Payroll Accountant

We support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide.
We work directly with individuals to help them gain the skills, confidence and connections to transform their lives and shape a better world in partnership with the UK. We support them to build networks and explore creative ideas, to learn English, to get a high-quality education and to gain internationally recognised qualifications.
Working with people in over 200 countries and territories, we are on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2021-22 we reached 650 million people.
Payroll Accountant
British Council PayBand: Grade 4
Location: MENA
Department: Finance
Contract type: Indefinite
Closing Date: 28th January 2025
Interview Date: TBC
This role is open for applications from employees who are currently located and have the right to work in the MENA region. The successful candidate will remain in their current location/entity.
You must have the legal right to work in the MENA region at the time of application as there is no relocation or sponsorship support.
British Council supports working in new ways such as hybrid working, subject to full approval by line management and conditional upon our ability to provide the appropriate level of service. This may not be appropriate for all roles but can be explored at interview.
Role purpose
This role supports the financial accounting activities for the British Council and works closely with the Managed Service Provider (MSP) to ensure the Payroll financial accounts are completed correctly and in a timely manner, and numbers are reported accurately.

• The role provides effective Payroll financial support services for a local business unit/country, within agreed timescales. This includes finance administration and coordination/ logistical support.
• They will support Payroll communication across operational areas and with the MSP and will work closely with the British Council Controllership teams to ensure the effective provision of financial accounting, reporting and control activities.
• The position holder applies authoritative understanding of systems and Payroll processes to overcome day-to-day problems and ensure things run smoothly.

Role context
New arrangements for Finance Accounting activities are being introduced as part of the transformation of Professional Services and the global finance team within British Council, moving much of the transactional finance processes to an external MSP. This is a generic role profile for several positions, working across the British Council International Operations, providing finance admin support for activities that will remain within British Council. They will work closely with local business managers and the MSP to ensure that local financial accounting activities are accurate and comply with standards and corporate processes.
They will report into senior colleagues within the In Country Controllership teams. Stakeholders that the role interacts with regularly include:

• Local business unit managers and teams
• Managed Service Provider
• Internal customers and suppliers
• Finance colleagues, Controllers and Finance Business Partners
• Internal and External Financial Control and Compliance and Audit Leads
• Treasury and banking vendors
• Tax and local tax authorities.
• Some travel may be required but is not expected to be significant.

Main accountabilities include but not limited to:
Payroll management for the location where applicable

• Processing Payroll: Ensuring compliance with relevant laws, regulations, and company policies regarding payroll processing. Timely and accurately processing payroll to ensure employees are paid on time and in accordance with their employment contracts.
• Maintaining Payroll Records: Keeping accurate and up-to-date records of employee earnings, deductions, and tax withholdings. Generating payroll reports for management and regulatory compliance purposes. Maintaining confidentiality and security of payroll data and ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.
• Resolving Payroll Issues: Addressing and resolving payroll-related inquiries and issues from employees, managers, and other stakeholders. Investigating discrepancies or errors in payroll processing and implementing corrective actions. Collaborating with HR, finance, and other departments to ensure payroll-related processes are efficient and effective.

Finance and Resource Management

• Work closely with the MSP and British Council controllership teams to support the delivery of retained financial processes, ensuring consistent, accurate and robust financial accounting in line with accounting practices and corporate policies. Maintain financial records as per corporate policy and internal audit.
• Complete all financial accounting and reporting tasks required for the financial monthend and year-end pre-closing steps and provide support as required for the financial month-end and year-end closing steps.
• Process customer transactions and income collection accurately and in a timely manner. Complete daily cash reconciliations. Responsible for ensuring integrity of cash collection process. Responsible for ensuring integrity of customers refund process. Ensure compliance with treasury policy. Submit relevant documents to local bank as requested including bank mandates updates.
• Provide support as required on accounting transactions, adjustments (accruals, deferrals, and provisions), and reconciliations, including Intercompany accounting. Provide support as required with manual journals and off-system payments requests ensuring accuracy and compliance with relevant policies.
• Support the production of financial reports/returns and extraction of data from SAP. Contribute to statutory reporting, tax review/filing, cashflow reporting and debtor management controls. Assist with preparation of local Tax submissions and other statutory returns.
• Assist with provision of information to internal / external auditors and assist the implementation of audit recommendations. Complete Travel & Expenses audits as per policy addressing issues in a prompt manner. Identify issues and bring them to the attention of senior members in the team for resolution in relation to financial accounting matters.

• Assist Management Accounting tasks and the production of management reports as required. Support the administration of local databases/customised software, providing advice and training to line managers and colleagues as required.

Customer support Payroll

• Receives and responds to Payroll enquiries and be the specific point of reference as required. Identifies where more complex issues or incidents require resolution by others and refers them on accordingly.

Relationship and Stakeholder Management

• Proactively communicate and liaise with others (inside and outside the British Council) to ensure effective coordination and delivery. Build an understanding of who's who within the wider department, unit, or region to enable effective resolution of issues when they arise.

Managing self and others

• Plan and prioritise own activities, respond to changing and at times competing requirements to ensure effective delivery of responsibilities over set reporting timescales. Provide a good standard of financial administration and financial discipline. Tasks and coordinates others (e.g., internal customers, colleagues, or third-party suppliers) to complete activities in accordance with agreed financial procedures.

Role specific skills

• Organised, disciplined and methodical approach to work. Ability to work under pressure. Good time management and data management.
• Very good IT skills, particularly on Excel and Word.
• Good literacy and numeracy skills, able to understand profit and loss calculations and basic finance, e.g., deprecation, capital and revenue expenditure, cash-flow, overheads, etc.
• Excellent written and spoken communication skills. Ability to explain complex financial data to non-finance people, using non-technical language.
• Working in virtual teams.

Role specific knowledge and experience
Minimum/essential

• Knowledge of statutory accounting principles and practices, including accruals and the impact of financial transactions.

• Proven accounting experience.
• Advanced experience of Excel.
• SAP experience.

Desirable

• Experience of working in an international organisation and/or relevant employer. Good level of understanding of relevant software
• Financial analytical experience.
• Experience of managing high value debtors.

Education/Qualifications
Degree level relevant education. Studying for a recognised accounting qualification desirable.
Language Requirements
The British Council systems and global processes operate in English. Written and verbal proficiency in English is required
For detailed Role Profile and any questions please reach out to askhr@britishcouncil.org.
A connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world.
Equality , Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Statement
The British Council is committed to policies and practices of equality, diversity and inclusion across everything we do. We support all staff to make sure their behaviour is consistent with this commitment. We want to address under representation and encourage applicants from under-represented groups, in particular, but not exclusively, on grounds of ethnicity and disability. All disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria are guaranteed an interview and we have Disability Confident Employer Status. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities.
The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with.
We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989.
Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed; these will include qualification checks, reference checks, identity & criminal record checks in line with legal requirements and with the British Council's Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.
If you have any problems with your application please email askhr@britishcouncil.org
Please note: Applications to this role can only be considered when made through the Apply section of our careers website. Our 'ASK HR' email is only to be used in case of a technical issue encountered when applying through the careers website. Emails with supporting statements and CV/Resumes sent to this email address will not be reviewed and will be deleted.