Senior Accounts Assistant (FTC) - Hybrid

HEAnet - Senior Accounts Assistant - maternity cover

HEAnet is Ireland’s National Research and Education Network, providing internet connectivity and ICT shared services across all levels of the Irish education system, reaching in excess of 1,000,000 end users. We connect learners and researchers across all of Ireland to education resources and to fellow national educational and research networks in Europe, and the rest of the world.  

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced Senior Accounts Assistant to join our Finance team on a 6-month contract, with the potential of extension.   

This role is primarily based at our Dublin 1 offices, but we are pleased to offer a flexible remote working arrangement. This allows you to work from home up to three (3) days a week. You will be expected to work at least two (2) days a week in the office, giving you the opportunity to enjoy a balanced and dynamic work environment.  

What the Finance Team does

The Finance Team consists of eight people who manage all aspects of HEAnet’s financial operations, including: accounts receivable and payable, management accounts and financial reporting, budgeting setting and cash flow forecasting, policy updates and compliance, and annual internal controls and statutory audits.  

What the Senior Accounts Assistant does

We are looking for a Senior Accounts Assistant to provide comprehensive financial support for HEAnet’s administrative expenses area. This includes budgeting, monthly accounts preparation, variance analysis, and presenting financial information to budget holders, the Finance Manager, and the Head of Finance. As a key member of the Finance team, the Senior Accounts Assistant will: 

• Prepare monthly management accounts for HEAnet’s administrative expenditure area
  
• Analyse variances and provide clear commentary for senior stakeholders
  
• Prepare quarterly reports for stakeholders, including the Finance Sub-Committee of the HEAnet Board and the Department of Education
  
• Review and approve client invoices, ensuring correct cost centre coding
  
• Maintain and update annual budgets, and project cashflow
  
• Support the Accounts Payable Coordinator by verifying and posting purchase invoices, resolving queries, and ensuring accuracy 

Key tasks include: 

• Post goods receipts in the finance system
  
• Review purchase invoices entered by Accounts Payable and approve, and post into the finance system
  
• Review credit card transactions prepared by Accounts Payable
  
• Review employee expenses and post them into the finance system
  
• Create monthly expenditure reports and send them to budget holders
  
• Review monthly transactions and process accruals and prepayments as necessary
  
• Complete monthly accounts for the Admin area  
• Engage with budget holders to review variances between the budget and actual
  
• Update notes to financial statements on variances
  
• Prepare quarterly financial income statements and reports
  
• Review sales orders for accuracy and approve in the finance system
  
• Review sales invoices for accuracy and approve in the finance system
  
• Prepare and resolve annual internal audit requests
  
• Prepare and resolve annual statutory audit requests 

How we do it

Our company values underpin how we do things in HEAnet. We believe in and live by our values and understand they are integral to making HEAnet a great place to work.

COLLABORATION - EQUALITY & FAIRNESS - FUTURE FOCUSED - POSITIVE IMPACT

For further information about who we are and our core values, see https://www.heanet.ie/who-we-are.

What you get from us

We promote a healthy work/life balance. Work outside of standard hours is rare and agreed in advance. We take the care of our team members' mental health seriously.

We value knowledge-sharing and communication. We start each day with a SCRUM to cover outstanding issues and planned work for the day, combined with fortnightly team stand-ups to make sure no one is hitting any roadblocks and to identify progression or delays in any of the major company projects HEAnet is involved in.  

We encourage critical thinking and the exploration of new ideas. We often form cross-team special interest groups for specific topic discussions, both ongoing and for fixed projects. We also have regular presentations from across the company on a wide range of topics from technical demos to project management to mental health.

Company Benefits

• Hybrid Working
• Flexible start/finish times
• Health insurance for employees
• Defined contribution pension scheme
• On-going well-being initiatives
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
• Tax Saver Ticket scheme
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Professional education support
• Comprehensive group and individual training & development initiatives

What we need from you

• Part-qualified accountant (ACCA or equivalent) or minimum 3 years’ experience in a strong finance role
  
• Good experience preparing monthly management accounts, including review of variances between actual and budgets with analysis of key expenditure items and appropriate commentary
  
• Strong core accounting skills, including preparation of P&L and balance sheet from trial balance
  
• Meticulous attention to detail and high accuracy standards
  
• Advanced Microsoft Excel and good proficiency with other Microsoft Office tools
  
• Ability to work independently and as part of a collaborative team
  
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain financial concepts clearly
  
• Commitment to deadlines and continuous process improvement
  
• High degree of integrity and trustworthiness
  
• Proven ability to follow financial policies and procedures 

Bonus Points

We do not need you to have the following, but if you did it could be beneficial: 

• Proficient in the use of accounting software packages / ERP systems
  
• Experience with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
  
• Familiarity with Office365 tools (e.g., SharePoint). Experience with Power BI would be an advantage
  
• Experience writing process documentation and updating policies 

More important information 

At HEAnet we celebrate diversity and understand how important it is to our ongoing success.  We would like to hear from candidates who are great at what they do and whose values align with ours.  

If you need any adjustments made to the application or selection process so you can do your best, please let us know. 

 
HEAnet is delighted to be awarded with the Ibec Keep Well Mark. We take pride in developing, maintaining and enhancing our culture of wellbeing and continue to focus on this into 2025 and beyond.