Finance Manager - Dates Industry

Abdul Latif Jameel Real Estate Investment Co., Ltd.; Al-Qassim Province; On-site; SAR 1,500,000 - 2,100,000; Full time

Job summary

Abdul Latif Jameel Real Estate Investment Co., Ltd. is seeking a Finance Manager to oversee day-to-day accounting, budgeting, cost control, and financial reporting for farming operations and related activities.

The role requires 15+ years in finance with strong budgeting, ERP experience, and excellent analytical and leadership skills to support strategic decisions in a precision agricultural environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• CPA/ACCA/CMA or equivalent qualification preferred.
• 15+ years of progressive finance and accounting experience.
• Experience in finance leadership roles (Finance Manager/Controller).
• Strong budgeting, cost control, financial reporting, auditing, cash flow and analysis.
• Experience with inventory and production costing is desirable.
• Experience in agricultural accounting or dates/food industry is advantageous.
• Knowledge of Saudi accounting, tax, VAT, and regulatory requirements.
• ERP/accounting systems experience; SAP/Oracle/MS Dynamics preferred.
• Advanced Excel and financial modelling skills.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving abilities.
• Excellent communication and management skills.

Responsibilities

• Oversee day-to-day accounting and finance operations.
• Lead annual operating budget and financial plan development.
• Establish and monitor cost-control systems across activities.
• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports.
• Coordinate external audit and ensure regulatory compliance.
• Manage cash flow, working capital, and liquidity planning.
• Oversee inventory and agricultural accounting and valuation.
• Develop financial KPIs and dashboards for management.
• Provide financial analysis and recommendations to support decisions.

Skills

15+ years of experience

Analytical skills

Organizational skills

Problem-solving abilities

Excellent communication

Management skills

Advanced Excel

Financial modelling

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance

CPA/ACCA/CMA or equivalent preferred

Tools

SAP

Oracle

Microsoft Dynamics

Job description

Finance Manager will play a key role in managing day-to-day financial operations, budgeting, cost control, financial reporting, cash flow management, audit coordination, and financial analysis, while providing management with accurate and timely information to support business decisions.

Key Responsibilities

1. Daily Financial Operations

• Oversee the company's day-to-day accounting and finance operations.
• Ensure accurate recording of all financial transactions, including sales, purchases, expenses, payroll, inventory, receivables, payables, and cash transactions.
• Supervise accounts payable and receivable activities and ensure timely processing and reconciliation.
• Monitor daily cash positions, bank balances, collections, and payments.
• Review and approve financial transactions in accordance with company policies and approval authorities.
• Ensure proper documentation and supporting documents for all financial transactions.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date accounting records and financial ledgers.
• Monitor bank reconciliations and investigate and resolve discrepancies.
• Ensure proper accounting treatment for agricultural activities, inventory, production, and fixed assets.

2. Budgeting & Financial Planning

• Lead the preparation of the annual operating budget and financial plan in coordination with management and department heads.
• Prepare budgets covering farming operations, production, processing, packaging, sales, logistics, manpower, capital expenditure, and administrative expenses.
• Establish departmental budgets and monitor actual performance against approved budgets.
• Prepare monthly budget-versus-actual analysis and identify significant variances.
• Investigate the reasons behind budget deviations and recommend corrective actions.
• Support management in preparing financial forecasts and business plans.
• Develop and maintain cash flow forecasts to ensure sufficient liquidity

3. Cost Control & Cost Accounting

• Establish and maintain an effective cost-control system across farming, production, processing, packaging, storage, and distribution activities.
• Monitor the cost of cultivation, irrigation, fertilizers, pesticides, labor, harvesting, transportation, processing, packaging, storage, and other operational expenses.
• Calculate and monitor the cost per hectare, cost per tree, cost per kilogram/ton, and cost per production unit, where applicable.
• Analyze production costs and identify opportunities for cost reduction and operational efficiency.
• Monitor inventory consumption, wastage, spoilage, and production losses.
• Review the cost of packaging materials and other production inputs.
• Analyze product profitability and gross margins by date variety, product category, customer, market, or sales channel.
• Work closely with Operations and Procurement to control purchasing costs and prevent unnecessary expenditure.
• Monitor actual production costs against standard/budgeted costs and investigate variances
• Prepare accurate and timely monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports for management.
• Prepare and review:
• Balance Sheet
• Cash Flow Statement
• Trial Balance
• Accounts Receivable and Payable reports
• Inventory reports
• Budget vs. Actual reports
• Cost and profitability analysis
• Working capital reports
• Provide management with financial analysis and recommendations to support business decisions.
• Develop meaningful financial KPIs and dashboards for management.
• Ensure financial reports are accurate, complete, and delivered within agreed deadlines.

5. Inventory & Agricultural Accounting

• Oversee the financial accounting and control of agricultural and finished-goods inventories.
• Ensure proper recording and reconciliation of:
• Dried dates
• Processed dates
• Finished products
• Packaging materials
• Agricultural supplies
• Spare parts and other operational inventory
• Conduct regular inventory reconciliations and coordinate physical stock counts.
• Identify and investigate inventory shortages, wastage, damage, and discrepancies.
• Ensure proper valuation and accounting treatment of inventory.

6. Internal Controls

• Develop, implement, and continuously improve financial policies, procedures, and internal controls.
• Ensure appropriate segregation of duties and authorization controls.
• Identify financial and operational risks and recommend mitigation measures.
• Monitor compliance with company policies and approved financial procedures.
• Review internal processes to minimize errors, fraud, financial leakage, and unnecessary costs.
• Ensure proper controls over cash, inventory, purchases, payments, receivables, and fixed assets.

7. Audit & Compliance

• Coordinate and manage the company's annual external audit process.
• Prepare financial schedules, supporting documents, reconciliations, and information required by auditors.
• Act as the primary finance contact for external auditors.
• Follow up on audit findings and ensure timely implementation of corrective actions.
• Support internal audits and financial reviews when required.
• Ensure compliance with applicable accounting standards, tax regulations, and other relevant Saudi regulations.
• Ensure proper maintenance of financial records and supporting documentation.

8. Cash Flow & Working Capital Management

• Monitor daily and projected cash flow requirements.
• Manage working capital and optimize the company's cash conversion cycle.
• Monitor customer collections and overdue receivables.
• Establish appropriate follow-up procedures for outstanding customer balances.
• Monitor supplier payments and payment schedules.
• Prepare short-, medium-, and long-term cash flow forecasts.
• Provide management with early warnings regarding potential liquidity issues.

9. Management Support & Business Analysis

• Provide management with accurate financial information to support strategic and operational decisions.
• Evaluate the financial impact of new projects, investments, customers, products, and markets.
• Prepare financial models and feasibility analysis when required.
• Support management in evaluating pricing, margins, production costs, export costs, and market profitability.
• Provide recommendations for improving profitability and financial performance.
• Work closely with the General Manager, Operations, Sales, Procurement, HR, and other departments.

Skills

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• Professional qualification such as CPA, ACCA, CMA, or equivalent is highly preferred.
• 15+ years of progressive finance and accounting experience, preferably including experience in agriculture, crop production
• Experience in a Financial Controller, Finance Manager, Senior Finance Manager, or equivalent position.
• Strong experience in budgeting, cost control, financial reporting, auditing, cash flow, and financial analysis.
• Experience with inventory and production costing is highly desirable.
• Experience in agricultural accounting or the dates/food industry would be a strong advantage.
• Good knowledge of Saudi accounting, tax, VAT, ZATCA, and regulatory requirements.
• Strong ERP/accounting system experience; familiarity with systems such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, or similar is preferred.
• Advanced Excel and financial modelling skills.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving abilities.
• Excellent communication and management skills