Senior Manager - Finance

Role Overview

Senior Manager – Finance at Al Ghurair, responsible for finance control and statutory reporting across Foods, Commodity Trading & Crushing, Starch and Poultry businesses.

Role Purpose

Lead finance control and statutory reporting across multiple business units, maintaining the accuracy and integrity of financial records, managing monthly closing processes, ensuring regulatory compliance, and overseeing the Finance Control and Statutory Reporting team.

Key Responsibilities

Financial Closing & Reporting

• Lead the monthly, quarterly and annual financial closing process across all assigned entities.
• Review trial balances, accruals, provisions, journal entries, account reconciliations and financial movements.
• Ensure the completeness and accuracy of the general ledger and balance sheet.
• Lead the preparation and filing of statutory financial statements for UAE and overseas entities.
• Manage intercompany accounting, reconciliations, eliminations and support the Group consolidation process.

Audit & Compliance

• Manage external and internal audits, including audit schedules, information requests, proposed adjustments and closure of findings.
• Ensure compliance with IFRS, Group accounting policies, UAE regulatory requirements and applicable overseas regulations.
• Oversee corporate tax, VAT, transfer pricing documentation and other tax compliance matters.
• Maintain a strong internal control environment and ensure compliance with delegation of authority and segregation of duties requirements.
• Identify accounting, control and compliance risks and resolve issues promptly.

Accounting Operations

• Oversee accounting for fixed assets, inventory, biological assets, payroll, bank accounts, trade finance and landed costs.
• Review commodity and currency hedge accounting, derivative valuations and IFRS 9 documentation.
• Maintain governance over the chart of accounts, cost centres, profit centres and finance master data.
• Monitor the performance of Global Shared Services and ensure accounting deliverables meet agreed quality and timeline requirements.

Strategic Finance & Planning

• Support cash-flow forecasting, working capital management and coordination with Treasury.
• Provide financial guidance on new projects, capital expenditure, procurement initiatives and business cases.
• Lead finance system implementations, automation and process improvement initiatives.

Team Leadership

• Lead, coach and develop the finance control and statutory reporting team.
• Work closely with Group Finance, Treasury, Tax, Shared Services, business finance teams, operations, auditors and external advisors.

Qualifications & Experience

• Professional accounting qualification such as ACCA, ACA, CPA or CA required.
• Strong experience in financial control, statutory reporting, external audit, taxation and general ledger management.
• Experience working in a large, multi-entity manufacturing, food, commodity trading or related organisation.
• Good knowledge of IFRS, UAE corporate tax, VAT and internal control requirements.
• Experience with ERP systems, preferably Oracle or a similar large-scale financial system.
• Previous experience leading and developing a finance team.

Skills & Competencies

• Strong leadership and people-management skills.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to manage several entities, deadlines and stakeholders simultaneously.
• Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills.
• Strong Excel, financial analysis and reporting skills.
• Practical approach to problem-solving and process improvement.
• Ability to work independently and take full ownership of financial reporting and control deliverables.