Jody’s Actual Selection Criteria:
******Note that the applicant was required to address the selection criteria in a cover letter of no more than three pages. Due formatting, this criteria appears longer than actual size.
To whom it may concern,
It is with great interest that I write to present my application for your position as a Finance Officer as advertised. I understand that you are looking for a passionate individual with experience in Accounts Receivable and Payroll. With 9+ years’ experience in Accounts Receivable and current experience completing weekly Payroll for 70+ staff, I am confident that I have the skills required to be a success in your team. I offer the following:
Demonstrated experience in an Accounts Receivable role or similar
I offer a combination of experience and qualifications, which will allow me to perform the responsibilities of the position such including extensive experience in handling Accounts Receivable. From 2003 until 2012, I was employed as an Accounts Receivable/Accounts Payable Clerk for One Man and Action Results. I generated invoices for our customers which were either mailed or emailed depending on their individual preference. At times, I also needed to follow up with customers who did not pay in line with our credit and payment terms. As part of my role, I was also responsible for recording all sales the business had made, money received for goods and services and the amount still owed at the end of each month. I processed all payments (including cash, cheque and credit card) and tracked our bank statements. I also completed banking and reconciling duties and end of month procedures in line with company protocol.
Demonstrated experience with payroll
I am currently employed as the Payroll Officer for Trade Industries where I perform weekly payroll duties for 70+ staff members. This involves ensuring that wages are designated to the correct costing and that all allowances are paid in line with company procedures. I also run reports for management as required, create and maintain employee files and provide support to our accountant with regards to super contributions and PAYG deductions.
Ability to acquire knowledge of Awards and Collective Agreements in an educational environment
I am confident in my ability to quickly obtain a working knowledge of the awards and collective agreements relevant to the position. At Trade Industries, our staff is eligible for several different awards based on their positions and whether they are classified as ‘inside’ or ‘outside’ staff. We also operate under a number of different legal agreements in regards to allowances, job classifications, overtime etc. We operate under several different agreements based on individual staff members in regards to holiday pay and sick leave entitlements. The most difficult part of my current position is that every individual is on a different pay rate and has different entitlements depending on what was negotiated with management at the start of their contract. Since I have successfully managed to research and record this information for every staff member, I am certain that I will quickly and accurately be able to form an understanding of your awards and collective agreements and how they relate to an educational environment.
Capacity to work with a broad range of individuals
My ability to work with a broad range of individuals is demonstrated through my previous employment as a Customer Service Attendant for the CMR Bank where I consistently exceeded all set targets in relation to my ability to build rapport with clients and refer clients to specialised services. Customer service has also been a key competent of role at Action Results where I have responded to customer enquiries regarding our services, resolved disputes and was frequently complimented by management and customers for my ability to exceed customer service expectations. I was awarded ‘Team Member of the Month’ on numerous occasions throughout my employment.
I’m able to work cooperatively in a team environment as demonstrated through my employment at Action where I worked as part of a team of five permanent staff. In this position, I was responsible for prioritising and delegating the workload to each staff member and ensuring that these jobs had been completed by the close of business. We also held regular team meetings where I actively contributed my ideas. I developed relationships with all internal and external stakeholders through simple measures such as displaying common courtesy, remembering birthdays and complimenting others on a job well done. I have also always displayed personal attributes of trust, fairness, empathy and understanding which I believe are key to building functional interpersonal relationships with others.
Ability to work under pressure, to meet timeframes and to plan and organise workload
I remain calm when under pressure despite tight deadlines and numerous issues with our internet access at Trade Industries. Since Trade Industries is made up of a large casual workforce, I rely on timesheets to know each worker’s hours for the week. However, as the staff members are frequently working in ‘the outback’, these timesheets are late coming through causing a considerable backlog in work. I have implemented a number of procedures to combat this issue such as a spreadsheet marking off the timesheets as they come through. I can forward this spreadsheet to each supervisor to follow up on who still needs to submit timesheets in order to get them through in time for payroll. As my hours of work as flexible, I also rearrange my schedule so that I can work longer on the busy days (Tuesday, Wednesday) and fewer hours on the quiet days (Thursday, Friday).
Well-developed computer skills in the area of computerised accounting systems, spread sheets and other associated computer software
With regards to computer skills, I am proficient in the MS Office Suite, including Word, Excel, Publisher, PowerPoint and Outlook. I also have experience with accounting software such as QuickBooks and MYOB. I am familiar with a number of internal computer systems such as Ostendo. I can operate all office equipment including scanners, printers and faxes and can troubleshoot basic issues (paper jams, internet access) with limited supervision. I’ve used Word to write reports, draft memos, type procedures and draft correspondence. Excel is used in my current employment to track timesheets and was used for customer data entry in my previous role at Action. I’ve used Publisher to create marketing material for Action and Power Point to formulate presentations for management. I used MYOB to perform Accounts Receivable/Payable operations for Trade Industries and Quick Books for the same tasks during my employment at Action. Currently I use Ostendo to perform payroll operations for Trade Industries. I also undertook training in MYOB and MS Excel when I identified that I would like to strengthen these skills.
Commitment to continuous improvement strategies
My commitment to continuous improvement is demonstrated through the further professional development I have undertaken to broaden my existing administration skills such as training in MS Excel and MYOB and a Certificate IV in Office Administration through TAFE. I was also responsible for the innovation and implementation of all office procedures at Action Results. This was a business that was started from scratch with no existing procedures in place. I utilized what I had learned from One Man (same industry), made improvements and implemented these procedures at Action. This resulted in streamlined and quality office procedures that were user friendly with minimum paperwork requirements.
During the Global Financial Crisis, I implemented a direct marketing campaign at Action in order to attract more customers. I identified a number of targets according to their occupation, drafted a leaflet advertising our specials and compiled a specific mailing list to our targeted audience which resulted in new business for our organisation and improved our financial performance.
Demonstrated experience working within schools or the educational sector.
I offer the experience of having volunteered at KTown State School in numerous capacities relevant to your role. For example, I spent (5) years teaching Religious Education to students in grades 1-3 on a part time volunteer basis and spent another (3) years on the Parents and Citizens Committee, including the position of Treasurer for the organisation. This position involved fundraising, event planning and working with teachers and administration staff to make KTown State School the best place for educating young students. I also volunteered with the Japanese Home Stay Student Program for (2) years which included supervising students on excursions and teaching primary aged Japanese students about Australian Culture.
I possess the skills and knowledge required to succeed with both my own and educational objectives. I welcome the chance to discuss my application with you in person, and I appreciate your consideration and look forward to hearing from you in the near future.
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