Junior Finance Manager

Modern Day Talent; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

A dynamic staffing firm is seeking a Finance Manager in Johannesburg, South Africa. You'll take full ownership of the finance function, ensuring accuracy and sound controls in a growing organization. The ideal candidate will have over 5 years of finance experience, preferably in SaaS or related fields, and comfort in being the sole finance operator. Responsibilities include managing financial operations, ensuring compliance, and providing strategic insights. This full-time role offers a chance to influence the company's financial growth while working in a trusted environment.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in finance, accounting, or controller-type roles.
• Experience being the lead finance operator in a small organization.
• Solid understanding of UK VAT and willingness to learn.

Responsibilities

• Own day-to-day finance operations, including bookkeeping and accounting accuracy.
• Manage billing, collections, payments, and cash flow visibility.
• Produce clear monthly management reporting covering profitability.

Skills

Experience in startups, scale-ups, SaaS

Organizational skills

Detail-driven

Professional skepticism

Tools

Xero

Job description

Join to apply for the Finance Manager role at Modern Day Talent.

Working hours: 11am - 7.30pm SAST (9am - 5.30pm UK)

Contract type: Permanent, Full-time

Reports to: CEO

About our client

Our client exists to help the education community understand which approaches, tools, and technologies work, why they work, and where they deliver real value. They sit at the centre of a growing global evidence flywheel, connecting schools, educators, EdTech companies, researchers, and education organisations through independent evaluation, contextual benchmarking, and shared insight. Their work is grounded in rigorous evidence, professional trust, and a belief that better decisions lead to better outcomes for teachers and learners.

Headquartered in Cheshire, England, our client operates globally through a unified platform and a SaaS subscription model, with long-term partnerships across schools, school groups, and education organisations. As their platform, partnerships, and influence continue to scale, financial stewardship becomes increasingly central to growth, credibility, governance, and enabling impact at scale.

About This Role

Our client is looking for a senior, hands-on Finance Manager to fully own the finance function in a growing, mission-driven organisation. This role will run finance end-to-end, ensuring accuracy, strong controls, and dependable foundations, while exercising sound judgement in a business that is increasing in complexity both operationally and strategically.

The ideal candidate will operate with a high degree of independence and trust, acting as a steady, principled presence behind the scenes. While this is not a role focused on fundraising or investor relations, it is central to keeping our client’s business financially sound, well governed, and scalable as they grow.

Our client would also consider candidates approaching senior or financial controller level, provided they are ready to take full ownership of core finance responsibilities and act as the organisation’s financial anchor.

Responsibilities

Own day-to-day finance operations:

• Own bookkeeping and accounting accuracy across UK and international activity, including multi-currency transactions
• Manage billing, collections, payments, and cashflow visibility across customers, partners, and vendors
• Deliver month-end, quarter-end, and year-end close processes accurately and on time
• Reconcile cash, revenue, deferred income, expenses, and foreign currency balances
• Maintain a clear, scalable chart of accounts suitable for a global SaaS business

Financial controls, judgement, and risk management:

• Design, implement, and enforce clear payment controls and approval processes across all regions
• Review and challenge unusual, ambiguous, or higher-risk transactions, including international payments and non-standard flows
• Confidently challenge decisions or requests when something does not look right
• Identify and mitigate fraud risk, phishing attempts, and control weaknesses
• Maintain strong audit trails, documentation, and internal discipline

Reporting and strategic thought-partnership:

• Produce clear monthly management reporting covering profitability, cash position, and runway
• Act as an independent thought partner on financial and operational decisions, resolving routine and mid-level issues without escalation
• Support annual planning, budgeting, forecasting, and scenario analysis
• Proactively identify and flag financial risks, trends, or constraints
• Provide ad-hoc financial input to support product, pricing, and commercial decisions

Systems ownership and operational improvement:

• Own and maintain core finance systems, ensuring data integrity, reliability, and ease of use
• Regularly assess finance tools, processes, and operational structures to ensure they remain fit for purpose as the business scales
• Proactively identify gaps, inefficiencies, or risks in finance operations and lead improvements without waiting for direction
• Design, document, and implement new systems, workflows, and standard operating procedures where needed

External coordination and commercial support:

• Coordinate with external accountants and advisors to ensure timely payroll, statutory reporting, and regulatory compliance for a UK-based company operating globally
• Support year-end accounts, filings, and audits smoothly and efficiently across jurisdictions
• Review contracts for financial implications, including billing structures, renewals, indexation, and revenue recognition
• Ensure invoicing and revenue treatment align with contractual terms and support scalable, disciplined commercial operations
• Act as a practical finance partner to the business, helping keep financial and commercial processes clean, consistent, and low-friction

Experience Profile

Experience

• 5+ years in finance, accounting, or controller-type roles
• Experience in startups, scale-ups, SaaS, or complex subscription businesses is a must
• Comfortable being the sole or lead finance operator in a small organisation
• Prior experience working with founders or senior leadership teams

Capability & judgement

• Exceptionally organised, detail-driven, and reliable
• Strong professional scepticism (you notice when things don’t add up)
• Able to prioritise correctly without being told what to chase
• Confident saying “no” (or “not yet”) when needed

Practical skills

• Deep familiarity with accounting systems (e.g. Xero or similar)
• Comfortable with SaaS revenue models, deferred revenue, and multi-year contracts
• Solid understanding of UK VAT and basic statutory requirements or willing to learn
• Mission-aligned and motivated by doing meaningful work
• Happy working behind the scenes but influential when it matters
• Thrives in small teams where trust and autonomy are essential

Seniority level: Mid-Senior level

Employment type: Full-time

Job function: Finance and Sales

Industries: Staffing and Recruiting

Location: Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa