M-KOPA is seeking:

Position Title: Finance Management Accountant

Location: Nairobi

Reporting to: Head of Finance Kenya, dotted line to Chief Customer Officer

Overall Purpose: The successful applicant for this role will assist the Chief Customer Officer in ensuring that the four diverse and complex cost centres are financially managed to business expectations.

This will entail liaising with multiple people in multiple departments, conducting both routine but also specialised analysis on spending patterns.

Critically the incumbent will need to be able to communicate to senior stakeholders the financial successes, challenges & risks, based on the analysis completed. The role is the crucial link between commercial activity and the Finance department.

Who We Are: M-KOPA Solar, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, is the global leader of “pay-as-you-go” energy for off-grid customers.

Since its commercial launch in October 2012, M-KOPA has connected more than 400,000 homes in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to solar power, and is now adding over 500 new homes each day.

The success of M-KOPA (M= mobile, KOPA= to borrow) stems from making solar products affordable to low-income households on a pay-per-use instalment plan. Customers acquire solar systems for a small deposit and then purchase daily usage “credits” for Ksh 50, or less than the price of traditional kerosene lighting.  After one year of payments customers own their solar systems outright and can upgrade to more power.

All revenues are collected in real-time via mobile money systems (such as M-PESA in Kenya) and embedded GSM sensors in each solar system allow M-KOPA to monitor real time performance and regulate usage based upon payments.

This connected design means that M-KOPA is processing vast amounts of data (i.e. over 10,000 mobile payments per day) via the company’s proprietary cloud platform, M-KOPANET.

As of November, 2016 M-KOPA employs over 1000 full time staff across East Africa and sells through a network of over 1,000 direct sales agents. It has also commenced licensing its technology to partners in other markets.

M-KOPA has been recognised for its pioneering business mode and scale, notably winning the 2015 Zayed Future Energy Prize, being selected as the top New Energy Pioneer at the 2014 Bloomberg New Energy Finance awards and earning the 2013 FT/IFC Excellence in Sustainable Finance Award.

M-KOPA has also successfully tested a range of new products that leverage its relationship with customers, and M-KOPA’s unique competencies in mobile telecommunications and ICT.

To ensure that the research and development of new products add value to (and do not distract from) its core business, M-KOPA is establishing the M-KOPA Labs.

The Labs will be a dedicated business unit within M-KOPA that will define and test extensions of the M-KOPA asset-based credit model for off-grid-power to new products and services.

Role Profile

Key Accountabilities

• Weekly Cash forecasts. This will be created by liaison with cost centres, counter checking budgets and submitting for approval.
• Produce Monthly Analysis on Cost Centre Spending. Reconcile spending against anticipated budget
• Ensure accuracy of Financial record keeping for cost centres. Ensure all involved in booking
• Supplier liaison. Liaise with key suppliers to ensure timely
• Budget support. Assist with development of budgets and reforecasting

Incumbent Requirements

• Good interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work independently
• High degree of analytical skills
• Experience in Budgeting, Financial Reporting, Procurement & Financial management
• BA/CPA Qualification
• ERP skills, ideally Axapta

Remuneration: Competitive covering a monthly salary, performance bonus and medical benefits reflective of the candidate’s experience and skills.

Personal Attributes:

• Flexible during times of change.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal and operational skill sets.
• Adept at conducting research into project-related issues and products – strong analytics skills.
• Must be able to learn, understand, and apply new technologies.
• Strong Customer service skills and focus required.
• Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a high-pressure environment is crucial.
• Tenacious, driven, energetic and a high degree of professional integrity.

How to Apply

To apply, please logon to HERE. Click on the “click to apply” button adjacent to this job and follow the application instructions. It is advised to complete all the required fields as requested as well as any assessments stipulated as a requirement.

Please Note: M-KOPA Solar is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer committed to assembling a diverse, broadly trained staff.  Women, minorities and people with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

In compliance with applicable laws and in furtherance of its commitment to fostering an environment that welcomes and embraces diversity, M-KOPA does not discriminate on the basis of race, colour, creed, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy and parenting status), disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status or genetic information in its programs or activities, including employment.

M-KOPA, as a policy, does not collect/charge any money as a pre-employment or post-employment requirement. This means that we never ask for ‘recruitment fees’, ‘processing fees’, ‘interview fees’ or any other kind of money in exchange for offer letters or interviews at any time during the hiring process.

Due to the large number of applications received by us, we regret that you will not be contacted unless you are short listed for the post and invited for an interview.

Therefore, if you have not heard from M-KOPA within 4 weeks of the date of the deadline your application, you should assume that you have not been successful on this occasion.

This measure has been taken in the interests of efficiency and cost effectiveness and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.