• Role Title: Assistant Accountant
• Reports to: Manager – Finance
• People Management: None
• Work Type: Full Time, Surry Hills head office, Sydney

About AIEF

Hard Heads, Soft Hearts, Capable Hands

AIEF was established in 2008 in response to community demand from Indigenous families who choose to enrol their children in boarding schools.

Bringing together the government and private sector, AIEF provides scholarship funding for Indigenous students to complete Year 12 or tertiary studies, with career support to help them make a successful transition to employment.

Backed by some of Australia’s most influential business and community leaders, AIEF has grown from one scholarship student in 2008 to now supporting over 1,000 young Indigenous people from over 400 communities in every state and territory across Australia.

www.aief.com.au

Critical Success Factors

The Assistant Accountant is integral to AIEF Business Services team and wider organisation in terms of responsibility for undertaking the day to day financial operations, and providing support to the Manager – Finance and Executive Committee.

Critical to success will be to play an integral role in the Finance function, supporting the integrity of the general ledger and chart of accounts through; accounts payable, account receivable, and the month end close.

Essential Qualifications and Experience

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Accounting
• An accounting career professional with 1-2 years’ experience in a hands-on finance and accounting function
• Proven ability to work both alone and part of a small team, liaising with stakeholders including cost centre managers and the Executive Committee
• Experience in the use of MYOB (preferably MYOB Advanced)
• Advanced excel and analytical skills

Desirable

• An understanding of AIEF’s working environment, including not-for-profit financial and regulatory responsibilities
• Experience in the use of CRM (preferably Dynamics 365)
• Ability to identify and execute on process and system improvements

Essential Attributes and Approach

• Capacity to work flexibly and proven ability to prioritise workload independently

• Thorough and accurate with a high level of attention to detail
• Pragmatic and applies common sense to findings
• Proactive communicator and adept at managing up
• Strong interpersonal skills, with a proven ability to build and sustain relationships and assist non-finance managers and staff to understand and utilise financial concepts

• Exceptional time management and planning skills, including demonstrated ability to meet deadlines, establish priorities and work under pressure
• Outcomes focused

Key responsibilities and Functions

Play an integral role in the Finance function, supporting the integrity of the general ledger and chart of accounts through; accounts payable, account receivable, and the month end close.

Accounts Payable functions:

• Preparing invoices for payment
• Processing the monthly corporate credit cards through ProMaster Expense Management System
• Uploading journals to MYOB
• Preparing Scholarship Distributions
• Preparing Month End reporting
• Performing ProMaster Admin role and assisting team members when required

Accounts Receivable functions:

• Processing and invoicing of donations, recurring pledges and sundry receivables
• Preparing donation reconciliations and reports
• Maintaining accurate records within CRM database
• Processing and invoicing of school contributions and co-funding
• Co-ordinating Debtor management
• Preparing Month End reporting
• Monitoring Contra arrangements

Month end:

• Preparing Bank and other General Ledger reconciliations
• Preparing Month end and intercompany journals
• Compiling the BAS and PAYG return
• Supporting the production of the Month End pack and variance analysis
• Maintaining asset register and depreciation schedules

Assisting the Manager – Finance with:

• Ensuring appropriate internal controls, policies and procedures are in place
• Preparing financial acquittal reports to government and philanthropic funders
• Preparing the annual operating budget
• Preparing the year end statutory accounts, annual audit and statutory filings
• Preparing the finance section of the annual report
• Identifying risks and opportunities
• Ad-hoc analysis and reporting

AIEF is committed to the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations: to creating environments where the safety and wellbeing of children and young people is at the centre of our thoughts, values and actions.

All AIEF employees are required to undergo a National Criminal Record Check by the Australian Federal Police and a Working with Children Check by the relevant State and Territory Government(s) as a condition of employment. The Australian Indigenous Education Foundation is committed to the safety and wellbeing of our students, our stakeholders and our team as well as their families and communities. Therefore, all new employees starting at AIEF will need to be fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus.

AIEF is a focused and non-partisan, non-political organisation that advocates for its mission and works with all levels of government and politicians of all persuasions, but does not engage in advocacy on any other political issues or social causes, nor does it represent or advocate on behalf of its students, alumni or other stakeholders on any such issues.