Role

As Project Controller you will work with one or more of the portfolio teams at the Foundation to make good grants and manage them in a responsible way. You will manage, from a financial perspective, a good mixture of multi-year grants with total value of hundred plus million euros, with individual grant amounts ranging from small (thousands) to large (millions) of different complexities from partners of various natures. Activities and responsibilities of this role include assessing the capacities of the perspective partners (due diligence) from social entrepreneurs to INGOs to UN entities, evaluating the financial proposals of different types of grant applications, monitoring the partner’s and the grant’s financial performances, and controlling any related risks or else give advice for course-corrections. You also ensure that the approved grants are contracted and administered in line with internal governance and procedures. You are results oriented, purpose driven yet prudent in your actions, and have a passion for driving systematic social change through exercising sound financial and operational judgements.

In this role you are able to work in close collaboration with others and yet carry out responsibilities autonomously in line with established way of working. You are also able to contribute to the further development of IKEA Foundation by being an active member in operational discussions and by being a flexible contributor wherever required. Most importantly, you will demonstrate a strong commitment to our vision, mission and the values of the IKEA Foundation.

As Project Controller, you will be part of a small but enthusiastic team of people who are committed to make a difference. You will report to the Head of Project Control and be supervised by one of the Team Coordinators. The position is 38 hours, based at the Foundation’s office in Leiden, the Netherlands.

Responsibilities

You will perform partner risk assessment (due diligence) on perspective and returning partners to identify key risks in areas of reputational, legal, governance, operational and financial management. You will assess whether these organisations are capable of managing our funds in a responsible way and identify any gaps in their capacities. Based on your findings, you help the Programme Manager and the partner to agree on risk mitigation or capacity development plans and advise the Programme Manager on how they should further shape the funding design.

You will review project financial proposals, assess the clarity and reasonableness of the proposed budget in relation to the grant proposal. You will engage in discussions with the partner about key budgetary assumptions and provide clear feedback to both the partner and the Programme Manager to strengthen the budget design. You will set clear expectations about financial reporting and/or audit requirements for each grant and help the partner to understand them.

You will draft grant agreements using established templates and when necessary facilitate negotiations between the partner and the IKEA Foundation’s legal counsel and other internal stakeholders. You will make sure that grant agreements, amendments, and/or other formal documents are prepared in accordance with internal governance and documented properly for audit purposes.

You will closely monitor the grant’s financial performance and cashflow, and if necessary also the progress of any agreed improvement plans for partner’s organisational development, and actively follow up on issues identified. You will review financial reports, revised budgets and the partner’s audited financial statements or the project’s audit reports, provide clear feedback to both the partner and the Programme Manager and approve payments when conditions are met. You will also give clear signals if you identify the need for course correction.

If required, you will facilitate the process of external audit/investigation with our assurance service providers under the guidance of the internal subject expert on audit and the Head of Project Control.

You will ensure all financial information of the grant or applications are accurately entered and maintained in the Foundation’s grants management software so that the quality of internal reporting is not damaged.

You will act as the connector between the Project Control team and the portfolio team(s) and make sure key information is shared mutually and timely.

Depending on your demonstrated experience and expertise, you can be asked to take on additional responsibilities or perform additional tasks within the PC team.

Profile

You have:

– A university degree in Finance, Business Administration, Accounting or established working record in one of these fields.
– 7+ years of working experience in similar role(s), preferably within an environment with mixed multicultural or professional backgrounds.
– Strong work ethics and high integrity standards. You have the courage to voice issues when you see them.
– Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build trustful relationships while being sensitive to cultural and personal differences. You can handle difficult conversations.
– Strong verbal communication skills and business writing skills with the ability to translate financial information to audiences with little or limited financial knowledge.
– A process-oriented mindset with the ability to correctly interpret and apply operational processes and procedures.
– Previous experience in conducting due diligence and assessing financial position of organisations.
– Previous experience in managing multi-million, complex grants or projects.
– Previous experience of working in the development sector, philanthropic sector or (impact) investment would be an advantage.
– Proficient working knowledge of Excel, Word, PowerPoint. Experience with Grant Management Software or other workflow management software would be an advantage.

You are:

– Motivated by living and sharing the values of IKEA Foundation.
– Results oriented. You are able to mobilize people all around you to achieve desired results. You take your responsibilities seriously and deliver your commitments.
– Risk sensitive. You can see where things could go wrong based on assessments of the facts and raise them in a sensitive and timely manner.
– Inclusive. You are confident and clear but can bring a calm, humble approach to collaboration even under time pressure.
– Team orientated. You always think and act in line with the team’s goals. Even if you may have a different opinion, you are committed to consensus building and seeking a team solution. You put your ego behind you.
– Flexible minded. You are able to take on initiatives or perform tasks outside of the regular scope of your work when the situation so requires.
– Self-reflective. You are able to self-evaluate and self-improve your performance in line with the expectations of this role, with minimal supervision. You welcome and actively seek feedback for your personal development and performance improvement.
– Organised. You know how to plan and prioritize your own work, focusing on the most value-adding activities and letting go of irrelevant details.
– Able and willing to travel within Europe or internationally 4-6 times per year.
– Fluent in English.
– A pre-employment screening as well as a case assessment will be part of the application process.

What we offer

We offer a dynamic working environment amongst co-workers from different nationalities. Amongst these nationalities, we share a single culture and set of values. You will be able to contribute to constantly improving the grant-making experience at the IKEA Foundation. In doing so, you will have the opportunity to work with innovative solutions and you will be challenged to come up with ideas for improvements in all areas. The better we can support our partners, the better they can work on the causes that we support!

How to apply

Interested applicants can apply online by clicking here. Please submit your application as soon as possible. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and the job posting will be taken down once filled.