Accounts Payable Team Lead

Stagwell; Metro Manila; Hybrid; PHP 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work arrangement

Job summary

Stagwell is seeking an experienced Accounts Payable Lead in the Philippines, based in Metro Manila. The role supervises the AP team, manages end-to-end AP processes, and drives process improvements to ensure timely payments and strong governance.

The candidate will collaborate with global process owners and support regional AP operations across markets. This position offers a hybrid setup (3 days onsite, 2 days WFH) in Taguig/Ortigas, with a mid-shift schedule in the future.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or related field.
• 8+ years in Accounts Payable or Procure-to-Pay with at least 3 years in people leadership.
• End-to-end AP ownership: validation, coding, approvals, payments, reconciliations.
• Experience supporting multiple entities or APAC regions in a shared service/BPO.
• Strong internal controls, audit readiness, and governance.
• Experience with ERP/workflow implementations and process migrations.
• Advanced Excel and KPI reporting capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication across cultures and time zones.

Responsibilities

• Supervises the AP Team and leads Invoice Processing, AP Helpdesk, PO Admin, and Supplier Master Admin to ensure timely payments and issue resolution.
• Addresses vendor inquiries promptly and professionally to maintain client satisfaction.
• Provides strategic support to achieve operational efficiencies and contribute to decision-making.
• Prepares and reviews AP reports and ensures data accuracy and timeliness.
• Partners with process stakeholders to ensure productive and efficient workflows.
• Ensures audit-ready accounts payable processes in line with accounting standards.
• Drives improvements aligned with strategy, including system changes and documentation/training.
• Establishes performance goals for the AP team and provides regular feedback.
• Coaches and supports the AP team to maintain efficient workflow and policy adherence.

Skills

People leadership

Accounts Payable

AP workflows

ERP systems

Excel

English communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business

Tools

Maconomy

Microsoft Dynamics

Freshservice

Job description

Stagwell empowers talented, passionate, and creative leaders with vision to deliver breakthrough ideas on behalf of the world’s most ambitious clients.

We believe that the differences among us fuel innovation and drive us to achieve extraordinary results. We take great pride in a work force with rich diversity of age, race, ethnicity, gender, nationality, sexual orientation, ability and background. As a network, we seek out a skilled and dynamic talent pipeline, invest in programs that help develop diverse talent for the future benefit of our industry, and strive to build an inclusive environment where all employees can bring their full selves to work.

Creating a collaborative environment at our state‑of‑the‑art campuses, where we can bring people together at the office to inspire and innovate, is central to our culture‑moving creative edge. We believe that by being together, we can transform marketing. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.

Responsibilities

• Supervises the AP Team and leads the team in the conduct of its Invoice Processing, AP Helpdesk, PO Admin and Supplier Master Admin roles and responsibilities to ensure timely payments and resolution of issues.
• Addresses vendor inquiries and requests promptly and professionally, maintaining high levels of client satisfaction.
• Provide strategic support to achieve operational efficiencies and contribute to decision‑making and execution.
• Prepares and reviews AP reports and ensures the accuracy and timeliness of data.
• Partners and collaborates with process stakeholders to ensure a productive and efficient work process.
• Ensures strict adherence to requirements in all aspects of accounts payable management; And, that all accounts payable processes are audit‑ready and compliant with accounting standards.
• Proactively seek improvements in line with strategy and objectives, most especially in support of system changes and enhancements; and making sure both process and system are adequately documented, trained, and communicated.
• Establishes performance goals for the accounts payable team, providing regular feedback to enhance individual and team performance to ensure alignment with client expectations.
• Coaches and supports the accounts payable team, ensuring efficient workflow and strict adherence to company policies.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or a related field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
• 8+ years of progressive Accounts Payable or Procure-to-Pay experience, including at least 3 years in a people‑leadership or operational‑lead role.
• Demonstrated ownership of end‑to‑end AP activities, including invoice validation, coding, approval workflows, payments, reconciliations, vendor inquiries, and period‑end support.
• Experience supporting multiple legal entities or countries in APAC within a shared service, BPO, or multinational environment.
• Strong understanding of internal controls, audit readiness, approval authority, segregation of duties, and payment governance.
• Experience with ERP or workflow implementations, process migrations, acquisitions, entity onboarding, or automation initiatives.
• Advanced Excel and reporting capability; comfortable using KPIs, SLAs, ageing, exception data, and root‑cause analysis to manage performance.
• Strong written and verbal English communication, with the confidence to work across cultures, time zones, and levels of leadership.

Preferred Experience

• Experience with Maconomy, Microsoft Dynamics, Freshservice, bank portals, or comparable ERP, ticketing, and payment platforms.
• Knowledge of regional invoice, tax, and payment requirements across markets such as Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan.
• Lean, Six Sigma, project management, change management, or process‑improvement certification.
• Experience leading hybrid or distributed teams and partnering with global process owners.

*WFH until further notice, but should be amenable to a hybrid setup (3x onsite, 2x WFH) in Taguig/Ortigas on a mid‑shift schedule in the future.