Financial Risk Assurance Steward

Job Description

The Finance Risk Assurance Steward is responsible for maintaining an effective financial control and governance environment across Sub-Saharan Africa. The role serves as the independent assurance function within Finance, providing oversight of financial risks, internal controls, financial governance, and compliance with corporate policies, SOX requirements, accounting standards, and applicable statutory obligations.

As a trusted advisor to Finance leadership, the incumbent strengthens financial stewardship, promotes a culture of accountability and compliance, and ensures the integrity of financial reporting and key finance processes. The role works collaboratively across the organization to identify and mitigate risks, improve control effectiveness, support business transformation, and ensure the Finance organization remains audit-ready and aligned with our company's global governance framework.

Key Objectives

The Finance Risk Assurance Steward Sub-Saharan Africa is accountable for:

• Maintaining a robust and sustainable financial control environment.
• Protecting the integrity of financial reporting and accounting processes.
• Ensuring compliance with our company's policies, SOX requirements, and local regulatory obligations.
• Strengthening governance and stewardship across Finance.
• Driving timely remediation of audit and control findings.
• Supporting risk-informed decision making through independent oversight and challenge.
• Enabling business growth through effective governance, simplified processes, and strong controls.
• Promoting a culture of accountability, compliance, and continuous improvement.

Primary Responsibilities and Key Activities

Financial Controls and Assurance

The role is responsible for overseeing the effectiveness of the South Africa Cluster's financial control environment and ensuring adherence to corporate control requirements.

• Coordinate and oversee SOX and Business Integrity Assessment (BIA) control programmes.
• Oversee local controls documentation and control evidence repositories.
• Perform risk-based control assessments and self-testing activities.
• Monitor control performance and identify opportunities to strengthen control effectiveness.
• Review control deficiencies and drive sustainable remediation plans.
• Provide control and business process guidance to Finance and business stakeholders.
• Promote consistency and standardization of key financial controls across the Cluster.

Audit and Assurance Management

The role serves as the primary Finance contact for assurance activities and drives a culture of continuous audit readiness.

• Support and/or coordinate Internal Audit, External Audit, SOX, B-BBEE verification, and corporate review activities.
• Manage audit planning, document requests, walkthroughs, and stakeholder engagement.
• Monitor audit findings and ensure corrective actions are implemented on a timely basis.
• Track remediation plans through closure and provide regular status reporting to leadership.
• Support Financial Control Quality (FCQ) and Governance Oversight and Accountability (GOA) processes.
• Ensure the organization remains audit-ready throughout the year.

Financial Governance and Policy Stewardship

The Finance Risk Assurance Lead acts as custodian of the Finance Governance Framework and supports strong financial stewardship across the organization.

• Maintain the local finance policies, procedures, and governance documentation.
• Review governance frameworks to ensure ongoing alignment with our company's standards.
• Provide advice and interpretation on policy and governance matters.
• Monitor adherence to Delegation of Authority requirements and key governance controls.
• Support Company Secretarial activities relating to financial governance matters.
• Coordinate governance reporting and management oversight activities.

Risk Assessment and Monitoring

The role supports proactive identification and mitigation of financial and operational risks across Finance processes.

• Conduct risk assessments across finance activities and key business processes.
• Maintain and monitor the Finance Risk Register.
• Identify emerging risks and control gaps requiring management attention.
• Track mitigation plans and ensure accountability for closure.
• Provide periodic reporting on the overall health of the control environment.
• Conduct targeted reviews of high-risk areas and significant finance activities.

Business Process and Third-Party Governance

The role provides independent control oversight across Finance processes and third-party arrangements that may impact financial integrity.

• Oversee governance across Account-to-Report, Source-to-Settlement, Order-to-Cash, Treasury, Payroll, Fixed Assets, and Distributor Operations.
• Conduct risk-based reviews of distributors, vendors, outsourced providers, and key third parties.
• Assess financial control risks associated with third-party arrangements.
• Monitor remediation of identified control weaknesses.
• Share best practices and support process standardization initiatives.

Change, Transformation and Continuous Improvement

The Finance Risk Assurance Lead plays a key role in ensuring that governance and controls remain effective as processes evolve.

• Participate in system implementations, automation initiatives, and finance transformation projects.
• Assess control implications of process changes and new business initiatives.
• Support implementation of appropriate controls within future-state processes.
• Drive opportunities to simplify, automate, and strengthen control activities.
• Promote continuous improvement and governance by design.

Training, Leadership and Business Partnership

The role is expected to build governance capability across the organization and act as a trusted partner to Finance leadership.

• Deliver training and awareness sessions on controls, governance, and financial stewardship.
• Coach control owners and process leads on risk management and compliance expectations.
• Partner with Finance, Global Business Services, Compliance, Treasury, and Audit teams.
• Provide independent challenge and practical recommendations to support sound decision making.
• Drive a culture of ownership, accountability, and stewardship across the Finance organization.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor's and Honours degree in Accounting, Finance, Auditing, Risk Management, or a related discipline.
• A professional qualification such as CA(SA), CPA, CIMA, ACCA, CIA, CISA, or equivalent is preferred.
• 7 to 8 years, in Finance, Internal Controls, Audit, Risk Assurance, Controllership, or Financial Compliance within a multinational or highly regulated environment.
• Strong knowledge of financial governance, audit management, financial controls, SOX compliance, and finance process risk management is essential.

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

Required Skills:

Detail-Oriented, External Audit, Financial Analysis, Financial Compliance, Financial Controlling, Financial Governance, Governance Controls, Internal Auditing, Interpersonal Relationships, Operational Risks, Risk Assessments, Teamwork

Preferred Skills:

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Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date:

11/20/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.