£45K to £50K | Watford | Mon – Fri | 9am to 5:30pm | Office Based
An exciting opportunity has arisen to join a successful group company with a portfolio of reputable global brands as an Accounts Receivable & Accounts Payable Manager.
This is a key finance leadership role responsible for overseeing the AR and AP functions, managing cash flow, maintaining strong financial controls and leading a team of at least five finance professionals. The successful candidate will drive accuracy, efficiency and continuous improvement across both functions while supporting excellent customer and supplier relationship.
Essential Experience
- 5–8+ years' progressive accounting experience, including both Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable
- A minimum of 3 years' UK accounting experience
- Proven experience leading, managing and developing a finance team
- Strong knowledge of UK accounting principles and financial reporting
- Experience managing AR and AP processes, including collections, cash application, supplier payments and reconciliations
- Experience with an ERP/accounting system such as Sage 200, SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, NetSuite or similar
- Advanced Microsoft Excel skills
- A bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration or a related field is preferred
- Strong leadership, analytical and problem-solving abilities
- Excellent attention to detail, organisation and time-management skills
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build effective customer and supplier relationships
- The ability to manage multiple priorities and meet tight deadlines
- Experience identifying and implementing process improvements, automation and strong internal controls
Key Responsibilities
Accounts Receivable
- Lead and manage the AR team, overseeing collections, customer account balances, cash application and reconciliations
- Monitor aged debt and outstanding receivables, ensuring collections are made in line with agreed credit terms
- Build and maintain positive customer relationships to support timely payment
- Resolve customer payment queries, discrepancies and debit notes, working closely with Sales and Customer Service
- Ensure customer receipts are accurately and promptly allocated to invoices, credit notes and debit notes
- Monitor unapplied cash and ensure outstanding items are resolved promptly
- Oversee the preparation of non-stock sales invoices and credit notes
- Ensure new customers are set up correctly with appropriate credit limits
- Support the review of customer credit limits and recommend changes where appropriate
- Prepare weekly AR ageing, collection reports and cash receipt forecasts
Accounts Payable
- Lead and manage the AP team across the full accounts payable cycle, including invoice processing, coding, approvals and payment execution.
- Ensure supplier invoices are processed accurately and paid in accordance with agreed terms.
- Maintain accurate supplier records and resolve invoice discrepancies promptly
- Reconcile supplier statements and investigate outstanding balances
- Monitor AP ageing and optimise payment schedules to support cash flow
- Ensure compliance with purchasing policies and approval procedures
- Prepare AP reports and support month-end and year-end close activities
Financial Management & Controls
- Monitor daily cash flow relating to incoming and outgoing payments
- Assist with cash forecasting and working capital management
- Support month-end, quarter-end and year-end financial close processes
- Prepare AP, AR and related general ledger reconciliations
- Support external audits by providing accurate and timely documentation
- Ensure compliance with accounting standards, company policies and regulatory requirements
- Maintain robust internal controls to minimise financial risk, errors and potential fraud
Leadership & Process Improvement
- Lead, coach and develop a team of at least five AR and AP professionals
- Set individual and team objectives and conduct regular performance reviews
- Provide training, mentoring and ongoing professional development
- Allocate workloads and resources to ensure service levels and deadlines are consistently achieved
- Foster a collaborative, customer-focused and high-performance culture
- Support recruitment, onboarding and succession planning as required
- Identify opportunities for automation, standardisation and process improvement
- Develop, implement and maintain effective policies, procedures and SOPs
Key Performance Indicators
- Invoice processing accuracy and turnaround time
- On-time supplier payment performance
- AR ageing, Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) and collection rates
- Reduction in overdue receivables
- Cash application accuracy and timeliness
- Cash flow forecasting accuracy
- Team productivity, engagement and achievement of objectives
- Successful completion of audits with minimal findings
What’s in It for You?
- £45,000 to £50,000 per annum (depending on qualifications & experience)
- 25 days of annual leave + bank holidays
- Additional days holiday between Christmas and New Year if the Directors decide to close the business
- Standard working hours 9 to 5:30 - 30 min lunch = 40 hours a week
- 1-day WFH after probation and training at the company’s sole discretion (non-contractual)
- Workplace Pension Scheme
- 60% Discount on our products that we have on Ecommerce
- Sample sales 2+ times a year
- Short Leave – with pre-approval from Line Manager to take up to 2 hours off without deduction from holiday allowance
- Statutory sick pay
- Annual pay review and/or bonus at the Directors discretion
If you have all the essential requirements and are ready for your next challenge, contact Louise at 121 Personnel - [email protected]
