I2P Team Lead

Qualifications & Requirements

• Graduate degree in Finance, Business, Economics, or equivalent work experience with a strong understanding of Finance in Accounting / Accounts Payable
• You are a strategic and operational leader with a minimum of 6 years’ experience in a finance function, of which at least 4 years in a role relevant to Accounts Payable, experience in SSC / GBS environment, and experience in successfully leading a team in the past.
• Strong expertise of end-to-end Invoice-to-Pay (I2P) / Accounts Payable (AP) processes, incl. invoice processing, T&E, payment management, dispute management, and queries management.
• Good understanding of general accounting, tax compliance and financial controls matters.
• Experience with ERP systems (SAP S4/Hana), invoice management systems (e.g. Basware) and other workflow tools (e.g. ServiceNow).
• Excellent leadership and problem-solving skills. Team management and delegation skills.
• Proven track record of building strong relationships within the team, with a focus on mentoring, supporting, and championing each person’s growth and well-being.
• Resilience and ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, international environment.
• Customer-oriented and excellent communication: Sensitive to customer needs and ability to communicate proactively, including structured interactions with the business on open invoices, solve issues in timely processing, etc.
• Genuine people manager with the ability to coach, support, and inspire teams.
• Driven and respectful team-player who fosters collaboration and engagement.
• Collaborative and conflict-resolving approach to stakeholder management.
• Continuous improvement with a proactive mindset.
• Proficient in English, with French being a strong asset to succeed. Be able to interact confidently with international stakeholders and comfortable with producing and understanding professional content (documentation, presentations, written and oral exchanges). Business proficiency in other European languages is a plus.
• Location: Bucharest (Romania), with occasional travels in Europe (eg. Brussels, Paris, etc) if required.

Key Responsibilities:

• Oversee end-to-end Accounts Payable activities

Coordinate and support a GBS team responsible for Accounts Payable of several group entities, with a scope in constant expansion. Supervise AP activities within a specific perimeter, ensuring timely and accurate processing of invoices, T&E requests, or related payments. Be a hands-on expert with principles of invoice processing and payments, and usage of invoice management system and other tools. Focus on potential automation and process improvement initiatives. Evolve as a trusted service delivery team, fulfilling business needs while adhering to Group/GPO guidelines (incl. following SOPs, desktop procedures, and respecting defined policies and controls).

• Build and lead a committed AP team

Build, manage and coordinate a growing AP team to deliver high-quality work within agreed SLAs and KPIs. Supervise human resource planning, selection, development, and periodic performance review of team members. Foster a collaborative environment focused on continuous improvement and skills development. Act as a mentor and coach, providing regular feedback, encouragement, training and development opportunities to your team, supporting their growth and engagement. Conduct mid-year and yearly performance assessments for direct reports.

• Ensure compliance and quality management

Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, as well as the company policies, internal controls, and fraud prevention measures. Support internal and external audits and contribute to internal control over financial reporting compliance and reporting for accounts payable testing. Conduct periodic reviews of Accounts Payable processes and controls in your perimeter, to ensure quality is safeguarded. Implement and coordinate a process to perform root cause analysis and to define remedials for issues impacting service quality. Review and coordinate actions of remedials together with the relevant stakeholders. Escalate risks and issues to relevant stakeholders.

• Monitor performance and operational excellence

Stay up to date with best practices and regulatory changes impacting AP processes. Define and track KPIs such as invoice processing time, accuracy, and compliance rates to ensure service quality and continuous improvement. Analyze performance data and implement corrective actions to maintain service quality. Prepare monthly productivity and quality trackers and review them with managers. Oversee recurring reporting on team performance (volume, productivity, and quality) and drive corrective actions. Ensure service orientation in your team with clear acknowledgment of AP policies and KPIs expectations, and the willingness to provide quality work. Organize structured reporting, interactions, and monitoring of blocked items awaiting action by the business.

• Collaborate with stakeholders

Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders (Finance, Procurement, Treasury, IT) in and out of GBS, with our business partners, and with external partners. Act as a trusted advisor for AP-related topics, ensuring alignment with business priorities. Communicate effectively across multiple countries and cultures to resolve issues and maintain service quality. Be the escalation point for both your AP team and the business, aided by regular interactions with the local GBS Finance and the GPO team. Work in close partnership with local GBS Finance and peers, and secure seamless communication and alignment between the team and the business. Support the integration of new entities into the GBS framework.