The Role

ECMWF is looking for a Revenue and Projects Accountant responsible for the accounting and administration of project streams, ensuring the appropriate accounting treatment and compliance with all associated reporting requirements.

The role will report to the Senior Revenue and Project Accountant and will be part of a small team that is responsibility for many of the revenue streams received by ECMWF. The Revenue and Projects Accountant will be involved in the administration, accounting, and collection of Member State Contributions and Income from the Licensing of ECMWF data & products.

About ECMWF

ECMWF is the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. It is an intergovernmental organisation created in 1975 by a group of European nations and is today supported by 34 Member and Co-operating States, mostly in Europe. The Centre’s mission is to serve and support its Member and Co-operating States and the wider community by developing and providing world-leading global numerical weather prediction. ECMWF functions as a 24/7 research and operational centre with a focus on medium and long-range predictions and holds one of the largest meteorological archives in the world. The success of its activities relies primarily on the talent of its scientists, strong partnerships with its Member and Co-operating States and the international community, some of the most powerful supercomputers in the world, and the use of innovative technologies such as machine learning across its operations.

ECMWF has recently become a multi-site organisation, with its headquarters based in Reading, UK, a new data centre in Bologna, Italy, and new offices in Bonn, Germany.

ECMWF has adopted a hybrid organisation model which allows its staff to mix office working and teleworking. This model provides our staff with considerable flexibility to spend time outside or away from their duty station and decide how they wish to manage their professional working time at ECMWF.

For additional details, see www.ecmwf.int/

About the Finance Section

The Finance Section is part of the Administration Department at ECMWF and has a wide-ranging set of responsibilities all related to the management and control of the finances at ECMWF. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Ensuring that the highest standards of financial control are implemented and maintained across the Centres 3 sites
• Providing decision-making support and analysis to all parts of the organisation through the production of timely and accurate management and financial reports
• Ensuring that ECMWF meets its financial obligations under its Convention, regulations and its Council’s decisions
• Production of statutory financial records
• Managing the relationship with the Centre’s auditors
• Production and implementation of the Centre’s annual budget (currently with costs c.£170m)
• Maintaining the finances for the Centre externally funded activities including 2 major programmes funded by the European Union

Responsibilities

• Support for proposals and business cases for new funding from EU and other funding bodies within required timeframes, ensuring compliance with internal procedures and appropriate authorisation
• Overseeing the financial reporting for those EC projects where we are the consortium co-ordinator, being one of the primary points of contact for financial / administrative matters, responding to queries from partners, reviewing & scrutinising submissions, and liaising with the EC’s Financial Officer as required.
• Liaising with scientists and project managers on individual projects, including (but not limited to), budget, forecasting, queries related to eligibility of costs, and financial implications of recruitment plans.
• Ensuring all financial / administrative documentation is produced and delivered within the project deadlines
• Oversee the time recording requirements of projects (ie timesheets, declarations) ensuring consistency with regulations, timely and accurate submission, and preparation of associated accounting adjustments
• Submission of required financial reporting, inputting as appropriate on various portals of funding organisations
• Assisting with the accounting by project on a monthly basis as part of the management accounts process
• Working closely with the User Support team responsible for Licensing of ECMWF Data to ensure the timely production and distribution of sales invoices, swift response to financial queries, and collection of amounts owed.
• Support for the production and assessment of budgets and forecasts related to the licensing of ECMWF data products.
• Cash flow projections for all revenue and funding streams;
• Responsibility for ensuring the maintenance of all records of project funding, costs, milestones and invoicing.
• Liaison with auditors and other external bodies in relation to project funding
• Development and production of reports and forecasts for revenue and, where applicable, associated costs by project, including project profitability
• Assessment of both current and future funding streams in conjunction with the strategy of ECMWF
• General support to the Finance Section, including developing/leading projects as required

Education, experience, knowledge and skills (including language)

Education

• Candidates should hold a current professional accountancy qualification with experience in public sector accounting, preferably in an international organisation

Experience

• Experience and understanding of managing complex projects.
• Extensive experience of budget preparation, project costing and accounting for revenues in a multi-currency environment.
• Several years demonstrated experience in a Finance team and with particular emphasis on accounts receivable functionality.
• Extensive experience and knowledge of EU funding mechanisms, including the preparation of Horizon Europe bid responses, and ongoing project auditing and governance.
• Experience of providing analysis and reports for decision-making, including the use of core accounting systems
• Strong demonstrated accounting experience, preferably in an international organisation or in the public sector
• Demonstrated experience in developing and improving financial control processes
• A good working knowledge and experience of using and reporting from Business World (previously known as Agresso) would be an advantage
• Knowledge and experience of accounting using the IPSAS framework would be an advantage

Knowledge and Skills

• Excellent working knowledge at advanced level of MS-Office (Word and Excel)
• Fluency in English is essential as candidates will be required to work effectively in English and interviews will be conducted in English
• Fluency in German would be an advantage

Personal attributes

• Solution-oriented with a strong understanding of how to evaluate the financial and commercial, implications of ECMWF’s activities
• Ability to communicate complex financial concepts with scientific and technical staff that do not have a financial background and to develop a common understanding of the issues and potential resolutions
• Good relationship management skills with a focus on client service, including the ability to gain credibility with key stakeholders across the organisation and the user community
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to communicate at all levels with internal and external stakeholders
• Excellent writing and presentation skills with an ability to explain financial issues in terms which are accessible and understandable to all
• Strong analytical and excellent organisational skills are essential
• Good attention to detail, with an ability to quickly process complex information and provide accurate responses
• Ability to scrutinise information provided and apply professional scepticism
• Ability to learn, recall and refer to a range of financial regulations and eligibility criteria
• Capacity to manage a range of conflicting, and urgent issues to tight deadlines