Remote Finance Associate

Job Description

About NatureFinance (NF)

Remote Finance Associate

NatureFinance (NF) is a Geneva-based Swiss non-profit organization committed to making nature count in global finance.

Nature-related finance has many dimensions, actors and change pathways. The measurement and pricing of nature related risk and opportunities is generating a new data industry alongside new tools, standards, and regulations. Policymakers and financial regulators are considering the place of nature in financial stability and prudential regulation, as well as new rules connecting nature impacts to everything- from trade and investment to money laundering rules. Emerging nature markets and technologies are also creating new nature related opportunities, from nature credit markets to infrastructure and food systems.

In this landscape, NF engages in a broad range of activities aimed at aligning finance with more equitable, nature-positive outcomes, leveraging an extensive range of networks and modalities of influencing. We are a small, highly networked, and entrepreneurial hybrid organization. We undertake classical policy advocacy and forward-looking research, and we also incubate new entities and maintain a market-shaping investment fund. We support public campaigning, as well as more inside track technical work, and have multiple ventures and related brands emerging that impact our operations on a dynamic basis. We are seeking an experienced finance associate who is excited and compelled by the opportunity to provide leadership across this kind of unique and dynamic institutional structure.

To find out more, please visit www.naturefinance.net

About Finance & Operations

The Finance & Operations Workstream provides specialized finance/operation-related services to the Global Strategy Teams, colleagues and partners around the world. The primary focus of the Finance & Operations team is to provide financial management, reporting, and transactional services to coordinate and support the needs and activities related to NatureFinance global mission and in accordance with NF policies, procedures, and best practices in organizational, donor, and project management requirements. This position also supports the workstreams and works closely with the Operations Associate, the Grants Developer & Coordinator and Project Managers responsible for the execution of the different workstreams as well as with external counsellors like the Accounting & Payroll Vendor, Tax and external Auditors. This position requires high-level discretion, the ability to assess issues, advise on best practices, make autonomous decisions, respond to complex questions, and know when to escalate issues to management.

Finance Associate Position Summary

Reporting to the Finance and Operations Director, the Finance Associate provides specialized services in financial planning and controlling. The Finance Associate is responsible for developing all tools related to financial planning and reporting, has a high level of expertise in Excel (including macros) and is able to proactively create new tools to respond to the demand for better planning and analysis.

The Finance Associate provides general financial, accounting and information management services for global teammates and leaders. This includes collaborating on proposals, coordinating the development of budgets and forecasts, tracking and analyzing actuals and variances, maintaining and supporting accounting activities and system processes, preparing reports to Project Managers and ensuring that best practices and organizational policies and commitments are met accurately and timely. They will provide a high level of grant management and reporting expertise and will be a primary point of contact for complex grants across multiple workstreams within NatureFinance.

Key duties and responsibilities:

• Financial Planning: working closely with the Finance and Operations Director they produce annual budgets and quarterly forecasts. This includes:
• Developing all tools related to financial planning and reporting.
• Consolidate all data in order to produce a single budget/forecast file.
• Building and supporting relationships across the different workstreams, providing guidance and assistance to Project managers related to proposals, grants, reporting, and budget management.
• Responding to complex employee/management questions and problems based on advanced knowledge of the subject area.

• Controlling: working closely with the Finance and Operations Director in producing monthly/quarterly financial reports. This includes:
• Reconciling information between systems to ensure the accuracy of data.
• Make sure cost allocation is correct according to donor intent.
• Analyze trends and variations to prepare recommendations for management.
• Second the Finance and Operations Director in approving budget proposals for new scope of work.

• Ensure policies and procedures, financial standards and legal requirements are met and managed for compliance.
• Reinforce consistency in the organization’s policies and procedures and provides support related to relevant field.
• Accounting: Act as a key player during monthly and yearly fiscal year-close.
• Treasury: second the Finance & Operations Director in approving all payments in the accounting system as part of the defined payment approval process

Experience and Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration or related field and 4 years’ related experience or equivalent combination.
• Strong experience with relational databases and creating/managing moderate to complex Excel spreadsheets, workbooks, and financial models.
• Technical experience with general accounting practices and grants/award accounting issues.
• Experience using accounting and financial reporting systems and preparing customized reports.
• Experience with regulations related to grants and contracts.
• Non-profit accounting experience preferred.
• Experience with power point presentations to give financial presentations about the project to a cross-functional team.
• Experience working with cross-functional teams across multiple organizational levels.
• Ability to work independently as well as jointly with colleagues.
• Experience in full cost budgeting.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• English fluency required, French as an additional language preferred due to compliance.
• MBA, CPA and/or CIA a major plus.

Terms

The role will be full-time, working remotely, with a preference for a candidate located within Europe, or at least within a GMT/CET time zone.

How to Apply

If the approach, ambition and envisaged role is of serious interest to you, and you feel that you fit our profile, or can bring a unique perspective, please submit a cover letter, resume with references (who will not be contacted without your permission) to Melina Inglese at operations@naturefinance.net

Remote Finance Associate