Accounts receivable

Job Functions (Areas of Accountability):

• Accounts Receivable Administration and Customer Account Integrity

  • Process and accurately allocate customer receipts to the correct accounts, invoices and currencies; investigate unidentified, incorrectly allocated or unapplied cash and resolve items promptly.

  • Process assigned bank and debtor transactions using appropriate exchange rates and documentary evidence, subject to approved cash-management and segregation-of-duties controls.

  • Manage and reconcile cash collections across all branches, ensuring receipts are accurately recorded, allocated and banked timeously, with discrepancies investigated and resolved.

  • Maintain accurate customer debtor ledgers, contact details, agreed terms and other authorised customer master data in Sage Evolution and Salesforce or approved systems.

  • Verify and distribute customer invoices and monthly statements; coordinate with branches to correct billing errors and ensure complete invoice and proof-of-delivery (POD) records.

  • Process customer credit notes on behalf of Cape Town, Durban and all satellite branches, ensuring accuracy, appropriate supporting documentation and compliance with established approval procedures.

  • Attend to customer and branch queries relating to invoices, statements, receipts, allocations and credit notes; record outstanding issues and follow them through to resolution.

  • Prepare customer, cash-account and assigned general-ledger/balance-sheet reconciliations, with support, explanations of reconciling items and timely clearance of differences.

  • Manage, reconcile and account for income received in advance, particularly freight income, ensuring amounts are accurately recorded, appropriately deferred or recognised in the correct accounting period, and supported by detailed reconciliations.

  • Investigate and resolve outstanding or unidentified balances, ensuring timely clearing and accurate month-end reporting.

  • Maintain visibility of cash transactions and exception items requiring follow-up, including timely escalation of unusual or material discrepancies.

• Collections, Debtor Ageing and DSO Management

  • Assume ownership of the assigned debtor portfolio and actively pursue collection of current and overdue balances through planned, professional customer engagement.

  • Monitor debtor ageing, arrears trends, payment commitments and Days Sales Outstanding (DSO); identify causes of deterioration and propose remedial actions.

  • Maintain a structured register of material overdue accounts, disputes, promised payments and next steps, with responsible persons and target resolution dates.

  • Engage Sales, branch management and Finance to resolve disputes, missing documents, short payments and operational issues delaying collections.

  • Recommend credit holds or other risk-mitigation actions for delinquent or non-compliant customers in accordance with approved procedures and delegated authority.

  • Escalate high-risk balances, potential bad debts and non-performing accounts promptly, providing recommendations and evidence for management decisions.

  • Coordinate referrals to approved attorneys or external collection agencies; track handed-over balances, progress, recoveries, costs, blockers and further actions.

  • Provide reliable input into expected cash collections and working-capital discussions where requested.

• Credit Governance and Compliance

  • Coordinate customer credit applications from receipt to completion; obtain required documentation, perform trade reference checks and conduct relevant credit assessments.

  • Recommend commercially appropriate credit limits and payment terms based on available evidence; submit proposals to authorised approvers and retain a clear approval audit trail.

  • Apply Group credit policies, delegated authorities and customer due-diligence requirements, including enhanced due diligence for higher-risk or sanctioned-country exposures where applicable.

  • Monitor customer credit limits, utilisation, overdue positions and adherence to agreed terms; flag potential breaches or exceptions before further exposure is incurred.

  • Ensure new customer accounts and amendments to existing accounts are accurately captured in the ERP and Salesforce, with appropriate supporting documentation and authorisation in accordance with internal control requirements.

  • Maintain complete, accessible records supporting credit decisions, compliance checks, VAT treatment and customer account history.

  • Escalate policy uncertainties, unusual customer structures, sanctions concerns or suspected irregularities to appropriate Finance, Legal or Compliance decision-makers.

• Financial Reporting, Reconciliations and Month-End

  • Prepare accurate and timely monthly debtor ageing, DSO and credit-note reports for the applicable branches and management recipients.

  • Accompany routine reports with substantive commentary on key movements, material accounts, collection achievements, overdue exposures, disputes, cash allocation exceptions and planned interventions.

  • Prepare and submit assigned balance-sheet reconciliations and supporting schedules within the Finance month-end timetable; investigate, age and escalate unreconciled items.

  • Provide Finance with clear visibility of cash-account balances, outstanding bank/merchant items and transactions requiring resolution or management assistance.

  • Assist with month-end and year-end close, audit requests and supporting schedules, ensuring the accuracy, completeness and traceability of reported balances.

  • Identify recurring credit-note, billing or allocation issues and report root causes to the relevant owners for corrective action.

  • Perform month-end foreign currency revaluations of outstanding debtor balances, ensuring the correct exchange rates are applied, exchange differences are accurately recorded and supporting reconciliations are maintained.

  • Calculate and reconcile monthly management fees for satellite branches, including the preparation and processing of associated invoices, accruals and journals, ensuring accurate allocation and reporting.

  • Calculate monthly sales commissions for external sales representatives in accordance with approved commission structures, ensuring accuracy, completeness and timely submission for review and approval.

  • Coordinate buy-out and credit-note approval workflows, ensuring transactions are appropriately supported, submitted to the relevant authorised approvers and accurately processed in the ERP once approval has been obtained.

  • Ensure all assigned month-end activities are completed within agreed reporting deadlines, with accurate supporting schedules, reconciliations and appropriate escalation of outstanding items.

• Stakeholder Engagement and Business Partnerships

  • Arrange and facilitate recurring debtor-review meetings with Finance, Sales and relevant branch stakeholders to discuss problem accounts, collection progress and required support.

  • Distribute meaningful information and maintain documented meeting actions, accountable owners, due dates and progress updates.

  • Communicate proactively and consistently with management on significant overdue balances, disputed accounts, credit risks, unresolved cash issues and matters requiring intervention.

  • Maintain constructive, professional relationships with customers, external recovery partners, auditors and internal stakeholders while applying consistent credit-control standards.

  • Explain underlying issues and proposed solutions clearly rather than providing reports or transaction data without context; escalate blockers early.

• Systems, Internal Controls and Continuous Improvement

  • Use Sage Evolution, Salesforce, Billtrust and approved cash or intercompany reporting tools correctly, maintaining complete system records and appropriate access controls.

  • Apply financial policies, VAT and record-retention requirements, approval matrices and segregation-of-duties rules when processing, adjusting or reporting transactions.

  • Identify and recommend process enhancements, automation opportunities and better exception-based reporting to improve collections, efficiency and accuracy.

  • Document key procedures, maintain clear handover records and support cross-training to reduce key-person dependency.

  • Assist with changes to finance systems and reporting processes, including testing, reconciliations and data-quality activities within the role’s scope.

• Additional Operational and Administrative Responsibilities

  • Manage card merchant facilities and transactions, including the reconciliation of settlements, investigation of discrepancies, resolution of merchant-related queries and liaison with service providers.
  • Process and reconcile company credit card transactions, ensuring expenditure is accurately recorded in the ERP, supported by appropriate documentation and correctly allocated to the relevant general ledger accounts. Investigate discrepancies and follow up on missing receipts or supporting documentation.
  • Coordinate the collection, validation and reporting of carbon footprint data, including electricity, water and fuel consumption across all branches, ensuring accurate and timely submission through the Group's reporting platform.

• Job Requirements:

• Education

  • Relevant tertiary qualification in bookkeeping, accounting, credit management or equivalent demonstrated practical experience.

• Experience:

  • Minimum five years’ relevant experience in accounts receivable, debtors’ administration and credit control, preferably in a multi-branch or multi-currency environment.

  • Proven experience with cash allocations, account reconciliations, credit applications, collections, ageing analysis and month-end reporting.

  • Good practical understanding of South African VAT requirements, customer invoicing, financial controls and basic accounting principles.

  • Proficient in Microsoft Excel and Outlook, with strong ERP experience (Sage Evolution preferred); Salesforce and Billtrust exposure advantageous.

  • Confidence engaging with customers, Sales teams, management and external collection partners; experience in a matrix organisation advantageous.

• Skills:

  • Financial and Analytical Skills: Strong financial acumen, with the ability to analyse debtor ageing, reconciliations, collection performance and credit exposure, identify risks and recommend corrective actions.

  • Credit Control and Collections: Effective debt collection, negotiation and customer relationship management skills, balancing firm credit control with a professional and commercially sensitive approach.

  • Communication and Stakeholder Management: Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to provide clear, structured reporting, engage confidently with stakeholders and escalate matters appropriately.

  • Planning and Organisation: Excellent organisational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritise competing responsibilities, manage deadlines and maintain accurate records.

  • Problem-Solving and Decision-Making: Ability to independently investigate discrepancies, identify root causes, evaluate potential solutions and exercise sound judgement within delegated authority.

  • Systems and Technical Proficiency: Strong Excel and financial systems proficiency, with the ability to maintain data integrity, prepare reconciliations and reports, and adapt to new systems and processes.

• Attributes

  • Ownership and Accountability: Takes responsibility for assigned duties and outcomes, demonstrates initiative and follows matters through to resolution.

  • Accuracy and Attention to Detail: Maintains a high standard of accuracy, completeness and consistency, with a strong commitment to financial integrity.

  • Proactive and Solutions-Orientated: Anticipates potential issues, identifies opportunities for improvement and takes appropriate action without requiring constant supervision.

  • Integrity and Professionalism: Demonstrates honesty, confidentiality, ethical conduct and sound judgement in all interactions and decisions.

  • Reliability and Dependability: Consistently delivers on commitments, meets agreed deadlines and can be trusted to manage responsibilities independently.

  • Resilience and Adaptability: Remains composed under pressure, responds constructively to changing priorities and embraces new processes and ways of working.

  • Collaborative Mindset: Builds positive working relationships, supports colleagues and contributes constructively to team and business objectives.