WHAT DOES A HEAD OF ACCOUNTING DO?

Updated: Oct 09, 2025 - The Head of Accounting oversees all statutory, tax, and financial reporting activities to ensure full compliance with local regulations and group guidelines. The role involves leading monthly closings, managing the integrity of balance sheet and P&L accounts, and coordinating internal and external audits while ensuring transparency and timely reporting. This position also drives process efficiency, enforces strong internal controls through the Minimum Control Framework, provides strategic accounting guidance, and manages the performance and development of the accounting team.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Head of Accounting

1. Head of Accounting Roles and Responsibilities

  • Monthly/Yearly Closings: Manage monthly and yearly closings
  • General Accounting: Take responsibility for general accounting
  • Statutory Accounts Preparation: Ensure the preparation of statutory accounts in BE-GAAP
  • VAT Declarations: Prepare VAT and indirect investment declarations
  • Fixed Assets Oversight: Oversee fixed assets
  • Group Consolidation: Take responsibility for group consolidation
  • Financial Reporting: Prepare financial reports for various stakeholders
  • Audit Compliance: Act as a point of contact for audits and ensure compliance with accounts

2. Head of Accounting Duties and Roles

  • Transformation Project Leadership: Lead key transformation project in the Accounting Department (i.e., new ERP upgrade project, new digital solution implementations, etc.)
  • Statutory Consolidation: Manage regular statutory consolidation and production of financial statements
  • Cost Efficiency Improvement: Improve efficiencies and reduce costs across the business
  • System and Procedure Enhancement: Improve the system and procedures to initiate corrective actions
  • Regulatory Compliance: Ensure compliance with statutory law and financial regulations
  • Management Reporting: Work closely with management to share reports and analysis findings
  • Team Management: Manage a team of accountants and play a coordinating role across the Accounting Departments of the other markets of the Entity
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with HQ teams (Tax, Legal) on group projects and local implications (M&A, joint venture, TP policies, etc.)

3. Head of Accounting Responsibilities and Key Tasks

  • Accounting Operations Management: Responsible for the efficient running of the accounting and transactional finance processing
  • Month-End Reporting: Produce month-end reports and local statutory accounts
  • Regulatory Compliance: Ensure compliance with applicable accounting, tax, legislative, and other regulatory standards
  • Policy and Process Adherence: Ensure all policies and processes adhere to international standards
  • Audit Support: Support all external audit requirements
  • Process Documentation: Maintain process documentation, metrics, and KPIs
  • Continuous Improvement: Drive a continuous improvement culture and accountability to stakeholders
  • Finance Team Leadership: Lead, develop, and inspire a high-quality finance team and hold regular meetings with key stakeholders to review performance and priorities

4. Group Head of Accounting Roles and Details

  • Group Accounting Leadership: Lead accounting and consolidation processes for the Group
  • IFRS Consolidation: Consolidate and draft the consolidated financial statements following IFRS
  • IFRS Policy Compliance: Ensure compliance with and keep groupwide IFRS policies up-to-date
  • IFRS Implementation: Implement the impacts of the newly published IFRS and organize IFRS training
  • Performance Culture Development: Implement group-wide performance culture, improve analytical capabilities, and produce finance-based KPIs and accounting guidelines
  • Process Standardization: Work closely with and steer local teams to detail and implement efficient, standardized processes and structures locally and internationally
  • External Stakeholder Liaison: Liaise with external stakeholders, including auditors, tax authorities, banks, and investors
  • Closing Process Optimization: Design and develop content for all existing closing processes to maximize efficiency and establish best practice structures within the group

5. Head of Accounting Key Accountabilities

  • Team Management: Manage a team of eight personnel in a shared accounting service environment for three entities
  • Financial Closing: Lead the month-end and year-end financial closing processes for all three entities
  • Audit Coordination: Coordinate and lead interactions with external auditors, including accounting and tax authorities
  • Tax Preparation: Prepare corporate and consumption tax returns in collaboration with external tax consultants
  • SAP Accounting Entries: Post SAP entries related to inventories/COGS, fixed assets, accruals, reserves, and intercompany reconciliations
  • Journal Accuracy: Ensure the accuracy of company journal entries and bookkeeping
  • IFRS Reconciliation: Verify IFRS amendment calculations and reconcile differences from local GAAP
  • Fixed Asset Oversight: Oversee fixed asset management activities
  • Intercompany Transactions: Guarantee the efficiency and accuracy of intercompany transactions among the three entities
  • Cash Flow Forecasting: Develop two-week cash flow forecasts and maintain up-to-date planning
  • Bank Liaison: Liaise with banks regarding financial borrowings and manage cash pooling
  • Payment Supervision: Supervise the execution and accuracy of payment processes
  • Financial Analysis: Conduct financial analyses and simulations upon request

6. Head of Accounting General Responsibilities

  • Tax Management: Manage accounting and tax obligations, prepare and balance taxes
  • Accounting Compliance: Carry out processes to monitor and control the reliability of accounting procedures and compliance with accounting and tax regulations
  • Bank and Accounting Movements: Manage accounting and bank movements
  • Supplier Management: Take responsibility for managing suppliers
  • Payment Preparation: Control accounts and prepare payment remittances
  • Cash Register Verification: Check delivery receipts/notes and verify the end-of-day cash register
  • Daily Cash Audit: Audit the daily cash register and supervise compliance with internal procedures
  • Payment Execution: Execute payment processes
  • Legal Supervision: Supervise legal procedures and documents in coordination with company lawyers
  • Financial Closings: Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual closings
  • Financial Reporting: Control and report on analytical result accounts, management comments, balance, cash flow, debtors list, etc.
  • Process Improvement: Develop and implement processes to improve the administrative and accounting management of the company

7. Group Head of Accounting Role Purpose

  • Group Reporting Management: Lead the complete end-to-end Group reporting processes for the business whilst ensuring accuracy and punctuality
  • Governance Framework Implementation: Guide the implementation and maintenance of a governance framework to ensure consistent and appropriate interpretation of accounting standards and Group accounting directives
  • Accounting Standards Review: Strategic review of ongoing changes in accounting standards
  • Auditor Relationship Management: Manage relationships with external auditors, whilst effectively articulating business accounting expectations/standards
  • Process Improvement: Proactively steer the review and improvement of accounting processes
  • Accounting Project Leadership: Take the lead on the delivery of group accounting projects
  • SAP Ledger Accuracy: Take responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of SAP ledgers
  • Business Partnership: Develop and maintain excellent partnerships with controlling teams and the wider business
  • Regulatory Compliance: Ensure processes and procedures are in place to meet all the statutory and regulatory reporting requirements
  • Audit Process Leadership: Lead the accounting team through the complex audit process, working closely with the wider business to gain accurate information

8. Head of Accounting Essential Functions

  • Financial Statement Accuracy: Ensure completeness and correctness of Financial Statements for IFRS and local GAAP, and the related reporting
  • Accounting Process Control: Ensure sufficient control over the accounting processes and the processes outsourced to shared service providers
  • Audit Coordination: Coordinate with the external and internal auditors for interim and final financial audits
  • Accounting Governance: Ensure governance in accounting and that local internal guidelines are in place in conformity with internal policies and statutory requirements
  • Regulatory Strategy: Assess arising changes in regulations to develop a strategy for early adoption
  • System Compliance: Ensure that accounting systems are maintained properly and follow internal and local regulations
  • Accounting Guidance: Provide accounting guidance and ensure proper implementation of accounting issues arising from various activities, such as internal and external audit report remediation
  • External Auditor Liaison: Coordinate with external auditors

9. Head of Accounting Additional Details

  • Accounting Leadership: Lead the accounting function and the related systems by ensuring that the quality and accuracy of financial reporting is maintained to the company and investor standards, and following GAAP
  • Accounting Advisory: Serve as an expert on accounting matters, partnering with other teams on structuring policies, and advising concerning account and tax implications
  • Consolidated Close Oversight: Oversee the monthly consolidated close process and ensure the accurate and timely reporting of the Company’s financial statements
  • System Efficiency Improvement: Source ideas to drive efficiency, improve controls, and speed of decision making by evaluating and implementing accounting, ERP, and other systems
  • Audit and Tax Support: Lead interaction and support all Audit and Tax-related engagements with the support of an assistant controller
  • Risk Management Controls: Develop and operationalize a comprehensive set of controls designed to mitigate risk and maintain all risk management/insurance relationships to ensure the business is adequately protected
  • Insurance Coverage Management: Manage all requests from the business on any insurance coverage needs
  • Performance Analysis: Responsible for financial reporting and analysis of performance

10. Head of Accounting Roles

  • Bookkeeping Supervision: Manage and supervise bookkeeping (non-Shared Services Center)
  • Financial Statement Preparation: Prepare financial statements under local Statutory GAAP and IFRS (quarterly packages)
  • Subledger Management: Manage subledgers such as deferred taxes and provisions, as well as regulatory specifics and interfaces to Shared Services
  • Local Accounting Support: Provide and manage local accounting and M&A support in collaboration with the central Projects and New Markets teams
  • Internal Control System: Ensure a functioning accounting-related internal control system (ICS)
  • Technical Accounting Management: Manage all technical accounting matters (IFRS and local GAAP) for the region
  • Finance Coordination: Coordinate and manage the interface with transactional accounting (Shared Services Center), central accounting functions, and other central finance departments (tax, treasury, finance, controlling, etc.)
  • Audit Oversight: Manage local auditors for all statutory GAAP and IFRS package audits and oversee local audit budgets
  • Accounting Organization Development: Develop the local accounting organization by managing external service providers and building in-house expertise, aligned with business requirements, while driving efficiency

11. Head of Accounting and Reporting Tasks

  • Accounting Oversight: Responsible for all accounting matters, delivering high-quality, fit-for-purpose, and timely accounting, reporting, and financial controls
  • Remote Team Leadership: Lead an international, remote team
  • Process and Structure Setup: Set up professional, efficient, effective, and transparent structures, processes, and operations with special regard to the offshore accounting team
  • Strategic Finance Partnership: Act as a sparring partner to the CFO and peers to support both the overall Finance team’s strategic and operational initiatives and the overall business objectives
  • Change Management: Initiate and lead change, transformation, and improvement projects
  • Automation and Digitalization: Drive automation and digitalization, making use of lean management
  • Process Documentation: Establish process descriptions and documentation
  • Ad-Hoc Reporting: Provide ad-hoc reporting/analysis
  • Shared Service Transition: Transfer of the offshore shared service center to a near-shore location in the long run

12. Head of Accounting Details and Accountabilities

  • Market Assessment: Do the initial market assessment and set the strategic direction for the service’s growth within the country
  • Service Setup: Do the initial set-up of the service within the country and develop sales channels
  • Consultant Recruitment: Be in charge of recruiting consultants
  • Strategic Planning: Work closely with the Country Manager, develop sound strategic plans, resourcing/financial plans, and the direction for the team
  • Compliance Procedures: Establish procedures linked to compliance and reporting
  • Service Operations Oversight: Oversee the efficient and profitable development and operation of the service’s offering in the country
  • Performance Optimization: Ensure quality outcomes, volume growth, revenue cycle optimization, and labor efficiencies, and make decisions to enhance these
  • Financial Oversight: Maintain oversight of the service’s financial profitability and report to the Country Manager regularly

13. Head of Accounting Overview

  • Global Team Management: Manage a global team of 40+, depending on the scope of activities, including billing, cash applications, and collections, and potentially, accounts payable and payroll
  • Process Design and Implementation: Lead efforts within Finance and Accounting to design and implement best practice billing, cash applications, and collections processes in a leading cloud ERP solution
  • Automation Strategy: Leverage prior Accounting and Operational experiences and expertise to serve as a Change Agent and to identify, propose, and implement automated solutions and reduce reliance on manual processes
  • Business Engagement: Actively engage and educate business process owners on solution optimization, simplification, and standardization capabilities through the reference of prior experiences and other relevant use cases
  • Audit Compliance: Work with internal and external auditors to ensure the proposed system design, configuration, and functionality comply with core control and audit requirements
  • Process Improvement: Responsible for the continuous improvement of billing, cash applications, and collections processes, and other operational areas with automation and procedural enhancements
  • Talent Development: Hire, train, and retain skilled operations staff
  • Career Development Support: Build a strong bench of talent and support strong career development, mobility, and progression
  • Remote Team Oversight: Manage a team in remote locations across the globe and across time zones

14. Head of Accounting Job Description

  • Tax Compliance Oversight: Oversee tax accounting and statutory submissions
  • Regulatory Compliance: Ensure full compliance with applicable regulations and deadlines (Income tax, VAT, statutory)
  • Statutory Filings Management: Ensure up-to-date Board nominations and statutory filings
  • Audit Completion: Responsible for the successful completion of internal and external audits
  • Month-End Closing Coordination: Responsible for the full coordination of month-end closing activities, resulting in a timely and accurate reporting of actual results in line with group guidelines and deadlines
  • Account Ownership: Responsible for all balance sheet and P&L accounts, including fixed assets, inventories, accounts payable/receivable, treasury, other debtors and creditors, revenues & discounts, costs of sales, payroll and utilities, general ledger, etc.
  • Analytical Review: Perform monthly analytical reviews to ensure transparency on the full balance sheet
  • Account Reconciliation: Perform key account reconciliations, justification, and documentation
  • KPI Monitoring: Set up and monitor accounting KPIs
  • Operations and Treasury Oversight: Oversee accounting, daily operations, and treasury
  • Receivables Management: Oversee the Accounts Receivable and the timely collection of overdue accounts
  • Payables Management: Oversee Account Payables and timely settlements of debts

15. Head of Accounting Functions

  • Internal Control Responsibility: Take responsibility for the process and internal control
  • Process Documentation: Document processes and procedures
  • Efficiency Optimization: Challenge the status quo to ensure maximum efficiency and automation of transactional activities
  • Policy Compliance: Ensure compliance with the existing group accounting policies
  • MCF Compliance: Ensure compliance with the MCF (Minimum Control Framework) for all Accounting activities
  • Procedure Improvement: Proactively identify and implement any remedies/improvements on procedures and internal controls to reinforce MCF compliance
  • Technical Advisory: Provide technical accounting and tax advice to the Management of the company
  • Analytical Leadership: Lead quantitative and qualitative analytical work that unlocks business insights and drives sound decision-making on key business issues
  • Controlling Support: Support the controlling function by providing ad-hoc analysis and documentation
  • Team Management: Manage a team of Senior Accountants and Accountants
  • Professional Development: Identify areas of development to ensure updated knowledge on all Accounting techniques and tools
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