Senior Executive Audit

Role Purpose This is a dual-function role. The Senior Executive will split their time between (a) executing audit fieldwork on client engagements under the supervision of the Engagement Senior or Manager, and (b) independently maintaining books of accounts and delivering periodic accounting, VAT and Corporate Tax compliance deliverables for the firm's outsourcing clients. Job DescriptionSenior Executive – Accounts & Audit The role carries ownership. The Senior Executive is expected to run assigned audit sections and smaller accounting portfolios with limited day-to-day supervision, deal directly with client finance teams, guide trainees allocated to their work, and bring files to a review-ready standard before they reach the Manager. Indicative time allocation: approximately 50% audit and assurance, 40% accounting and compliance, and 10% client coordination and internal support. This will vary with the firm's engagement calendar, with a heavier audit weighting during peak season. Audit & Assurance (approx. 50%) ● Engagement planning — Assist in planning audit engagements, including understanding the client's business, preparing engagement checklists and drafting audit programmes for review. ● Fieldwork execution — Independently perform substantive testing, vouching and verification of revenue, purchases, payroll, fixed assets, inventory, receivables, payables, bank balances and equity. ● Internal controls — Carry out walkthroughs of client processes, document internal control narratives, identify control weaknesses and test operating effectiveness where applicable. ● Working papers — Prepare and maintain complete, cross-referenced audit working papers in accordance with the firm's methodology and International Standards on Auditing (ISA), ensuring every conclusion is supported by evidence on file. ● Financial statements — Draft financial statements and accompanying notes in accordance with IFRS and IFRS for SMEs, including preparation of lead schedules and supporting schedules. ● Physical verification — Prepare stock count instructions, attend physical inventory counts and fixed asset verifications at client premises, and document count observations. ● Confirmations — Circularise and follow up on bank, receivable, payable and legal confirmations, and reconcile responses to the books. ● Query resolution — Compile audit queries, obtain client responses, clear review points raised by the Senior or Manager and assist in drafting the management letter and audit findings summary. ● Regulatory support — Support compliance procedures relating to Anti-Money Laundering (AML/CFT), client due diligence and Economic Substance Regulations (ESR) where applicable to the engagement. ● Supervision — Guide, check and develop the work of trainees or junior colleagues allocated to your sections, as the engagement requires. ● Other assurance — Assist with internal audit, agreed-upon procedures, due diligence, and other assurance assignments as allocated.Accounting & Bookkeeping (approx. 40%) ● Books of accounts — Independently maintain complete books of accounts for a portfolio of outsourcing clients — sales, purchases, receipts, payments, journals and general ledger — on Tally, QuickBooks, Zoho Books, Xero, Odoo or SAP Business One. ● Reconciliations — Prepare monthly bank reconciliations, inter-company reconciliations, and supplier and customer statement reconciliations; investigate and clear reconciling items. ● AP / AR — Process accounts payable and receivable, prepare payment runs, monitor ageing schedules and support clients on collections follow-up. ● Period-end close — Post accruals, prepayments, depreciation, provisions and other closing entries; own the month-end and year-end closing checklist for assigned clients. ● Management reporting — Prepare monthly and quarterly management accounts, including profit and loss, balance sheet, cash flow statements and variance commentary for client management. ● Schedules & payroll — Maintain fixed asset registers, WIP schedules and payroll workings, including WPS-compliant payroll processing and end-of-service gratuity computations where required.Essential Requirements● Qualification — CA Qualified or ACCA Affiliate status. Candidate must hold graduation or postgraduation degree along with the professional degree Experience — Prior experience must have been gained in an audit firm, accounting firm or business consultancy (as opposed to an in-house finance department only). ● Dual exposure — Hands-on exposure to statutory audit fieldwork as well as bookkeeping and accounts finalisation. ● Technical — Working knowledge of IFRS, IFRS for SMEs and International Standards on Auditing. ● UAE tax — Practical experience of UAE VAT filing and awareness of UAE Corporate Tax legislation and filing requirements. ● Mobility — Willingness and availability to travel within Dubai for client visits on short notice. ● Systems — Strong Microsoft Excel skills — pivot tables, lookups, conditional formatting and large data reconciliation. ● Language — Professional working proficiency in English, both written and verbal.Preferred / Advantageous ● Experience auditing clients across trading, contracting, real estate, logistics, manufacturing or professional services sectors. ● Exposure to free zone audit requirements (DMCC, JAFZA, DAFZA, IFZA, RAKEZ, Meydan) and their prescribed submission formats and deadlines. ● Familiarity with audit documentation software (CaseWare, AuditFile or equivalent) and with data analytics tools such as Power Query or Power BI. ● Working knowledge of AML/CFT obligations for Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs) and goAML reporting. Valid UAE driving licence. ● Arabic, Hindi, Urdu or Malayalam language skills for client communication.