SAIPA Trainee Accountant

At Corient, we help high- and ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families to enjoy a full life, while enabling them to preserve their wealth for future generations, and provide for the people, causes and communities they care about. We focus on exceeding expectations, simplifying lives, and establishing legacies that last for generations. We are always looking for talented and motivated individuals to join our team. If you want to work for a company that values your contributions and supports your growth, we would like to meet you.

OVERALL, PURPOSE AND WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

The Trainee Accountant role forms part of the South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA) three-year training programme and is based in Cape Town. The position operates within a team located across Cape Town and Johannesburg and reports to the Client Accounting Team Leader.

The role is responsible for maintaining the accounting records of offshore and onshore trusts and companies, as well as preparing accurate and timely financial statements. Success in this position requires regular collaboration and engagement with team members in both Cape Town and Johannesburg, the wider Family Office team, clients, the off shore accounting team, and various external stakeholders

PRINCIPAL ELEMENTS & ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Accounts maintenance of relevant information to trial balance level as well as the preparation of onshore financial statements
• Maintaining entity ledgers on a regular basis ensuring they are up-to-date
• Providing external service providers with relevant information to allow them to prepare financial reports, tax and other statutory returns for our clients within strict deadlines
• Liaising with the Trust Administrator and Middle Office Team to ensure adequate supporting documents are in place for various updates in clients.
• Provision of relevant reports for client reporting purposes including client meeting preparation.
• Provision of reporting for local and international tax purposes

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

A degree with the following core subjects from a SAIPA accredited Tertiary Institution:

• Financial Accounting 3;
• Taxation 1;
• Auditing 1 OR Internal Auditing 2 OR Internal Control and Code of Ethics;
• Corporate Law 1 OR Commercial Law 2; and
• Management Accounting:

SKILLS

• This position requires a good understanding of the following:
• Accounting knowledge and competence including IFRS for SMEs, basic understanding of trusts and investments, understanding and the interpretation of financial statements
• Technical experience in Caseware, Xero and Microsoft Office beneficial

COMPETENCIES AND BEHAVIOURS

• Energetic: Self-motivated and self-manages with a good work ethic (attitude), schedules and manages workload effectively, thinks ahead, sets plans to achieve goals
• Results orientated: Delivers work of a high standard, output is accurate and error free; owns delegated tasks and pays attention to detail, takes prompt action and sees tasks through to completion
• Resourceful problem solver: Considers the wider consequences of each decision, gathers and analyses information to find creative solutions
• Team player: Supports and works towards team goals, shares information, is helpful and cooperative, works effectively with people outside the immediate team
• Efficient and effective communicator: Communicates clearly and concisely with clients and colleagues of all levels, listens effectively, has well-presented written communication and the ability to deal with sophisticated clients
• Client focused: Understands and satisfies client needs at all times, takes full responsibility and accountability for all client matters including delegated tasks

Please include your academic transcripts with your application.