Financial Controller Assistant

The Financial Controller Assistant position at ISP Iberia reports into the Regional Financial Controller, Iberia. The individual is responsible for ensuring all financial and tax information is controlled and accurately reported, in accordance with strict deadlines, to satisfy all internal and external reporting requirements for all legal entities in Iberia.

• Month Close and Statutory Reporting: Responsible for the accountancy of the cost centre for the Regional team costs.
• Responsible for the month close of the cost centre for the Regional team costs.
• Work with the Regional FPA team to prepare and control the budget and forecast of the Regional team costs.
• Review and control to ensure financial transactions are recorded accurately in the ISP Group transactional and consolidation system Netsuite, in accordance with IFRS reporting standards.
• Produce timely financial statements, P&L, Balance sheet and cash flows, in a statutory format, including regular reconciliation to internal management reporting and local accounts.
• Support the schools in the monthly reviews of balance sheet movements, providing useful explanations for significant variances.
• Review intercompany and intracompany balances, to ensure full counterparty elimination on regional and group consolidation.
• Control and Compliance: Support the Regional Financial Controller to establish and maintain an adequate internal control and compliance environment to ensure external and internal reporting is free of material misstatement.
• Support the schools and region in the regular reviews of balance sheet reconciliations, ensuring all balances can be substantiated with supporting documentation.
• Ensure there is a clearly documented reconciliation of statutory accounts to management accounts for EBITDA and retained profit.
• Support the Financial Controller to monitor and follow up on external audit issues and implement recommended improvements.
• Ensure accounting treatment is consistent and aligned with Group accounting policies. Where there are local differences, maintain a reconciliation of locally reported figures to Group reported.
• Ensure all external statutory, financial and tax filings are made in accordance with required deadlines.
• Support the region and schools to ensure that internal and external audits are completed within the required deadlines.
• Review all payments to suppliers and the payroll have been posted correctly and executed in line with the group authorization limits.
• Ensure that group and regional authorization limits are always followed.
• Ensure that there is adequate segregation of duty controls in place to prevent fraud.
• Ensure that all legal documents are properly fulfilled, signed and archived.
• Cash Flow, Debtors and Capex: Support the Regional Financial Controller to ensure that local cash reserves are managed and optimised, in accordance with regional and group needs.
• Record and report local bank balances regularly.
• Cash pooling is in place where possible.
• Support the Regional Financial Controller to prepare an annual cash flow budget and maintain monthly cash flows, comparing and explaining significant monthly variances.
• Support the Regional Financial Controller to review and control the debtors reports under the Group requirements and monthly reporting.
• Review and control to ensure that the process of debtors collections are aligned with the debtors policy of the Group.
• Ensure Capex expenditure is recorded correctly in the Fixed Asset Module of Netsuite.
• Tax: Support in the review of tax information for the Legal entities of the region, to ensure compliance with tax regulations (SII reporting, payments of tax, statutory returns etc).
• Prepare the calculations of Corporation Tax (annual and payments in advance).
• Review that the companies of the Region comply with all non-tax statutory requirements (company secretarial etc).
• Support the Regional Financial Controller on group tax matters such as transfer pricing and to ensure that the tax profile of the Region companies are optimised.
• Ensure the policy, procedures and practices relating to taxation comply fully with all legal and regulatory requirements and codes of practice/conduct.
• Maintain a good technical knowledge of relevant tax policies and processes for the region.
• Systems: Support the Regional Financial Controller to assist in the implementation, administration and full adoption of the ISP core accounting platform, Netsuite, and supporting other key ISP core financial/Admin systems.
• Support to organise and coordinate training when required.
• Provide feedback, suggestions and input from the region, to help develop the systems and facilitate efficient and consistent finance processes and reporting across the region.
• Integration: Working closely with the Onboarding Manager of Iberia Region to ensure that acquired schools are integrated into ISP financial processes and reporting in a timely manner.
• Support the Regional Financial Controller in implementing ISP's accounting policies and other group policies.
• Support the Regional Financial Controller to assist in gathering sufficient information to support calculations and accounting entries for Group acquisition accounting for new acquisitions in the Region.
• Team Leadership: A key finance representative for ISP in the Region.
• Develop a partnering approach with the school teams, providing guidance, training and technical accounting and advisory support.
• Support to the Regional Financial Controller to ensure that finance control capability in the region and schools is continually improved.

Qualifications and Experience

• Experience for 4 years in a big 4 Audit firm would be advantageous.
• In-depth knowledge of accounting principles, policies and statutory reporting.
• Knowledge of IFRS reporting standards.
• Fluency in English and Spanish is essential.
• Occasional travel within the Iberia region may be required.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent knowledge of MS Office applications is needed, particularly Excel.
• Prior experience in using the NetSuite/PBCS applications or any other ERP systems would be advantageous.
• Ability to build good working relationships with all members and levels of the organization.
• A methodical, highly organized approach to the execution of assigned tasks and responsibilities.
• Positive, proactive, passionate, personable, results orientated, ambitious professional, who is keen to progress within a global organization.
• Strong organizational, time-management skills and an ability to deal with shifting priorities.
• Dealing with external advisors (suppliers, auditors, tax etc).
• Previous experience in a multinational environment is desirable.
• Ability to handle confidential information with maturity and discretion.

ISP Principles

• Begin with our children and students. Our children and students are at the heart of what we do. Simply, their success is our success.
• Wellbeing and safety are both essential for learners and learning. Therefore, we are consistent in identifying potential safeguarding issues and acting and following up on all concerns appropriately.
• Treat everyone with care and respect. We look after one another, embrace similarities and differences and promote the well-being of self and others.
• Operate effectively. We focus relentlessly on the things that are most important and will make the most difference. We apply school policies and procedures and embody the shared ideas of our community.
• Learn continuously. Getting better is what drives us. We positively engage with personal and professional development and school improvement.

ISP Commitment to Safeguarding Principles

ISP is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All post holders are subject to appropriate vetting procedures and satisfactory Criminal Background Checks or equivalent covering the previous 10 years' employment history.