Finance Associate
Organizational Context
The Finance Associate is supervised by a senior finance colleague, receiving guidance on work objectives. The role involves processing financial transactions and maintaining financial records, requiring frequent contact with internal staff and external bank officials. The incumbent may also supervise support staff, contributing to the overall financial operations within UNHCR.
Job Purpose
The Finance Associate is responsible for assisting with the processing of financial transactions and maintaining financial records and monitoring systems. This includes recording and reconciling expenditures, balances, payments, and other data for daily operations and reporting. The role involves entering data from various documents, verifying accuracy, and performing necessary calculations. The incumbent prepares recurring and special financial reports for budgeting, audits, and other purposes. They also provide financial advice and assistance to staff, experts, and consultants on allowances, salary advances, and travel claims, calculating and authorizing payments. Maintaining liaison with local banks for daily financial information and preparing cost estimates for budget analysis are also key functions.
Responsibilities
The Finance Associate maintains financial records and monitoring systems to accurately record and reconcile expenditures, balances, payments, statements, and other data for daily transactions and reports. They select and enter data from a wide variety of documents, verifying accuracy by checking sources, making necessary calculations, and ensuring all relevant data is included. The incumbent prepares recurring reports as scheduled and special reports as required for budget preparation, audits, or other reasons. They advise and assist staff members, experts, and consultants on all aspects of allowances, salary advances, travel claims, and other financial matters, calculating and authorizing payments due for claims and services. The role involves maintaining liaison with officials of local banks to obtain day-to-day information on exchange and interest rates, procedural changes, and matters concerning office bank accounts. The Finance Associate prepares detailed cost estimates and participates in budget analysis and projections as required. They initiate correspondence to verify data, answer queries, and obtain additional information on accounts and financial transactions. A key responsibility is verifying that financial transactions are correct and in accordance with UNHCR rules and procedures. The incumbent also supports the identification and management of risks and seeks to seize opportunities impacting objectives in their area of responsibility, ensuring risk-based decision-making and raising concerns to supervisors.
Work Experience
3 years of relevant experience with a High School Diploma, or 2 years of relevant work experience with a Bachelor's degree or higher. Essential: High IT affinity (MS Office, PeopleSoft). Desirable: Cloud ERP knowledge, good knowledge of UN/UNHCR financial rules and procedures, and completion of relevant UNHCR learning programs.
Skills
Financial record maintenance Financial monitoring systems Data entry and verification Financial reporting Budget analysis Cost estimation Liaison with banks Risk management MS Office proficiency PeopleSoft proficiency Cloud ERP knowledge UN/UNHCR financial rules