Senior Accountant

Job Description

(Temporary Contract position till September)

We are EA

We entertain millions of people across the globe with the most amazing and immersive interactive software in the industry. But making games is hard work. That's why we employ the most creative, passionate people in the industry.

The Challenge Ahead:

The Controlling team supports statutory compliance and local and US GAAP reporting for local legal entities in Europe that are involved in the sale and distribution of packaged goods, studio development and other services, and corporate activities.

Key business partners to the group include FP&A teams, Finance shared services and non-Finance business partners.

The key objective of the group is to provide accurate and timely financial reporting, as required by local GAAP or SEC compliance (US GAAP) and maintain a high level of compliance locally in collaboration with internal and external stakeholders.

The successful candidate will primarily support general ledger management, financial close and reporting for one or more entities initially, but may also provide similar accounting-related activities for entities in UK, Sweden, and Finland in future as part of resource sharing and pooling for the hub.

The position reports to an Accounting Manager based in Guildford, UK or Lyon, France.

As a Senior Accountant, you will have a broad range of responsibilities directly and indirectly related to the monthly, quarterly and year end close processes.

What a Senior Accountant does at EA:
• Strong control and review of financial close process, with specific attention to standard accounting (primarily under US GAAP) and data reconciliation issues;
• Responsible for rigorously planning and controlling tasks pertaining to the general ledger (GL) to achieve demanding internal US-driven reporting deadlines;
• Responsibility for local statutory and tax reporting;
• Review and submission of monthly post-close reporting schedules to European Finance team, as applicable (revenue, returns allowances, inventory, accruals, prepayments, fixed assets);
• Day to day responsibility for the resolution of GL issues and queries, including managing the interface between GL and other Finance teams / EA departments;
• Regular daily contact point for both external and internal audit teams;
• Prepare reconciliations and month-end close reporting for local and Corporate requirements, using Hyperion, Excel, and Cadency;
• Ownership and management of balance sheet accounts, including ad-hoc analysis of transactional activity;
• Perform and document controls related to financial reporting, including SOX controls;
• Read, understand, and complete steps as required by procedure documents;
• Maintain close schedules and report on progress on a regular basis;
• Support the implementation, standardization, and improvement of new and existing processes and systems, including testing and documentation of new systems or processes;
• Provide a high level of customer service within Finance and to other business partners;
• Delegate and review work carried out by offshore accounting support teams;
• Interact with FP&A and non-Finance budget holders prior to month-end to ensure accuracy and completeness of accruals related to spending
• Identify and propose resolution for resolve technical accounting issues, and prepare memos as required;
• Identify areas of process improvement or efficiency, and propose and implement changes in process under supervision;
• Prepare materials for off-cycle reporting, including annual balance sheet reviews
• Support internal operational and external financial audits;
• Under limited supervision, complete VAT return and Corporate Income Tax return submissions and other local compliance document filings;
• Prepare statutory financial statements, transfer pricing adjustments, and tax provisions (as required);
• Actively participate in Finance projects; this is to include but not be limited to system changes (e.g. Oracle upgrade, CoA), business process changes affecting Finance, and staff restructuring changes.

The next great EA Senior Accountant also needs:

Technical background :
• One or more of the following backgrounds:
• ACA/ACCA/CIMA-qualified or equivalent financial accounting studies
• Prior equivalent GL work experience with a multinational company
• Prior public accounting experience
• Fluency in English required
• Fluency in French, German, Swedish, Finnish, Romanian or other European languages a plus
• Proven experience identifying and communicating technical and general accounting issues
• Proven experience with month-end reporting deadlines and/or preparation of local statutory financial statements
• Proven experience with corporate governance and/or internal controls compliance
• Experience with large ERP financial accounting systems such as Oracle or SAP required
• Experience with corporate taxation issues a plus
• Experience working with remote or offshore teams a plus
• Familiarity with US GAAP, IFRS or local equivalent a plus
• Experience in an audit company would be a plus
• Experience with Oracle R12 and Hyperion Financial Management a plus
• Familiarity with Microsoft Excel required, including data mining tools and PivotTables

Soft skills :
• Disciplined self-starter, able to multi-task, work independently with strong attention to detail and accountability for own work
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Ability to effectively communicate technical accounting issues to less qualified staff or non-finance staff
• Impeccable personal integrity; confidence in representing the Finance team within EA
• Proactive and confident in identifying problems and solutions; tenacity and attention to detail, valuable attributes.
• Assertive in resolving issues, but positive and constructive at all times;
• Ability to manage change positively – comfortable with multiple daily responsibilities and with managing change where required.
• Systematic and control-focused approach to quality of own work and that of others;
• thinks outside of the box; willing to challenge existing processes to drive efficiency
• Is a team player, adept at building relationships within Finance and across organizations

• More about our location:
• http://careers.ea.com/our-locations/guildford
• https://www.ea.com/careers/careers-overview/lyon

Take your career to the next level – apply today!

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-r07yp6-3-142-171-180-42 in your application.