This is a newly created role designed to better support our organisation and to drive automation, changes and growth.

About us Group Elephant is a global organisation with over 4,000 employees across 42 countries. We are widely recognised as the world’s largest and most experienced independent SAP HR/Payroll and Workforce Management specialist.

We design, build, and implement cloud-based, hybrid, and on-premises solutions for our clients. At Group Elephant, we believe there is no “one size fits all.” We partner closely with our clients to solve their most critical business challenges through a business enablement-led approach — delivering value through innovation in every project and every solution.

We offer a dynamic and collaborative work environment, flexible working conditions, comprehensive employee benefits, and opportunities to work on diverse, global client engagements.

About the role The Head of Finance & Operations owns the finance and operations functions the practices depend on across Asia Pacific and Japan. It is a hands‑on leadership role. The finance unit delivers the entity and practice accounting. This role is accountable for the entity and consolidated results, the treasury and compliance position, the service the business receives, and the change programme that lifts all three — a new APJ ERP, automation, and AI embedded in how the work is done.

Group reporting and performance

Owns the entity and consolidated results, the integrity and timeliness of the pack

Sets the group reporting calendar and shorten it as processes and systems improve

Provides Gross profit and operating profit insights by entity, practice, client, project and consultant

Consolidate and challenge the entity budgets and year‑end forecasts, and explanation of variances

Provide financial performance analysis and business insights to leadership

Debtor and WIP discipline, with a regular reporting and meeting cadence across the business

Systems, transformation and AI

Own the new APJ ERP end to end, from requirements and tender through to adoption

Redesign the finance and operations processes into the recent system rather than rebuild what exists today





Embed automation and AI in how the work is done, not as a side project

Move finance operations to SharePoint, with one repository for client documents

Develop the reporting into analytics the practices act on

Design the controls into the automated workflows, so what automation and AI produce stays auditable

Run the ERP as an ongoing service after go‑live — roadmap, releases and configuration discipline

Payroll

Accountable for payroll across all entities — in house for ANZ and through the local providers in Asia

Payroll is the group’s largest cost — own the reporting and analysis of payroll cost and headcount by entity and practice, and the movement against budget

Review and co‑approve each payroll with the CFO

Payroll controls, segregation of duties and the confidentiality of remuneration data

Payroll compliance in every jurisdiction — superannuation, payroll tax, workers compensation and the local equivalents — and the on‑cost rates applied in each country

Manage the local payroll providers in Asia to agreed service levels, accuracy and cost

Payroll and employee data integrity across the HRIS, payroll and the new ERP

Treasury and cash

Weekly entity and consolidated cash flow forecasts and the working capital decisions

Bank account management and the mandates; co‑authoriser on payments and transfers

Review and co‑authorise the foreign exchange payments; intercompany funding

Compliance and governance

Group and entity taxes and the audit programme — the approach, the calendar and the advisers

Financial controls, the finance policy framework and segregation of duties

Company secretarial, ASIC and overseas registers

Own the statutory accounts — prepared by the external advisers and reviewed by the finance team, for director signature

Operations





Business Operations — the internal service desk, project and job setup, on‑boarding and off‑boarding, with service levels measured and reported

IT and systems through the outsourced provider — infrastructure, security, data privacy and continuity

Legal — contracts, templates, one repository and agreed turnaround times, with the outsourced provider and the legal AI tooling

HR — employment and workplace compliance, HRIS data quality, and support to HR

Insurance programme and third‑party risk

Acquisitions

Integrate acquired businesses financially and operationally, including work delivered inside transition service arrangements

People and leadership

Lead, mentor and coach the Finance, Payroll and Business Services units across seven countries

Workforce planning and resourcing across the units

Remove single‑person dependencies through cross‑training and documented process

About you

Minimum 10 years' experience in a senior finance role

Senior finance leadership in a multi‑entity, multi‑currency group — professional services preferred

Ownership of a group consolidation, and of statutory and tax obligations across several jurisdictions

Multi‑country payroll ownership, delivered both in house and through local providers

A systems implementation led as the business owner, through to adoption rather than go‑live

Automation or AI applied to finance and operations processes

Acquisition integration, including transition service arrangements

Able to direct external consultants and programme partners to a fixed set of deliverables

Able to lead remote units across Asia Pacific time zones, and comfortable working hands‑on

What’s in It for You

Competitive salary and benefits.

A supportive, inclusive culture that values diversity.

A friendly, engaging working environment.

Inclusion & Diversity We are committed to fostering a truly diverse workforce that is inclusive of everyone. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, experiences, and skill sets, regardless of gender identity, age, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnicity.

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📌 Head of Finance & Operations (Sydney)
🏢 EPI-USE Australia
📍 Sydney