We are working with a family-owned business on a mission to make a difference to people’s lives, their opportunities, and their communities through great-tasting food and coffee.

They are seeking a detail-oriented, analytical, and proactive Accounts Payable professional to join their finance team.

This is a hands-on leadership role responsible for the full-cycle accounts payable function, with a dedicated focus on our extensive utility portfolio and fixed asset management.

You will be part accountant and part analyst, ensuring the timely payment of a high number of invoices per month while diving deep into data to uncover savings, negotiate favourable terms with utility providers, and maintain an accurate fixed asset register.

Key Responsibilities

1.

High-Volume Transactional Processing (Core AP)

• Lead the end-to-end invoice management for all their sites, processing a high volume of invoices (primarily for utilities, services, and supplies) accurately and within specified turnaround times.
• Process capital expenditure invoices related to restaurant equipment and build-outs, ensuring timely and accurate addition of assets to the fixed asset register.
  
  Maintain and reconcile this register, ensuring proper capitalization and depreciation schedules are followed.
• Prepare and execute weekly payment runs and manage the three-way matching process (PO, receipt, and invoice) to ensure accuracy.
• Reconcile vendor statements, resolve discrepancies, maintain excellent vendor relationships, and serve as the primary point of contact for all utility providers.

2.

Analytical & Strategic (Cost & Data Analysis)

• Analyse overall utility consumption and costs across all locations to identify trends, anomalies, and opportunities for savings.
  
  Prepare monthly and quarterly reports on utility spending, benchmarking performance against historical data and operational metrics.
• Proactively engage with utility suppliers (e.g., gas, electric, water, waste management) to negotiate contract terms, rates, payment extensions, and early payment discounts.
• Identify inefficiencies in the AP process, recommend and implement solutions (e.g., automation, better approval workflows) to reduce manual effort and improve data accuracy for cost analysis.

3.

Leadership & Reporting

• Lead the AP component of the month-end close, including accruals, account reconciliations, and variance analysis.
• Ensure all AP activities comply with company policies, maintain robust internal controls, and support external audit requests.

Qualifications & Skills

• Experience: 5+ years of progressive experience in an accounts payable role.
• Industry Knowledge: Experience with high-volume invoice processing, preferably within the retail, restaurant, or multi-location franchise sector.
• Specific Expertise: Demonstrated experience with fixed asset management and utility cost analysis/negotiation is a significant asset.
• Technical Skills: Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUPs) and experience with major ERP systems (Sage200 is a big plus).
• Soft Skills: Exceptional attention to detail, strong analytical and problem-solving skills, and the ability to communicate and negotiate effectively with internal stakeholders and external suppliers.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Efficiency: Maintain a consistent invoice processing time (e.g., under 5 days).
• Accuracy: Achieve a high percentage of touchless/error-free invoice processing (e.g., over 90%).
• Cost Management: Achieve annual cost savings through utility contract negotiations, evidenced by a year-over-year reduction in average unit cost or a favourable variance to budget.
• Vendor Relations: Maintain a high percentage of invoices paid on time (e.g., 95%+).
• Team Performance: Maintain high team accuracy rates and low invoice exception rates