Senior Finance Operations Accountant EASA

Syngenta Group is one of the world’s leading sustainable agriculture innovation companies, with roots going back more than 250 years. Our 53,000 people across more than 100 countries strive every day to transform agriculture through tailor-made solutions for the benefit of farmers, society and our planet – making us the world’s most local agricultural technology and innovation partner.

Syngenta Group is committed to operating at the highest standards of ethics and integrity. This is a commitment that we are making to investors, customers, society and employees. Syngenta Group is also committed to maintaining a workplace environment free from discrimination and Harassment.

Role Purpose 

• Lead the organization's financial control function by providing accurate financial reporting, maintaining robust internal controls, and ensuring regulatory compliance while partnering with business stakeholders to drive operational excellence and strategic decision-making.
• Oversee the integrity of accounting operations, financial planning, and risk management processes to safeguard company assets and support sustainable business growth through insightful financial analysis and governance.
• Lead statutory reporting, tax governance, treasury management, compliance, and audit coordination for EASA for all businesses
•  Ensure accurate financial statements, comprehensive tax compliance (including transfer pricing and tax planning), effective treasury operations (cash management, banking relationships, and funding), and strong governance frameworks.
• Maintain adherence to IFRS, local tax legislation, Group policies, and treasury guidelines while partnering with in-country finance teams, shared service center, tax authorities, and banking partners.

Key Responsibilities

Statutory Reporting & Compliance

• Lead the statutory close process and preparation of annual financial statements for EASA Countries for all businesses in accordance with IFRS requirements
• Coordinate external audits, ensuring timely submissions, high-quality audit files, and effective resolution of audit queries
• Provide technical IFRS guidance and maintain strong accounting governance across all statutory entities
•  Maintain balance sheet integrity through comprehensive documentation, reconciliations review, and account analysis
• Ensure strong internal controls and compliance with legal, corporate, and regulatory standards
• Drive standardization of statutory and compliance processes across EASA Countries for all businesses

Tax Governance & Compliance

• Oversee comprehensive tax compliance activities including corporate income tax, transfer pricing, VAT/indirect taxes, and withholding taxes for EASA Countries for all businesses
• Collaborate with the South Africa & Zambia Stat & Tax Lead & Accountant to ensure coordinated tax compliance across the region
• Manage relationships with local tax authorities including tax audits, queries, and dispute resolution
•  Lead tax planning initiatives and ensure alignment with Group tax strategy and transfer pricing policies
• Review and approve tax provisions, deferred tax calculations, and tax disclosures in financial statements
• Coordinate with Group Tax on complex tax matters, legislative changes, and tax risk management
• Ensure timely and accurate tax filings, payments, and statutory submissions

Treasury Management

• Oversee cash and liquidity management for EASA Countries for all, ensuring optimal working capital and cash flow
•  Coordinate intercompany funding arrangements, loans, and cash pooling structures in alignment with Group Treasury policies
• Monitor and manage foreign exchange exposure, hedging requirements, and currency risk
• Ensure compliance with treasury policies, controls, and authorization frameworks
•  Support treasury reporting requirements including cash forecasting, liquidity analysis, and banking reconciliations
• Liaise with Group Treasury on funding strategies, investment decisions, and treasury system implementations

SSC Operations Excellence - Invoice Processing and Financial Reporting

• Lead quality enhancement and process optimization initiatives for Shared Service Center operations, focusing on Invoice to Pay (I2P) and Accounting to Reporting (A2R) functions
• Strengthen operational controls and streamline workflows to maximize efficiency and output quality. Foster seamless collaboration between SSC and local finance teams while maintaining alignment with Syngenta's target operating model.
• Focus on establishing sustainable practices to ensure long-term stability of shared service operations.

Governance & Risk Management

• Maintain robust governance frameworks including policies, procedures, and internal controls
•  Ensure compliance with Group policies, and local regulatory standards
• Identify and mitigate financial, tax, and treasury risks through proactive monitoring and controls
• Lead or support internal and external audit activities across statutory, tax, and treasury areas
•  Drive continuous improvement in processes, systems, and controls

Business Partnering:

• Support to provide timely and insightful financial analysis to support business decisions, understanding business performance on a monthly / annual basis
• Support budget, 5-year plan and rolling forecast process

 

Skills and Capabilities

Professional qualification

• Professional accounting qualification (CA/CPA/ACCA/CIMA)
• Bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, or related field

Additional Desirable Qualifications:

• MBA
• Data analytics certifications
• Change management certification
• Industry-specific certifications

Key Technical Requirements:

• Advanced financial accounting and reporting expertise
• Proficiency in IFRS/GAAP standards
• Strong system knowledge (SAP, Oracle, or similar ERP)
• Advanced Excel and financial modeling skills
• Strong business analytics capabilities
• Strategic planning and forecasting expertise

Critical experience

• 6 to 8 years working experience in Finance, Tax, Audit or Compliance
• Evidence of independency in work, ability to set objectives, deadlines and meet these.
• Experience in working with multiply teams, 3rd party providers.
• Process management and compliance knowledge within a complex, matrix organization and across different functions.
• Project management experience
• Experience with ERP / SAP in decentralised environment desired
• Good understanding of practical issues and trade-offs faced at country level, while still be able to communicate need to adhere to global standards and principles

Technical Expertise

• IFRS & Statutory Reporting: Expert knowledge of IFRS(South Africa, Zambia), and statutory reporting requirements
• Tax Compliance & Planning: Strong understanding of corporate tax, transfer pricing, VAT/indirect taxes, and tax governance frameworks
• Treasury Management: Working knowledge of cash management, banking operations, FX management, and treasury controls
• Audit Management: Proven ability to coordinate and manage external audits with high-quality deliverables
• Technical Accounting: Strong technical accounting skills including complex transactions, consolidations, and technical research

Leadership & Management

• Ability to lead and coordinate across multiple countries and diverse teams
•  Strong influencing and relationship-building skills with internal and external stakeholders
• Effective collaboration with SSC, in-country teams, and Group functions
•  Drive process improvements, standardization, and system
• Ability to think globally but to work effectively on local level by considering different cultures and ways of working implementations

Personal Attributes

•  High attention to detail with strong governance and control mindset
•  Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to explain complex technical matters clearly
• Self-starter with ability to work independently and manage multiple priorities
• Strong ethical standards and commitment to compliance
• Drive for excellence and continuous process enhancement

Systems & Tools

• Advanced proficiency in ERP systems (SAP, , or similar)
• Strong Excel skills including complex modeling and analysis
•  Experience with statutory reporting and consolidation tools
•  Familiarity with tax compliance software and treasury management systems

Success Metrics and Strategic Priorities

Key Performance Indicators:

• Ensure seamless delivery of financial, statutory, and tax services across multiple service providers, including third-party vendors
• Maintain timely and accurate group reporting submissions, adhering to all tax and statutory deadlines
• Achieve clean SOX compliance and audit results across all review types (internal, external, and tax)
• Foster strong partnerships with local management teams and key stakeholders
• Deliver consistent and reliable local compliance services
• Meet all SOX reporting requirements with complete and timely data submission

Operational Excellence:

• Maintain stable shared service center operations aligned with Syngenta's target operating model
• Drive continuous quality improvement and process standardization

Risk Management:

• Proactively identify and address potential compliance gaps
• Ensure robust controls across all service providers
• Monitor service quality and delivery metrics

Key Interfaces

• Accounting to reporting and Invoice to pay on process oversight, quality assurance, technical guidance
• Commercial Finance Team -Business partnering, accounting insights, financial analysis
• Kenya Statutory Lead -Cluster coordination, best practice sharing, standardization
•  Zambia Stat & Tax Accountant -Direct collaboration on Zambia statutory and tax matters
• Group Treasury -Cash management, funding, FX, treasury policy compliance
•  Group Tax -Tax strategy, transfer pricing, complex tax matters, risk management
• Corporate Accounting -Technical accounting guidance, Group reporting, policy interpretation
• Internal Audit -Control framework, audit coordination, remediation activities

External Stakeholders

• External Auditors :Audit coordination, technical discussions, audit file preparation
• Local Tax Authorities (SARS, ZRA) :Tax compliance, audits, queries, relationship management
•  Banking Partners :Banking relationships, account management, treasury operations
• Tax Advisors :Complex tax matters, tax planning, technical advisory
• Legal Counsel :Regulatory compliance, legal entity matters, contractual issues.

 

 

 

Location: Kenya / Zambia / South Africa