prepare technical accounting papers and memos on complex transactions such as business combinations, divestitures, impairment reviews, and financial instruments.
  • Oversee the group's intercompany accounting process, ensuring all cross-entity transactions are properly recorded, reconciled, and eliminated upon consolidation.
  • Take ownership of the preparation of financial statement notes and disclosures for the group's annual report and statutory accounts.
  • Administer and maintain the group's consolidation system (e.g., Hyperion HFM, OneStream, SAP BPC), including the chart of accounts, reporting hierarchies, and system rules.
  • Manage the accounting for complex group-level items, including share-based payments, goodwill and intangibles, and defined benefit pension schemes.
  • Ensure the accurate calculation and recording of foreign currency translation adjustments and other consolidation-specific equity movements.
  • Prepare and review monthly management reporting packs for the executive leadership team and Board of Directors, providing insightful commentary on group financial performance.
  • Guarantee compliance with the internal controls framework (e.g., SOX) as it pertains to group financial reporting and the consolidation process.

Secondary Functions

  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives within the group finance function, identifying opportunities to streamline reporting processes, enhance controls, and leverage technology.
  • Support the Group Financial Controller and CFO with ad-hoc financial analysis, M&A due diligence, and other strategic projects as required.
  • Assist in the group-wide budgeting and forecasting process, with a specific focus on the consolidation and analysis of subsidiary-level plans.
  • Liaise effectively with internal departments such as tax, treasury, and legal to ensure financial reporting accurately reflects the group's activities.
  • Prepare periodic covenant compliance reports and financial certificates for lenders and other external financial stakeholders.
  • Provide formal and informal training to finance personnel across the group on reporting standards, new accounting pronouncements, and consolidation system usage.
  • Review and challenge balance sheet reconciliations submitted by subsidiaries to ensure the fundamental integrity of the Group's financial position.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Advanced IFRS/GAAP Knowledge: Deep, practical understanding of international accounting standards and the ability to research and apply them to complex business transactions.
  • Financial Consolidation Expertise: Proven experience managing multi-currency, multi-entity consolidations, including intercompany eliminations and equity accounting.
  • Consolidation Systems Proficiency: Hands-on experience with at least one major consolidation platform such as Hyperion (HFM), OneStream, SAP BPC, or Tagetik.
  • Advanced Microsoft Excel: Ability to build and manage complex spreadsheets, financial models, and perform advanced data analysis (Pivot Tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, Sumifs).
  • Statutory Reporting: Experience in preparing or auditing annual reports and statutory financial statements, including all necessary notes and disclosures.
  • Technical Accounting Research: The ability to independently research, interpret, and document positions on complex accounting issues.
  • ERP System Acumen: Familiarity with large-scale ERP systems like SAP, Oracle, or Microsoft Dynamics.

Soft Skills

  • Meticulous Attention to Detail: A relentless commitment to accuracy and precision, ensuring the absolute integrity of financial data.
  • Exceptional Communication: The ability to clearly and concisely explain complex accounting concepts to both financial and non-financial stakeholders, both verbally and in writing.
  • Analytical & Problem-Solving Mindset: A natural curiosity to investigate discrepancies, understand the 'why' behind the numbers, and develop effective solutions.
  • Stakeholder Management: The confidence and professionalism to build relationships, influence, and collaborate with finance teams across different cultures and geographies.
  • Resilience and Deadline-Driven: Thrives in a fast-paced environment with the ability to manage competing priorities and consistently meet tight reporting deadlines.
  • Proactive & Self-Motivated: A "roll-up-your-sleeves" attitude with the initiative to identify issues and drive improvements without constant supervision.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master’s Degree in Accounting or Finance.
  • Professional accounting qualification (CPA, CA, ACCA, CIMA) is strongly required and often a prerequisite for the role.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Accounting
  • Finance

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 4-7 years of progressive accounting experience.

Preferred: A background in a 'Big 4' or top-tier public accounting firm, reaching the level of Audit Senior or Assistant Manager, followed by 2+ years of industry experience in a group reporting or technical accounting role is considered the ideal pathway. Direct experience within a publicly-listed or large private multinational company is highly advantageous.

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