French Reporting Accountant

This role sits within EMEA reporting and is responsible for all accounting and reporting for the core French business, as well as accounting and reporting support for other French business units.

Client Details

A privately owned US manufacturing organisation operating across a diverse mix of sectors. Functions include Accounting, Reporting, Accounts payable and receivable, Treasury and Credit control, as well as Indirect Purchasing, HR and IT, for the EMEA region are based in Gloucester

Description

Key Responsibilities:

Accounting

• Responsible for maintaining financial records for France in accordance with French and US GAAP, tax, legal, and company requirements.
• Managing month end reporting to the agreed timetable. This involves close collaboration with the Senior Management team and includes preparation and posting of month end journals, preparation of month end financial reports to the US and investigation of variances.
• Preparation of monthly and quarterly balance sheet account reconciliations.
• Preparation of the monthly VAT returns and other periodic or annual French tax returns, together with preparing the government statistical reports.
• Preparation of French statutory annual financial statements for French entities within the remit of EMEA Corporate Services.
• Managing intercompany process; including supporting raising of intercompany rebills, reconciling balances at month end following standard group processes.
• Supporting the preparation of government corporation tax and government statutory returns via provision of financial information to colleagues.
• Responding to adhoc queries from the US, and from the UK business. Application of broad knowledge of accounting / finance practices and procedures to ensure full compliance with company policies and procedures.

Business systems, processes and improvement

• Seek to improve the function and implement best practice, documenting processes, checklists and timetables to enable an understanding of these processes.
• Work with the finance teams in the business (Finance, IT, HR etc) and across the shared services reporting and transaction functions to streamline and standardise the month-end close process and other common tasks and processes across the teams.

Stakeholder support

• Provide reliable, timely service to customers in the local business
• Provide support for the EMEA Tax function and external tax service providers.
• Manage and respond on a timely basis to ad hoc requests and queries from US Corporate Reporting.

Profile

The person will:

• have detailed knowledge and experience of reporting under French & US GAAP
• preferably have experience with SAP accounting package
• have a strong customer service ethic and act as an accounting and financial accounting advisor to the French business
• execute the role in alignment with company policies, procedures and matrixed organisation structure
• maintain the highest level of integrity and candor to all key stakeholders and be responsible for safeguarding company assets
• drive improvements in internal controls, policy implementation and procedures

Personal Qualities:

• Good organisational skills
• Able to work with little supervision
• Flexible regarding travel - some amount of travel may be required to France & EMEA.
• Confident - can liaise effectively with all levels of staff
• Good communicator - clear, concise, direct
• Problem solver - calm under pressure, presents options when escalating issues

Job Offer

The role will pay a competitive basic salary plus an excellent additional benefits package.