Head of Cost Accounting

REPORT TO

The position is within the Performance Management Pole in the Regional North America platform located in Montreal, under the supervision of the Head of Performance Management Pole. Our main internal clients are located in New York and in Canada.

MISSION AND OBJECTIVES

The head of cost Accounting team (VP) is responsible for:

• Supervise and manage a team of 5 people
• Day-to-day maintenance and control of the general ledgers for the entities under the team's responsibility for all operating and non-staff cost natures. When applicable, he/she coordinates review and potential adjustments with the business / functions that they support.
• For the collection, coordination of budget processing under his scope of responsibility
• Monitoring and reporting the expenses of the bank, reviews the ledgers, and analyzes/reconciles his/her accounts to ensure their accuracy.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

Managerial:

• Coordinate and supervise the tasks of 5 team members located in Montreal
• Conduct performance review for each team members along the year.
• Ensure that cross training and operational back up is in place for the most critical tasks.
• Ensure close supervision/monitoring of the Accounting production team located in Mumbai.

Accounting & Control Functions dedicated to operating expenses and non-staff cost nature:

• Manage the staff coordination and supervise the daily operations of team:
• Supervising and reviewing the collection, processing and reporting of expenses for all business lines and functions
• Overseeing the monthly, quarterly, and annual closings of the various general ledgers
• Providing control and monitoring issues/bottlenecks in the team by maintaining relevant KPIs (e.g. the timeliness of reports, responsiveness of other parties in providing information to their teams, and the number of manual / late / correcting journal entries
• Coordinating task distribution, cross-training, and knowledge / information-sharing
• Providing support to other teams within Finance & Tax
• Perform month-end financial closing for all the entities (in IFRS and US GAAP).
• Enforce controls; prepare balance sheet reconciliation schedules.
• Review ledgers and perform account analysis, including reconciliations of balance sheet items for respective expenses accounts.
• Work with the departments/teams generating expenses (Legal, finance and other functions) - for instance, to understand the nature of the expense and obtain the information necessary for proper recording and reporting.
• Prepare and book daily/monthly entries as necessary. Assess, prepare and record monthly accruals and intercompany invoices.
• Analyze, reconcile, and review all accounts under their responsibility by performing a variance analysis of corresponding expenses/prepaid/balance sheet items, highlighting trends, and following up on questions/ concerns.
• Provide the necessary information for the forecast and budget process for all North American entities.
• On a timely basis, provide complete and accurate financial data to the various reporting teams and to management for report production (under IFRS and US GAAP)
• Support the team located in Mumbai. Implement and maintain controls on their tasks (intercompany reinvoicing, fixed assets maintenance, balance sheet reconciliations, etc).
• Maintain the documentation on process and procedures.
• Provide assistance in responding to questions from the internal auditors, external auditors, Client Service Team, Operations, and other support groups by:
  
  • Ensuring prompt resolution and follow-up of questions / requests for information
  • Escalating problems / issues to the platform head
  • Providing quality service to other groups

Projects, systems support, operational process improvements:

• Participate in the upgrades/version releases of respective reporting tools, as well as system amendments/enhancements required to facilitate new/modified reporting requirements. In connection with this effort, assist in user acceptance testing and after care post deployment.
• Assist in identifying operational process improvements in production, control procedures, and workflow organization to increase the team's efficiency and effectiveness. Also, assist in integrating and streamlining the reports under the team's responsibility.

Other functions:

• Observe the bank's policies and procedures.
• Provide reporting coverage by :
  
  • Learning the reports, tasks and requirements of the person they are backing up.
  • Training his back-up on the preparation of the reports and tasks under her/his responsibility.
• Participate in staff development and evaluation, as well as staffing operational process (recruiting, hiring, training). Help ensure that staff's skills and competencies can support reporting requirements.
• Assist in any special project or request as directed by management.

TRAINING AND OCCUPATIONAL EXPERIENCE

• Accounting degree from a reputable university. CPA designation.
• Minimum 6-8 years of financial and/or management accounting experience, preferably within Financial Services Industries
• Team management experience and experience in project management supervision and coordination

ESSENTIAL SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

• Bilingual : English and French
• Working knowledge and understanding of generally accepted accounting principles, both IFRS and US GAAP and regulatory and tax accounting rules and regulations
• Excellent Excel skills (including pivot tables and most common excel functions)
• Experience with SAP system is desirable

SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS

• Capability to learn fast to use new systems and products
• Effective analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal, in French and in English
• Commitment, rigorous in his job and flexible in order to commit the deadline within an international environment
• Self-starter and team player, able to work independently and collaboratively with various teams in a deadline-focused environment

A recruitment policy that promotes equity and diversity:

Equity and diversity are at the core of our recruitment policy because we believe that they foster creativity and efficiency which in turn increase performance and productivity. We strive to reflect the society we live in, while keeping with the image of our clients.

We pride ourselves in applying non-discrimination rules to all our recruitments.

We will only contact the candidates selected who meet the job requirements in terms of training and experience.

About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 73 countries, with more than 195,000 employees, including more than 148,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets and International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors. The Group helps all its clients (individuals, community associations, entrepreneurs, SMEs, corporates and institutional clients) to realise their projects through solutions spanning financing, investment, savings and protection insurance. In Europe, the Group has four domestic markets (Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg) and BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the leader in consumer lending. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated retail-banking model in Mediterranean countries, in Turkey, in Eastern Europe and a large network in the western part of the United States. In its Corporate & Institutional Banking and International Financial Services activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas as well as a solid and fast-growing business in Asia-Pacific.

About BNP Paribas in Canada

In Canada, BNP Paribas is one of the dominant foreign banks in the country and is committed to building its platform even further. Since becoming the operational hub for the Group's activities in North America in 2013, it has grown significantly to reach more than 700 employees and is expected to continue growing in the coming years. With the continued development of technology and financial fields, BNP Paribas Canada continues to attract experts with diverse backgrounds as well as young and ambitious talent from across the globe. With the international mobility and capacity that very few companies can offer, BNP Paribas prides itself in providing a superior foundation for building a professional career - a place for people to learn, to achieve and grow.

Primary Location: CA-QC-Montréal
Job Type: Standard / Permanent
Job: FINANCE ACCOUNTS ET MANAGEMENT CONTROL
Education Level: Other Degrees / Certifications / Vocational, Technical or Professional Qualifications
Experience Level: At least 7 years
Schedule: Full-time
Reference: FIN-231020-001-MCB