Job Description

Chief Accounting Officer

Main Responsibilities:

• Accountable for statutory financial statements and Group actual reported books (P&L, Balance Sheet (including flows), Cash flow, disclosures, etc.) prepared by competency centres and local teams, ensuring compliance with both local and Group requirements.
• Set-up and lead the Territory Accounting organization, supported by competency centres organization - Optimize the set-up and quality of accounting processes and tools / technology enablers, in line with group guidelines and Internal Control requirements (including various projects).
• Propose financial technical advice and support for the business and be the expert and advisor on accounting treatments for business transactions.
• Collaborate within Finance Community to support the overall function goals and support the transformation initiatives.
• Manage Tax accounting & filings, in coordination with Tax teams.
• Ensure controls are embedded in operations for fairness and accuracy of financial statements.
• Ensure accuracy of self-assessment of key internal controls impacting fairness & accuracy of financial statements, implementation of remediation action plans in case of controls deficiency.
• Manage the relation with external stakeholders (incl. auditors).
• Strong animation of accounting community in the territory.

Scope of Responsibility & Reporting Lines

Scope : All legal entities listed in the territory.

Reporting lines : Reporting directly to the Territory Chief Finance Officer and functionally to Group Chief Accounting Officer. Direct reports are accountants of Legal Entities in the territory and Territory Internal Controllers.

Specific Processes

• P&L and balance sheet reconciliations & reviews.
• Intercompany transactions - Month end closing.
• Competency centres communication (monitoring).
• Accounting & Internal Control governance on territory.
• Accounting & Internal Control transformation.
• Financial Review Meetings.
• Anti-corruption accounting controls.
• Internal Control self-assessment campaign.

Responsibilities

1. Accountable for Group accounting and reporting, statutory and tax books prepared by Coce and local team:

• Provide input on local accounting policies and procedures and define local Accounting approval matrix in line with Group Chart of Approval.
• Ensure robust end to end accounting process in coordination with Coce: efficiency, productivity and quality of delivery.
• Reporting under IFRS & Group principles (Implementation of Group Controlling and accounting rules and processes).
• Ensure the production of the compliant statutory accounts, communication with local authorities, auditors, banks, etc.
• Manage entity and territory Balance sheet reviews to ensure effective identification of risks securing financial statement accuracy.
• In collaboration with tax, ensure local and international tax compliance, timely filling in, reviewing, approving, filing the tax returns and making the tax payments.
• Ensure reconciliation between tax / local GAAP/ group reporting accounts.

1. Leads the Territory Accounting Organization, supported by Coce:

• Manage work with Coce in the framework of an SLA.
• Set up & update Accounting team in the Country for all legal entities, in accordance with the Group projects & evolution.
• Lead high performing team & develop future ready finance profiles.
• Governance and escalation of issues. Part of Coce Governance, collaboration with TABP and respond to Coce Customer satisfaction survey.

1. Responsible to optimize set up and quality of Accounting and Tax processes and tools:

• Drive Finance Transformation and E2E Accounting processes.
• Define priorities and roadmap for process implementation & improvement.
• Ensure that processes are in place, they are in line with corporate guidelines, documented, communicated and updated.
• Ensure that tools are in place, they are in line with the corporate guidelines and employees are trained to use them.
• Lead evolution & change in tools in compliance with Global guidelines.

1. Responsible to update Finance on legislations/local rules change and statutory events:

• Maintain Subscription for Accounting, Tax and relevant legislation updates from external professional firms or local membership to Accounting and Tax Network.
• Monitor changes in accounting standards, tax laws, or regulatory requirements that can create risks related to non-compliance or inadequate disclosure in financial statements.
• Responsible to maintain a planning of all statutory / compliance activities and duties.

1. Accountable for having controls embedded in operations:

• Implementation and compliance to Key Internal Controls & Anti-corruption controls in all accounting processes in his/her scope.
• Owners of controls relating to Chart of Approvals & Segregation of Duties.
• Key internal control champion for the non-accounting processes.

1. Accountable for accuracy of self-assessment of key internal controls impacting fairness and accuracy of financial statements in the territory.

1. Provide accounting support for ad-hoc activities like acquisitions, legal entities merges, carve-outs.

1. Participation to Finance community projects.

Technical Skills

• Local accounting/tax qualification and English speaking.
• CPA or IFRS degree (certificates).
• Process oriented (workflows, guidelines, instructions, documentation etc).
• Compliance and internal control.
• Digital Mindset.
• Technical knowledge of IFRS and country accounting (both statutory and tax).
• IT and tools oriented.
• Capacity to understand both local and global pictures from a statutory perspective.

Soft & Leadership

• Business partnership.
• Leadership and team management skills.
• Collaboration.
• Good communicator able to explain.
• Capacity to collaborate and manage stakeholders (CFO, Coce, Auditors, Corp, Functions).
• Ability to synthesize and identify key priorities and issues, and explain complex issues in simple manner.
• Agility and capacity to drive change.
• Ability to manage pressure and meet deadlines.
• Curiosity, pragmatism and capacity to understand both local and global pictures.
• Change management mindset, data mindset.

Internal & External Relations

Internal : CFO, Coce (Competency Centers), SE Digital, Business Finance, Tax, Treasury, Credit Management, Legal, Internal Audit, Internal Control, Group Accounting Policy Team, Consolidation, HR, Purchasing, Global Supply Chain, Global Procurement Services.

External : Auditors, Agencies, Regulators, Government Administration, Banks, Local Authorities.

KPIs

Responsible to set up KPIs for the accounting team to measure and assess results.

Golden KPIs prioritization

To simplify, standardize and comply on our intercompany, record to report & order to cash and procure to pay Towers.

Looking to make an IMPACT with your career?

When you are thinking about joining a new team, culture matters. At Schneider Electric, our values and behaviors are the foundation for creating a great culture to support business success. We believe that our IMPACT values – Inclusion, Mastery, Purpose, Action, Curiosity, Teamwork – starts with us.

IMPACT is also your invitation to join Schneider Electric where you can contribute to turning sustainability ambition into actions, no matter what role you play. It is a call to connect your career with the ambition of achieving a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable world.

We are looking for IMPACT Makers; exceptional people who turn sustainability ambitions into actions at the intersection of automation, electrification, and digitization. We celebrate IMPACT Makers and believe everyone has the potential to be one.

Become an IMPACT Maker with Schneider Electric – apply today!

€36 billion global revenue + 13% organic growth 150,000+ employees in 100+ countries #1 on the Global 100 World’s most sustainable corporations.

You must submit an online application to be considered for any position with us. This position will be posted until filled.

Schneider Electric aspires to be the most inclusive and caring company in the world, by providing equitable opportunities to everyone, everywhere, and ensuring all employees feel uniquely valued and safe to contribute their best. We mirror the diversity of the communities in which we operate, and ‘inclusion’ is one of our core values. We believe our differences make us stronger as a company and as individuals and we are committed to championing inclusivity in everything we do.

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