Sithembile Zikode

Professional Accountant (SA) registered with SAIPA, holding a Bachelor of Accounting Science (BCompt) obtained from UNISA, and over 15 years of progressive experience in financial management, compliance, accounting, grants finance, internal controls, audit support, and regulatory reporting across research, public health, and corporate environments. Demonstrated expertise in ensuring compliance with financial policies, statutory regulations, donor requirements, and internal control frameworks. Extensive experience in financial reporting, balance sheet reconciliations, budgeting, asset management, accounts payable, financial analysis, risk management, audit coordination, and governance.

Experienced in supporting internal and external audits, implementing financial controls, monitoring compliance with organisational policies, strengthening financial governance, and improving financial processes. Proficient in SAP ERP, JD Edwards, SunSystems, Workday, and Microsoft Excel. Recognised for strong analytical skills, attention to detail, stakeholder management, and the ability to deliver accurate financial information within strict reporting deadlines.

Grants Management Specialist - Africa Health Research Institute

(2022-09)

• Coordinat grant application planning meetings to ensure compliance with institutional policies, donor requirements, and submission deadlines.
• Develop the grant budgets and budget justifications, ensuring financial accuracy, completeness, and compliance with donor funding regulations.
• Facilitate institutional registrations and online grant portal administration, ensuring compliance with funder requirements.
• Provide financial and regulatory guidance to principal investigators and project teams throughout the proposal development process.
• Review funding agreements and Notices of Award to identify financial, contractual, and compliance obligations.
• Coordinate with the Legal Department to review and execute grant agreements, amendments, and contractual documentation.
• Established project cost centres and financial structures to support accurate financial management and reporting of newly awarded grants.
• Coordinated project implementation activities with principal investigators, finance, and human resources to ensure compliance with approved budgets and funding agreements.
• Verifie staffing budgets and funding availability for new appointments, contract renewals, and staff effort reallocations.
• Monitor compliance with donor terms and conditions, institutional policies, and international funding regulations, including US Federal Uniform Guidance and other applicable regulatory requirements.
• Review grant expenditure against approved budgets and funding conditions, identifying financial risks and recommending corrective actions where necessary.
• Draft, reviewed, and administer sub-award agreements and amendments to ensure compliance with contractual obligations and donor regulations.
• Monitor sub-recipient financial performance and compliance with institutional policies, funding agreements, and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Conduct financial reviews of sub-recipient expenditure, verified supporting documentation, and facilitated the timely transfer of grant funds.
• Coordinat grant amendments, budget revisions, no-cost extensions, and contract modifications while ensuring compliance with donor approval requirements.
• Identify financial reporting obligations and coordinat the preparation and submission of accurate financial reports in accordance with donor and institutional requirements.
• Prepare financial reports and supporting schedules, ensuring compliance with funding agreements, accounting standards, and reporting deadlines.
• Support internal and external audit processes by preparing financial records, reconciliations, supporting documentation, and audit schedules.
• Monitor compliance with financial policies, internal controls, contractual obligations, and regulatory requirements throughout the grant lifecycle.
• Liaise with project teams, collaborators, and funding agencies to resolve financial compliance matters and reporting queries.
• Manage the financial close-out of grant awards by ensuring compliance with contractual obligations, donor regulations, and institutional policies.
• Prepare final financial reports, reconciliations, and supporting documentation required for project close-out and audit purposes.
• Implement standardised grant close-out procedures and maintain comprehensive project records to strengthen financial governance and compliance.
• Contributed to strengthening internal controls, improving financial processes, and mitigating compliance risks across the grant portfolio.

Financial Accountant - uShaka Marine World

(2020-01 - 2022-08)

• Ensured approved CAPEX budgets were aligned with approved implementation plans and organisational financial policies.
• Reviewed and verified CAPEX budgets before uploading to the JD Edwards (JDE) system, ensuring accuracy and completeness.
• Evaluated CAPEX requisitions to confirm correct general ledger account allocation, budget availability, asset classification, useful life, and compliance with company policies prior to approval.
• Ensured all newly acquired assets were appropriately tagged, recorded, and safeguarded in accordance with asset management policies.
• Facilitated the timely capitalisation of fixed assets into the Fixed Asset Register (FAR), ensuring compliance with accounting standards and organisational procedures.
• Reviewed General Ledger (GL) to Fixed Asset Register (FAR) integrity reports, investigated discrepancies, and implemented corrective actions to maintain accurate financial records.
• Prepared monthly fixed asset reconciliations, ensuring the completeness and accuracy of financial information.
• Reviewed and analysed monthly asset additions, disposals, transfers, and write-offs to ensure compliance with financial policies and accounting standards.
• Conducted quarterly assessments of asset useful lives and coordinated reassessments where required to ensure compliance with IFRS and organisational accounting policies.
• Prepared monthly CAPEX expenditure reports, monitoring budget utilisation against approved implementation plans and highlighting variances for management review.
• Strengthened internal controls over fixed assets by ensuring compliance with financial policies, approval frameworks, and governance requirements.
• Supported internal and external audit processes by providing accurate fixed asset records, reconciliations, and supporting documentation.
• Prepared monthly bank reconciliations, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and the timely resolution of reconciling items.
• Reviewed petty cash reconciliations to ensure compliance with organisational policies, internal controls, and financial procedures.
• Verified the accurate recording and posting of bank transactions to the appropriate general ledger accounts, maintaining the integrity of financial records.
• Monitored daily cash flow to support effective liquidity management and provided recommendations to the Finance Manager on short-term investment opportunities.
• Assisted the Finance Manager in managing relationships with banking institutions, corporate stakeholders, external auditors, and government regulatory agencies on financial and compliance matters.
• Maintained banking mandates, banking relationships, and financial service provider records in accordance with organisational policies and governance requirements.
• Reviewed and verified Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) payment batches against approved creditor reconciliations and supporting documentation, ensuring compliance with approval frameworks and internal controls before payment processing.
• Identified and resolved banking and reconciliation discrepancies, implementing corrective actions to strengthen financial controls and minimise operational risk.
• Supported month-end and year-end financial close processes by ensuring all banking transactions were accurately recorded, reconciled, and supported by appropriate documentation.
• Assisted with internal and external audit processes by providing complete banking records, reconciliations, payment documentation, and evidence of compliance with financial policies and procedures.
• Ensured supplier payments were processed within agreed payment terms and in accordance with contractual agreements, organisational policies, and delegated authority limits.
• Reviewed supplier reconciliations against supplier statements, investigated discrepancies, and resolved outstanding queries to ensure the accuracy and completeness of accounts payable records.
• Verified compliance with the three-way matching process by ensuring invoices were accurately matched to approved purchase orders and supporting quotations or contracts prior to payment authorisation.
• Reviewed supplier invoices for compliance with SARS VAT legislation, ensuring valid tax invoices, accurate VAT treatment, and adherence to statutory requirements.
• Verified that all invoices and purchase orders were appropriately authorised in accordance with organisational approval frameworks before payment processing.
• Monitored accounts payable ageing reports to ensure timely settlement of supplier obligations, minimise overdue balances, and maintain strong supplier relationships.
• Prepared and reviewed month-end accruals for goods and services received but not yet invoiced, ensuring accurate financial reporting and compliance with accrual accounting principles.
• Maintained strong internal controls over the accounts payable function by ensuring compliance with financial policies, procurement procedures, and governance requirements.
• Supported month-end and year-end financial close processes through the accurate recording, reconciliation, and reporting of accounts payable transactions.
• Assisted with internal and external audits by providing complete accounts payable documentation, reconciliations, and evidence of compliance with financial policies, procurement procedures, and statutory regulations.

Senior Grants Accountant - World Vision SA

(2011-02 - 2020-12)

• Ensured compliance with organisational financial policies, donor regulations, GAAP, IFRS, and internal control frameworks across multiple donor-funded programmes.
• Monitored project expenditure against approved budgets, funding agreements, and financial policies to ensure compliance and effective budget control.
• Reviewed financial documents, partner reports, and supporting documentation to assess compliance with internal controls and donor regulations.
• Performed regular assessments of the internal control environment, identified financial and operational risks, and recommended corrective actions to strengthen governance and mitigate risk.
• Monitored compliance with funding agreements, including allowable costs, budget amendments, grant close-out requirements, and contract modifications.
• Reviewed partner financial reports and provided technical guidance to ensure compliance with financial management policies, contractual obligations, and donor requirements.
• Supported the preparation and review of partner agreements and contracts to ensure compliance with organisational policies and funding regulations.
• Prepared, consolidated, and reviewed monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports in accordance with GAAP, IFRS, donor requirements, and organisational reporting standards.
• Reviewed financial transactions, journal entries, cost allocations, and general ledger postings to ensure accurate coding, completeness, and financial data integrity.
• Maintained accurate financial records and ensured timely preparation of financial reporting packages for management and donors.
• Supported month-end and year-end financial close processes through reconciliations, financial analysis, and reporting.
• Collaborated with programme managers to prepare project budgets aligned with implementation plans, funding agreements, and organisational objectives.
• Reviewed and uploaded approved budgets into SunSystems, ensuring accuracy and consistency with approved funding commitments.
• Monitored budget performance through regular variance analysis, expenditure reviews, and commitment monitoring, providing recommendations to management where corrective action was required.
• Conducted financial trend analysis, burn rate analysis, funding utilisation reviews, and budget forecasting to support informed financial decision-making.
• Prepared ad hoc financial analyses and management reports highlighting significant financial variances and potential compliance risks.
• Prepared monthly cash flow forecasts and project funding requests to support effective cash management and liquidity planning.
• Maintained low cash balances in accordance with organisational cash management policies and donor requirements.
• Managed banking administration, including maintaining authorised bank signatories and processing electronic payments through Standard Bank Business Online.
• Ensured payment transactions complied with organisational approval frameworks, banking controls, and financial policies.
• Performed monthly balance sheet reconciliations, including prepayments, travel advances, partner advances, and accounts payable reconciliations.
• Investigated and resolved reconciliation variances to ensure the accuracy and integrity of financial records.
• Strengthened financial controls by reviewing financial transactions and ensuring compliance with accounting policies and organisational procedures.
• Reviewed supplier documentation and procurement transactions to ensure compliance with procurement policies, delegated authority limits, and contractual requirements.
• Verified supplier invoices against purchase orders, goods received notes, and supporting documentation before payment processing.
• Confirmed supplier contracts remained valid and procurement activities complied with organisational policies and governance requirements.
• Supported procurement committee processes by reviewing procurement documentation and ensuring compliance with established procurement procedures.
• Maintained the fixed asset register, ensuring assets were accurately recorded, tagged, and safeguarded in accordance with organisational policies.
• Conducted periodic physical asset verification and reconciled the fixed asset register to supporting records.
• Managed asset additions, disposals, insurance schedules, and lease records, ensuring compliance with financial policies and accounting standards.
• Coordinated insurance claims, annual policy reviews, and asset maintenance records to support effective asset governance and risk management.
• Supported internal and external audit engagements by preparing financial reports, reconciliations, supporting schedules, and audit documentation.
• Collaborated with programme managers, finance teams, auditors, and external stakeholders to resolve financial queries and ensure compliance with financial policies and regulatory requirements.
• Contributed to continuous process improvements by strengthening financial controls, enhancing reporting processes, and promoting a culture of compliance and accountability.

Bachelor of Accounting Science - Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Auditing and Taxation - University of South Africa (2015)

Research Grants and Contracts Management Certificate - WITS (2023)

Post Graduate Diploma: Professional Accountant in practice - South African Institute of Professional Accountants (2019)

Matric - Bambazi High School (2001)