Torchora
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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Finance Associate

💰 $55,000 - $75,000

FinanceAccountingCorporate FinanceEntry-Level

🎯 Role Definition

As a Finance Associate, you will be at the heart of our financial operations. You'll work collaboratively across departments to support budgeting, forecasting, and month-end closing activities. This isn't just a number-crunching job; you will provide critical insights through financial modeling and variance analysis that directly influence business strategy and performance. This role is a fantastic opportunity for an aspiring finance professional to gain comprehensive experience and make a tangible impact on a growing company.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Recent Graduate (Finance, Accounting, Economics)
  • Finance or Accounting Intern
  • Accounting Clerk / Junior Accountant

Advancement To:

  • Senior Finance Associate
  • Financial Analyst
  • Finance Manager

Lateral Moves:

  • Treasury Analyst
  • Business Analyst
  • Internal Auditor

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Assist in the month-end, quarter-end, and year-end financial closing processes, including the preparation of journal entries, accruals, and detailed account reconciliations to ensure timeliness and accuracy.
  • Develop, maintain, and enhance complex financial models to support robust forecasting, annual budgeting, and long-range strategic planning initiatives.
  • Conduct detailed variance analysis of actual financial results against budget, prior year, and forecast, providing insightful commentary and explanations for key business drivers to management.
  • Prepare and distribute comprehensive monthly and quarterly financial reporting packages for senior management, highlighting key performance indicators (KPIs), financial trends, and operational metrics.
  • Collaborate directly with department heads and business partners to develop annual operating budgets and periodic forecasts, providing guidance and support throughout the entire process.
  • Analyze current and past trends in key performance indicators including all areas of revenue, cost of sales, operating expenses, and capital expenditures to identify opportunities for improvement.
  • Support the preparation of internal and external financial statements in compliance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and/or International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
  • Manage and process key aspects of accounts payable (AP) and accounts receivable (AR) cycles, ensuring timely payments, accurate invoicing, and proactive collections.
  • Perform regular, detailed balance sheet account reconciliations to ensure the integrity of financial data and lead the resolution of any identified discrepancies.
  • Monitor daily cash flow by tracking transactions, reconciling bank statements, and regularly reviewing internal reports to support treasury and cash management functions.
  • Assist in the preparation of compelling presentation materials for executive leadership, Board of Directors meetings, and investor relations communications.
  • Participate in the implementation and continuous improvement of financial systems and ERP software (e.g., NetSuite, SAP) to enhance efficiency and reporting capabilities.
  • Evaluate overall financial performance by comparing and analyzing actual results with plans and forecasts, providing actionable insights to leadership.
  • Support external and internal audit processes by providing necessary documentation, preparing audit schedules, and offering clear explanations for financial transactions.
  • Reconcile vendor invoices and statements, identify discrepancies, and work cross-functionally with vendors and internal teams to resolve payment and billing issues.

Secondary Functions

  • Support senior financial analysts and managers with ad-hoc financial analysis, reporting requests, and special projects as they arise.
  • Contribute to process improvement initiatives within the finance and accounting department aimed at increasing efficiency, automation, and accuracy.
  • Assist in the documentation, testing, and monitoring of internal controls to ensure compliance with company policies and regulatory requirements like SOX.
  • Perform market, competitor, and industry research to provide valuable context for financial performance and to identify potential risks and strategic opportunities.
  • Track company-wide capital expenditure projects, comparing actual spending to budgeted amounts and assisting in the analysis of project return on investment (ROI).
  • Help manage and administer the employee expense reporting system (e.g., Concur, Expensify), ensuring compliance with corporate travel and expense policies.
  • Collaborate with the business intelligence or data analytics team to help automate reporting and develop interactive dashboards for business stakeholders.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including pivot tables, VLOOKUP, INDEX/MATCH, complex formulas, and data modeling.
  • Demonstrable experience with financial modeling, including building and maintaining three-statement models (Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow).
  • Hands-on experience with a major Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system such as SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, or Microsoft Dynamics.
  • A strong and practical understanding of U.S. GAAP and/or IFRS accounting principles and their application.
  • Familiarity with financial planning and analysis (FP&A) software like Hyperion, Anaplan, or Adaptive Insights is highly preferred.
  • Basic to intermediate SQL skills for data extraction, manipulation, and analysis are a strong plus.
  • Experience with data visualization tools such as Tableau or Power BI for creating insightful reports and dashboards.

Soft Skills

  • Exceptional analytical, quantitative, and problem-solving skills with the ability to interpret complex data.
  • Meticulous attention to detail and a commitment to delivering high-quality, accurate work.
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to present complex financial information in a clear and concise manner.
  • Excellent organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to manage multiple competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
  • A proactive and self-motivated work ethic, demonstrating a strong sense of ownership and accountability for results.
  • A collaborative, team-oriented mindset with strong interpersonal skills to build relationships across the organization.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree from an accredited university or college.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree in a quantitative or business-related field.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Finance
  • Accounting
  • Economics
  • Business Administration

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 1-3 years of relevant experience in a corporate finance, public accounting, investment banking, or financial analysis role.

Preferred:

  • Prior experience through internships in a relevant industry is highly desirable. Experience in a publicly-traded company or a fast-growth technology environment is considered a plus.
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