Financial Accountant

Financial Accountant – Local Government | Cairns

The Opportunity

A progressive Aboriginal Shire Council is seeking an experienced Financial Accountant to join its Finance Team based in Cairns.

This newly created position has been established to support the organisation's continued growth while providing succession planning within the Finance Department. Working closely with senior leadership, you'll initially focus on financial accounting before progressively broadening your responsibilities and developing into a more senior finance leadership role.

This is an outstanding opportunity for a CPA-qualified (or near-complete) accountant looking for long-term career growth within a supportive and highly stable team environment.

What's On Offer

• $120K base salary + superannuation
• Full-time permanent position based in Cairns
• Newly created role with genuine career progression
• Opportunity to work alongside and be mentored by a senior finance leader
• Stable, supportive and collaborative team environment
• Modern Cairns office location
• Long-term career opportunity within Local Government

About the Role

You will play an important role in supporting Council's financial operations while assisting with strategic financial management and compliance.

Key responsibilities include:

• Preparing monthly and annual financial reports
• Assisting with budget preparation, forecasting and financial analysis
• Managing general ledger reconciliations and month-end processes
• Supporting the preparation of statutory financial statements and annual audits
• Managing grant funding, acquittals and compliance reporting
• Monitoring financial performance and providing advice to management
• Supporting continuous improvement of financial systems and processes
• Working closely with the Finance Manager on strategic financial initiatives
• Progressively developing into broader finance leadership responsibilities

About You

You are a motivated and technically strong accountant looking to build a long-term career within Local Government.

You will bring:

• Tertiary qualifications in Accounting, Commerce or Finance
• CPA or CA qualification (CPA preferred) or significant progress towards completion
• Demonstrated experience in financial accounting and statutory reporting
• Previous Local Government accounting experience
• Experience managing grants, funding acquittals and grant compliance reporting
• Strong understanding of Australian Accounting Standards and financial governance
• Experience preparing annual financial statements and supporting external audits
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving and communication skills
• High attention to detail and strong organisational ability
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and experience using financial management systems

This role is ideal for an experienced accountant looking to broaden their responsibilities, work alongside an experienced finance leader and progress into a more senior position over time.

To Apply

Applications in Word format should be submitted by clicking the 'Apply' button below. For a confidential discussion, contact Cameron on (07) 4034 5000.

About Us

With Head Office in Cairns and offices in Townsville and Brisbane. We specialise in professional, administration, engineering and industrial recruitment, permanent and temporary placements for both commercial and government enterprise. We are proud to connect great people with meaningful careers.

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