Accounts Payable Team Lead

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced Accounts Payable Team Lead to oversee the day-to-day AP operations within a Shared Services environment. This role is responsible for ensuring efficient invoice processing, maintaining accurate vendor information, managing payment activities, and leading a team to achieve operational excellence. The successful candidate will also work closely with business stakeholders to improve processes, maintain compliance, and support continuous improvement initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership

• Lead, mentor, and support the Accounts Payable team to achieve departmental objectives.
• Provide coaching, training, and performance feedback to team members.
• Monitor daily operations and resolve complex invoice or payment issues.
• Track operational KPIs and implement corrective actions where necessary.
• Drive process standardization and identify opportunities to improve efficiency.

Vendor Master Data Management

• Review and maintain vendor and banking records to ensure data accuracy.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders regarding vendor payment terms and obtain approvals for any exceptions.
• Collaborate with the Vendor Master Data team to review active and inactive supplier records.

Invoice Processing

• Oversee the timely and accurate processing of purchase order and non-purchase order invoices.
• Ensure appropriate expense coding and compliance with internal approval policies.
• Verify that all invoices have the required authorizations before payment.
• Work with business units to minimize non-PO transactions and improve purchasing compliance.

Payment Operations

• Manage scheduled payment runs while ensuring adherence to company policies and local statutory requirements.
• Coordinate payment requests and support different banking platforms and payment methods.
• Improve payment scheduling to reduce urgent or manual payment requests.
• Strengthen payment approval controls and maintain compliance with internal governance standards.

Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related discipline.
• Professional accounting qualification such as ACCA, CPA, or MIA is an advantage.
• Leadership experience of managing 2-3 headcounts.
• Willingness to support operations aligned with the EMEA working schedule.
• Solid understanding of Accounts Payable processes and financial controls.
• Previous experience leading or supervising an AP team is preferred.
• Experience working in a Shared Services Centre environment.
• Familiarity with SAP or other ERP systems is beneficial.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to collaborate across functions.
• Well-organized, detail-oriented, and capable of managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Proficient in written and spoken English.