Team Leader - Receivables

Job Description

CCBA is the 8th largest Coca-Cola bottling partner in the world by revenue, and the largest on the continent. It accounts for over 40% of all Coca-Cola products sold in Africa by volume. With over 18,000 employees in Africa, CCBA serves more than 735,000 customers, including a host of international and local brands. CCBA operates in 14 countries, including its six key markets of South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Mozambique, and Namibia, as well as Tanzania, Botswana, Zambia, the islands of Comoros and Mayotte, Eswatini, Lesotho, and Malawi.

Coca-Cola Beverages Zambia (CCBZ) presents an exciting opportunity for the Team Leader - Receivables to join the Finance team. The role will report to the Country Lead Finance.

Role: Team Leader - Receivables

Location: Lusaka

Function: Finance

Key Statement

The Team Leader - Receivables plays a critical role in managing the accounts receivable and credit processes, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and effective communication with customers and internal teams.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

Accounts Receivable Management

• Process debtor batches into ERP (MSD), ensuring debtor payments are processed within company timelines.
• Process and distribute statements to account customers, ensuring 100% accurate processing of payments on the system, maintaining 100% compliance with financial policies and procedures related to debtors, and ensuring 100% accuracy in processing all accounts receivable batches.
• Reconcile accounts within supplier specifications according to company standards and policies.
• Send out updated statements to account customers within agreed timeframes.
• Ensure updated current information is available within one hour of the request.

Credit Control

• Administer effective Account Management, processing all new account applications, ensuring that all accounts are well-controlled and that all outstanding monies owed to the company are collected promptly.
• Keep the company up to date with new credit management procedures and techniques.
• Liaise with the sales team on outstanding accounts and further orders.
• Ensure continuous monitoring and compliance by controlling and monitoring RD (returned/dishonored) cheques – if a cheque is RD, remove credit, and the customer must reapply for credit.
• Ensure RD cheques are controlled and monitored as per company policy and procedures.

Credit Refunds and Cost Controls

• Execute effective refund processing, ensuring effective credit refund control, and that payments of all credit refunds are processed daily.
• Maintain 100% accuracy in processing all credit refund batches.
• Support the Credit Accountant and conduct quarterly visits to key customers to ensure satisfaction and address any issues where necessary.

Customer Service and Communication

• Provide excellent customer service, ensuring all interactions are professional and solutions oriented.
• Communicate effectively with customers regarding account status, payments, and refunds.
• Work closely with the sales and finance teams to ensure a seamless process for account management and collections.
• Report regularly to the Financial Accounting Manager on the status of accounts receivable and credit control activities.

Continuous Improvement

• Ensure continuous process improvement by identifying opportunities for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the accounts receivable and credit control processes.
• Implement best practices for credit management and accounts receivable.
• Stay updated on industry trends and best practices in credit control.
• Participate in training and development opportunities to enhance skills and knowledge.

Skills, Experience & Education

Qualification:

• Bachelor degree in Accounting and Finance or BCOM/CPA(K), CCP(K)/ACCA
• Certified Credit professional or equivalent advantageous

Experience :

• 3 years experience in FMCG with extensive exposure in dealing with customers, billing, debtors listing and reconciliations of customers' Accounts.

Skills

• A successful Credit Controller needs to balance analytical prowess, financial acumen, and strong interpersonal skills.
• They must be agile and resilient, with a focus on achieving results and maintaining compliance
• Efficiently applies rigour and operating discipline to ensure decisions are made on a timely basis.
• Exhibits a high level of financial pragmatism and prudent financial judgment.
• Ability to assess possible risks and implement appropriate mitigation.
• Business acumen to understand broader business context and its impact on financial decisions.
• Strong administrative ability to perform and facilitate the execution of administrative activities and procedures for effective execution of the role.
• Advanced computer literacy, including proficiency in ERP (MSD), BPC, BW, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Decisive and pragmatic in risk management, ensuring effective handling of credit and collections.
• Resilient and energetic, capable of handling high-pressure situations and maintaining performance.
• Customer-focused, ensuring positive interactions with internal and external stakeholders.
• Good communication skills, both verbal and written, to effectively convey information and resolve issues.
• Strong interpersonal skills to work effectively with sales staff and other departments.
• Objectivity and ability to distantiate from sales staff, ensuring unbiased credit management.
• Ability to organise and deliver change within the finance function through continuous improvement opportunity identification and actioning of new credit management procedures and techniques to improve efficiency.
• Focused on enhancing customer service.