Shaleshni Kumar
M&C Saatchi Agency Pty Limited
Bass Hill,NSW
25
years of professional experience
Finance Professional driving financial strategies and optimizing performance through expertise in budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting. Demonstrated ability to enhance team collaboration and adapt to changing needs while identifying opportunities for improvement. Experienced leader guiding teams efficiently to achieve goals, with strong skills in communication, project management, and problem-solving to support organizational growth.
Work History
Finance Manager
11 Years 9 Months- Leadership & management of the Corporate Team, set clear goals and expectations and hold team members accountable
- Building a high performing team including recruitment, onboarding, coaching & development, conducting performance appraisals and mentoring of direct (and indirect) reports
- Leverage technology to minimise manual touch points in end to end reporting process
- Identified and implemented continuous process improvements, enhancing operational efficiency within the team.
- Ownership of the internal control framework, ensuring best practice controls (and compliance) supported by scalable business processes
- Managed month end reporting process, ensuring timely and accurate financial reporting.
- Review and completion of variance analysis of actuals vs budget / forecast. Providing quality insights into factors influencing performance, understanding key drivers, forecast trends and identifying areas of risk & opportunity
- Oversee the upload of results into Adaptive Insights
- Review of all balance sheet reconciliations
- Ensure financial reporting is technically compliant with the latest accounting standards (ie. AIFRS 15, AIFRS 16, etc.) – this includes building in processes and controls
- Liaison with external auditors and preparation of statutory accounts
- Ensured compliance across BAS, payroll tax, FBT, and income tax accounts through thorough review of BAS and FBT returns and reconciliation of affiliated tax accounts to external reports at month end.
- Management of annual budgeting and formal quarterly forecast submissions to UK, maintain rolling live forecasts for internal review and analysis
- Assistance with the preparation of reports, including commentary and analysis of company performance for distribution to management and UK
- M & C Saatchi Agency Pty Limited is one of Australia’s largest and most successful advertising agency. The company’s line of business includes preparing advertising and placing such advertising in periodicals, newspapers, radio and television, and other media outlets. The M&C Saatchi Group is a confederation of 9 specialist agencies, each with a different Centre of gravity under one roof which includes brand strategy and design, integrated advertising, data and customer experience, PR. Sponsorship and experimental, Film and TV production, mobile data, research and insights and media strategy and buying.
- Direct Report to Senior Commercial Director and working very closely with Head of Finance and CFO
CORPORATE ACCOUNTANT
6 Years 8 Months- Managing the year-end external audit work process and work with the external auditors to satisfy the reporting requirements.
- Consolidation and preparation of annual statutory accounts for the Group
- Assisting the Finance Director in the consolidation and preparation of yearend tax returns & calculations.
- Fortnightly preparation of cashflows for the group
- Review of monthly General Ledger reconciliations for the Balance Sheet accounts.
- Reviewed and completed monthly management reports, providing commentary on variance analysis of actuals vs forecast vs budget for UK reporting
- Review data submitted in Adaptive Insight to London
- Maintain the Fixed Asset Register and ROU register for the Group
- Review monthly BAS returns for group companies
- Review group companies’ annual FBT returns.
- Assist the Finance Director in preparation of Group Budget.
- Supervision of Senior Financial Accountant, Assistant Accountant and six Accounts Payable staffs, including coaching & development and conducting performance appraisals
- Review and approve payments in CommBiz
- Working closely with CFO in managing company secretarial records for the Group
- Managing Group insurance policies
- Prepared and submitted withholding tax for the group, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements
- M & C Saatchi Agency Pty Limited is one of Australia’s largest and most successful advertising agencies. The company’s line of business includes preparing advertising and placing such advertising in periodicals, newspapers, radio and television, and other media outlets. The M&C Saatchi Group is a confederation of 9 specialist agencies, each with a different Centre of gravity under one roof which includes brand strategy and design, integrated advertising, data and customer experience, PR. Sponsorship and experimental, Film and TV production, mobile data, research and insights and media strategy and buying.
- Direct Report to Commercial Director plus working very closely with Head of Finance and CFO
- Documented key accomplishments
- Received praise from the CFO for successfully completing each year’s audit
- Received bonus in last 2 years for continuous dedication and commitment in managing audit and timely completion of statutory accounts
- Received praise from the CFO for uplifting and successfully managing an underperforming accounts payable team (demonstrated great people skill)
- Continuously improving on the layout and presentation of management reports.
- Gained trust and confidence of the management team
SENIOR CORPORATE ACCOUNTANT
2 Years 10 Months- Consolidation and preparation of year-end tax returns & calculations and liaise with KPMG in the review and lodgment of company tax return.
- Preparation and review of the year-end external audit work papers and work with the external auditors to satisfy the reporting requirements.
- Consolidation and preparation of annual statutory accounts and cash flows for group companies.
- Prepared General Ledger reconciliations for Balance Sheet accounts to ensure accurate financial reporting.
- Consolidated journals and entered data for all group companies into Hyperion for timely submission to Dubai.
- Preparation of monthly management reports for reporting to Dubai.
- Prepare and reconcile monthly BAS returns (GST, Fuel Excise, FBT, and PAYG) for group companies to ensure timely returns to the ATO and Government.
- Budgeting - report and prepare schedules to ensure information is available and correct for the yearly budget process
- Supervised 4 junior staff to enhance team efficiency and ensure compliance with reporting standards.
- Review and approve AP batches
- DP World is one of the world’s largest shipping logistical terminals with over 65 marine terminals across 6 continents. DP World Australia’s principal activity includes operation and management of container terminals at Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Fremantle. Working in the Australia Corporate Head Office, and reporting directly to the Chief Financial Accountant.
- Achievements:
- Designed templates for completing statutory financial statements which saved the company time, money and improved the quality of the financial statements. The company used to outsource the financial statements to KPMG. With the skills and knowledge obtained at Ernst & Young, designed templates and prepared the financial statements in-house which saved the company $80,000.
- Identified the problem and improved the accuracy of the fixed asset register. This saved the company a great deal of time in providing timely and accurate information to the external auditors.
- Improve the process of completing the Company’s Fringe Benefit Tax. This enabled the company to lodge their FBT return on time and also improved the technical skills of junior staffs.
- Received praise from Chief Financial Accountant for successfully managing 2013 audit without any audit adjustments.
- Received praise from Chief Financial Accountant for successful completion and lodgment of Group Tax Return for 2012 and 2013.
SENIOR ACCOUNTANT
4 Years- Preparation and review of financial statements under AIFRS, IFRS, NZIAS and US GAAP. This includes general purpose and special purpose financial reports for companies across a range of industries, as well as nonprofit organizations, hedge funds and managed investment schemes.
- Managed back office finance support for entities without their own finance team, providing monthly management reports and maintaining reconciliations for balance sheet items.
- Executed tax compliance, tax effect accounting, and prepared Business Activity Statements (BAS) for management reporting clients, ensuring accurate financial representation.
- Allocated and supervised tasks for junior accountants to ensure timely completion.
- Planning & Execution of Audits.
- Audit Reviews with Partners/ Senior Management.
- Wrap up procedures involving preparing of management letters.
- Key Achievements:
- Recognized as a high performer in the firm by achieving a rating of 4 out of 5 in the performance review procedure for successfully managing audits and consistently meeting deadlines.
- Received praise from audit teams in completing the financial statements in a timely and efficient manner.
- Completed jobs within the budget which saved time and money for both the company and the client.
- Identified 3 potential clients for the company and successfully won 2 of the clients which increased company revenue by $85,000.
- EY foundation volunteer – assisted with various fund-raising initiatives sponsored by Ernst & Young, including SPARK reading program, the National Breast Cancer Institute and CanAssist.
ACCOUNTANT
1 Year 10 Months- Working in a team to conduct financial statement audits on small-to-medium sized companies within a diverse range of industries.
- Liaised with clients to gather information and address audit issues, enhancing collaboration and communication.
- Planned an audit by gaining an understanding of the company’s business processes and internal controls.
- Conducting analytical reviews of account balances through year-on-year comparisons, actual vs. budget comparisons, trend analysis and use of financial ratios.
- Conducted analytical reviews of account balances using year-on-year comparisons, actual vs. budget comparisons, trend analysis, and financial ratios to identify discrepancies and support audit conclusions.
- Coached junior staff members, delegating tasks and providing timely feedback.
- Ernst & Young in one of the Big Four Accounting Firms globally known. Ernst & Young provides audit, tax, business risk, technology and security risk services, and human capital services. Worked in the audit and financial reporting division and reported directly to the audit managers and partners.
- Highlighted significant accomplishments in the audit division.
- Improved report writing skills by attending and completing the report writing seminar.
- Strong interpersonal skills gained in liaising with audit teams and clients in obtaining information, performing audit procedures and communicating findings.
- Enhanced time management skills in meeting frequent reporting deadlines.
- Greater knowledge of technical accounting and auditing standards.
SENIOR ACCOUNTANT
2 Years 2 Months- Execution of audits for Government Sectors, Wholesale & Manufacturing, Retail, Banking Industries, Solicitors and Schools and Universities.
- Executed audits for government sectors, wholesale & manufacturing, retail, banking industries, solicitors, and educational institutions.
- Led audit team responsible for reviewing account balances, including revenues, expenses, cash, receivables, payables, fixed assets, provisions, and accruals.
- Execution of audits – half & year ends/internal control testing/budgeting
- Coaching junior staff members, delegating effectively and providing timely and appropriate feedback
- Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu is one of the Big Four Chartered Accounting Firms globally known. Deloitte is the brand under which thousands of professionals collaborate across a network of offices to provide audit, economics, financial advisory, human capital, tax and technology services. Worked in the audit division and reported directly to audit managers and partners.
- Received positive feedback from clients and asked to lead the audit team in coming years.
- Received praise from audit managers and partners for successfully training new audit staff.
- Streamlined information-gathering process from clients, enhancing efficiency and reducing time spent on audits.
ACCOUNTANT
1 Year 5 Months- Executed audits for wholesale & manufacturing, retail, banking industries, and solicitors, ensuring compliance with relevant standards.
- Liaised with clients to gather information, perform audit procedures, and communicate findings, enhancing client understanding and satisfaction.
- Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu is one of the Big Four Chartered Accounting Firms globally known. Deloitte is the brand under which thousands of professionals collaborate across a network of offices to provide audit, economics, financial advisory, human capital, tax and technology services. Worked in the audit division and reported directly to audit managers and partners.
- Documented key achievements
- Strong interpersonal skills in liaising with clients to gather information, perform audit procedures and communicate findings.
- Collaborated with senior staff to streamline audit processes, improving team efficiency and effectiveness.
- Teamwork skills in working with senior staff.
- Knowledge of technical accounting and auditing standards.
- Achievements:
Education
CA
Australian Bachelor of Commerce
Bachelor of Arts Degree
Double majors in Accounting and Economics
Skills
Financial analysis
Financial reporting
Financial budgeting
Budget planning
Budget forecasting
Cash flow management
Working capital management
Consolidation accounting
Financial audits
Tax compliance
Internal controls
Reporting systems
Stakeholder engagement
Compliance management
Financial oversight
Coaching and training
Staff development
Corporate tax strategy
Risk analysis
Excel
Word
Performance evaluations
Process improvement
SAP Concur
Hyperion Enterprise
Spectra PF
Management reporting
Team leadership
MYOB & QuickBooks
Talent development
Customer satisfaction
CANDIDATE
Shaleshni Kumar
Timeline
Finance Manager
M&C Saatchi Agency Pty Limited
02.2015 - CurrentRead More
CORPORATE ACCOUNTANT
M&C Saatchi Agency Pty Limited
02.2015 - 10.2021Read More
SENIOR CORPORATE ACCOUNTANT
DP World Australia
02.2012 - 12.2014Read More
SENIOR ACCOUNTANT
Ernst & Young
12.2007 - 12.2011Read More
ACCOUNTANT
Ernst & Young
01.2006 - 11.2007Read More
SENIOR ACCOUNTANT
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
07.2003 - 09.2005Read More
ACCOUNTANT
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
01.2002 - 06.2003Read More
University of the South Pacific
Bachelor of Arts Degree
Read More
University of Southern Queensland
Australian Bachelor of Commerce
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Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia
CA
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