Assistant Finance Manager
Al Jassim Group
Total years of experience :16 years, 11 Months
AL JASSIM GROUP, QATAR
Business Interests - Real Estate & Facilities Management, Fast Food ( Applebees, Burger King, Café Vergnano, Quiznos, Dukkan Falafel), Trading, Hospitality
I was responsible for the finances of five companies covering Real Estate, Fast Food and Hospitality
• Financial Management -Preparation of Monthly Accounts, MBR (Monthly Business Review), Management reports, Payroll, Coordinating the statutory audit, Budgeting & Control, managing partner accounts
• Facilities Management -Monitoring occupancy, Following up collection, Coordinating police / legal action for disputed collections, Approving AMCs, repairs and replacements
• Cash Flow Management -Preparing the Group monthly cash flow covering the 50+ Bank accounts
• SAP implementation - specifying user requirements, helping in data migration, managing parallel run and user testing
Business Interests - FMCG distribution, Import & sale of vehicles
• Managing finance functions such as monthly financials, debtors ageing reports, stock ageing reports, cash flow management, monthly sales budgets
• Dealing with banks, obtaining customer bank guarantees, and arranging payments.
• Involvement in selection and purchase of used vehicles (
Apr 2007 - Jul 2012 Expolanka Teas (Pvt) Ltd.
Manager Business Planning
ETL is a subsidiary of Expolanka Holdings PLC and is among the top 10 tea exporters in Sri Lanka. ETL exports to over 35 countries and has won many prestigious awards. My role was independent of the finance department and I was expected to focus on development of the organisation and contribute to long term profitability and growth. Hence my role covered a wider functional area including, Finance, HR & Administration, Production, Procurement, Warehousing, Quality assurance, Capacity planning & enhancement etc.
• Key user of company’s Oracle & Profit plus ERP systems. Contributed in customization / development
• Team leader for annual budgets, business strategy, preparation and presentation of business plan and quarterly reviews to Board of Directors.
• WCM - By focusing on excessive stocks and receivable, tied up working capital was minimised.
• Produced a range of MIS reports and industry data analysis to guide management on customer / market profitability, salesman profitability, competitor and our ranking in different markets.
• Evaluation of assets purchases & investment opportunities and preparing project proposals.
• Introduced internal audit function & managed the same - This strengthened internal controls
• Introduced an incentive scheme producing the most profitable year in company’s history
• Introduced concepts of outsourcing, automation & JIT purchasing - Helped achieve highest volumes
• Member of top management team for staff appraisals and salary review.
Amba is the largest independent capital markets specialist outsourcing firm. Amba is ranked #1 in the investment research and analytics space according to independent customer satisfaction surveys. A large majority of the top 15 global sell-side and buy-side firms use Amba in areas such as equity research, fixed income & credit research, quantitative research, sales and marketing, corporate finance, and compliance.
I underwent two months of rigorous training on financial research and was seconded to serve a top five investment bank based in New York. I handled a portfolio of companies in Aerospace & defence, and Home building sectors.
• Experience in Bloomberg system, Windows Citrix platform, and use of Advanced Excel
• Monitoring & summarizing regular data releases by US government and other institutions.
• Monitoring of news updates & press releases, statutory filings, preparation of daily summaries.
• Creation and updation of financial models and data banks
• Prepang company / sector reports.
Apr 2005 to Dec 2005 Expolanka Teas (Pvt) Ltd
Finance Manager
Company brief - Given above. I joined when the company’s Cash flow was an obstacle in the company’s path to growth. I was able to clear the hurdles within months and ready the company to march towards prosperity and transform ETL to a shining star within Expo group. Accomplishments include the following
• Paralysing cash flow crisis was solved with a cash flow forecasting & management system.
• Monthly accounts preparation streamlines - From months in arrears to 5th of the following month.
• Budgetary planning & presentation of business plan to the Board of Directors
• A points based excel program was introduced for staff appraisals, vastly improving the process.
• Involvement in implementation of Profit plus ERP system.
Almeer Group is a leading conglomerate in Bahrain, had over 700 staff and was diversified as follows.
Almeer Trading Est. - Has interests in construction, contracting, real estate, rental properties, import & distribution of Sanitary ware, tiles & hardware. Agents for JRG plumbing systems and Huida sanitary ware.
Almuntazah Supermarkets - Bahrain’s largest supermarket chain with 10 outlets
Almeer Trading Est. Wholesale Department - Importer & distributor of FMCG, stationary & household items.
Almeer Fast Foods - Herfy & Almahatta franchise outlet chain
Almuntazah Computers - Importer & retailer of computers & accessories
Al Ain Mineral Water Co. - Agent, importer and distributor of Alain Mineral Water.
I focused on the finance strategy to strengthen the company to face the challenges in a competitive market place. My responsibilities crossed the traditional boundaries of financial management, giving the opportunity to get involved in general management, as briefed below
• Streamlining day to day accounting, monthly accounts preparation & MIS.
• Involvement in implementation of Navision ERP system (Oracle based)
• Handled financial evaluation of proposed expansions, acquisitions and asset purchases
• Negotiated with banks and obtained better rates and facilities.
• Instrumental in restructuring of Supermarket management - bottom line improved vastly Introducing incentive schemes for supermarket & sales staff - Reversed the revenue declining trend
• Brought in KPMG for audit & assurance
• Establishing a Management committee consisting of Directors & Key players to focus on growth
• Negotiated all the shelf display agreements of Almuntazah Supermarkets
• Managing the operations of newly acquired Alain Mineral Water company
• Managing the operations of Herfy & Almahatta Restaurant chain.
May 2000 to Jul 2002 Shaw Wallace & Hedges PLC
Accountant
SW&H is a listed group of companies with interests in Import & distribution of Automotive and FMCG products, manufacture of food products, apparel manufacture & export. Company’s origin dates back to 1850s. Brands in company’s portfolio include Captain, Ajinomoto, Lockheed, Dunlop tyres. My role involved the following
• Accounting & Corporate reporting - Monthly accounts finalization, monthly MIS to India office, quarterly accounts for publication, consolidating accounts and annual report publication.
• Budgeting - Preparation of departmental & subsidiary budgets, variance analysis
• Auditing - Coordinator of the external audit, reporting & disclosure requirement for financials
• Costing - Costing of manufactured goods and fixing transfer prices.
• Taxation - Monthly /Quarterly/Annual tax assessment & payment, filing of returns for all taxes
Jan 1998 to Mar 2000 KPMG Ford Rhodes Thornton & Co.
Audit Trainee
KPMG is a leading accounting firm globally and locally. During my short tenure, I was privileged to be put in charge / get involved with audits of top Sri Lankan corporates such as Hayleys (Many subsidiaries), Browns, Delmege, Thomas Cook, Smart Shirts and Grant Advertising.
Finalist of The Association of Certified Chartered Accountants, UK (ACCA)
ACMA - Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, UK. (CIMA)