Finance Leader - FP&A & Data-Driven Insights - CPA-K

ELIZABETH W. ICHARIA

Finance Leader CPA-K Tel:+254-***-***-*** *********.*******@*****.***

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Seasoned Finance Leader with over 15 years of progressive experience transforming financial analysis, performance management, and data-driven decision support across multinational markets in East and Central Africa. Commercially focused with a proven track record of driving financial strategy, KPI analysis, supply chain and improve performance tracking for organizations with extensive retail and distribution networks. Deeply experienced in full-cycle accounting, multi-entity financial consolidation, and financial planning & analysis (FP&A) across East and Central African markets. Eager to apply comprehensive financial leadership, hands-on operational experience, and deep regulatory knowledge to the Business Insight at Bayer, driving leadership teams to translate financial and operational data into actionable insights that support strategic decision-making, improve performance tracking, and strengthen commercial execution.

CORE COMPETENCIES

Financial Strategy

• Financial Planning & Analysis

• Profitability & Cost Optimization

• Budgeting, Forecasting & Modeling

• CAPEX Evaluation & ROI Analysis

• Strategic Business Partnering

• KPI Development & Reporting

Operational Finance & Control

• Multi-entity Financial Consolidation

• Internal Controls & Audit Support

• Working Capital & Cash Flow

Management

• Credit Risk Management & Debt

Recovery

• Process Improvement & Automation

• Cross-functional Team Leadership

Systems & Compliance

• SAP (Advanced)

• CaseWare & QuickBooks

• Advanced Excel (Dashboards, Power

Query, pivot tables)

• IFRS & Statutory Reporting

• Taxation & Regulatory Compliance

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Assistant Finance Manager

Bandwidth and Cloud Services Ltd (BCS) Nairobi, Kenya May 2021 – Present

• Led the financial consolidation for subsidiaries in DRC and Angola, ensuring accurate and timely monthly reporting. Successfully launched financial operations in a new territory (Malawi), integrating all processes and tools within a 4-week timeline.

• Spearheaded a project to streamline the month-end close process across multiple jurisdictions, directly contributing to a significant reduction in monthly close time and enhancing regional financial statement accuracy.

• Coordinated IFRS compliance audits across diverse regulatory environments, consistently achieving zero critical audit findings. Strengthened internal controls and ensured full compliance with local taxation legislation.

• Provided remote leadership and support to regional finance teams, fostering accountability and ensuring timely resolution of complex financial issues.

• Oversaw Angola market treasury operations, including supplier payments, customer collections, and tax remittances, ensuring strong liquidity control and full compliance with statutory deadlines.

• Maintained strong financial controls and reporting integrity while coordinating external audits. Group Financial Reporting Associate

East African Breweries Ltd (EABL – Diageo) Nairobi, Kenya April 2017 – October 2020

• Prepared and consolidated monthly performance reports for Supply and Business Finance teams, providing critical financial visibility into a $200M+ operation and enabling data-driven decision- making.

• Led the preparation of global Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) causal reports, identifying and rectifying reporting inconsistencies that resulted in a 35% reduction in cost discrepancies.

• Designed and introduced cost centre performance dashboards, subsequently adopted by 10+ departments to monitor budgets and operational efficiency against targets.

• Standardized financial reporting templates across Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, significantly improving cross-market reporting efficiency and data comparability for regional leadership.

• Tracked, analyzed, and presented 16 key performance indicators (KPIs) to the senior leadership team, supporting informed operational and commercial decisions. Credit Controller

East African Breweries Ltd (EABL – Diageo) Nairobi, Kenya February 2015 – March 2017

• Managed the receivables portfolio for key regional distributors, successfully recovering over KES 100 million in overdue accounts. Maintained default rates below 2% of total accounts receivable, directly protecting revenue.

• Developed and implemented a data-driven credit limit framework based on client payment history, significantly improving the accuracy of credit risk assessments.

• Established a structured escalation framework that streamlined payment dispute resolution, reducing average resolution time by 45%.

Accounts Payable / Polo Controller

East African Breweries Ltd (EABL – Diageo) Nairobi, Kenya February 2011 – January 2015

• Managed end-to-end accounts payable, accurately processing and validating over 500 vendor invoices monthly in SAP, while consistently achieving a 98% on-time payment rate.

• Enforced strict adherence to procurement policies (Purchase Order compliance), collaborating with department heads to resolve discrepancies. Improved expense categorization accuracy by 30%.

• Cultivated strong vendor relationships, successfully resolving 95% of disputes within agreed SLAs through proactive communication and meticulous documentation. Logistics & Reconciliation Supervisor

East African Breweries Ltd (EABL – Diageo) Nairobi, Kenya August 2009 – January 2011

• Supervised daily logistics reconciliation, ensuring accurate matching of delivery notes, invoices, and payments. Supported month-end close with accurate and timely reconciliations. EDUCATION & PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION

Bachelor of Commerce – Finance - African Nazarene University Certified Public Accountant (CPA-K) – KCA University TECHNICAL SKILLS

ERP Systems

SAP (Expert), CaseWare

Software & Tools

Advanced Excel, Google Workspace, Zoom,

QuickBooks

Languages

English (Fluent), Swahili (Native)

REFEREES: Available upon request.

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