EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS
Private Investor Accra, Ghana | Dubai, UAE 2021 to Present
Heavy machinery company and small to mid scale mining operations.
PRIVATE INVESTOR – FINANCE & OPERATIONS OFFICER
● Set up a heavy machinery rental company to support mining and construction operations.
● Built relationships with the Ministry of Lands & Natural Resources and the Minerals Commission to better support
small to medium scale mining operations.
● Developed a budget and reporting process of mining operations in Akwatia and Tarkwa for better transparency.
Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, UAE 2019 to 2021
Government entity responsible for the supervision of the operations and marketing of tourism, cultural sites, events, and libraries in Abu Dhabi.
SENIOR MANAGER OF FINANCE CAPITAL PROJECTS
● Conducted an audit on 9 cancelled projects and events due to COVID-19 and saved over 23 million AED in claims by vendors.
● Achieved a budget reduction of approximately 7%, of which 2% of the savings were reinvested into DCT’s digital transformation initiative. Cost optimization was identified across several departments, including technology-related expenditures such as hardware and subscriptions, exorbitant agency management fees, consultants/outsourced personnel, and unnecessary travel expenditures.
● Improved budget development and reporting processes for the project owners and Directors which led to greater ownership of their respective P&L’s, including the development of consolidated budget templates.
● Identified payments that were made in the current year for services due in the following fiscal year, which were cut from the proposed budget and saved more than 3% of the entire yearly budget.
● Streamlined processes within accounts payables and created an index of cost types incurred by the Destination Marketing, Travel Trade & Market Development, Events, Conventions, and Product Development Departments, allowing purchase requests to be processed sooner and more efficiently.
● Drove a cost reallocation exercise to better understand the true cost of each department and sector, which led to a major cost optimization initiative across the Destination Marketing, Travel Trade & Market Development, Events, Conventions, and Product Development departments. The exercise essentially revealed understated costs of 19 to 28% of tourism sector departments which in turn relieved the burden of the support service departments.
EMIRATES DEFENCE INDUSTRIES COMPANY Abu Dhabi, UAE 2015 to 2019
Previously Al Taif, EDIC (A newly-formed conglomerate of 18 defense companies under Mubadala) is the region’s leading integrated group operating in the manufacturing, autonomous systems, mapping, maintenance, repair, overhaul, communications, logistics, and technology development sectors for the defense industry.
SENIOR FINANCIAL ANALYST & TRADE CONTROL LIAISON
● Developed the annual budget of the corporate headquarters as well as multiple projects for four fiscal years.
● Generated reports to better track budgets, operating and capital expenditures, and provided analytical support for business optimization initiatives and ADHOC requests.
● Reconciled and prepared UAE tax returns and supported internal and external auditors with financial data and any clarifications required.
● Led the implementation of Oracle’s project accounting module and created a new chart of accounts.
● Priced projects based on workforce requirement, hours, complexity of tasks, location, risk, and fees.
● Acted as the “Trade Compliance Liaison” examined accounts and documents according to United States regulations, Trade Agreement Act (TAA), and International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).
● Supported and ensured conformance with all U.S. and European Trade Agreements Act, International Traffic in Arms Regulations, Export Administration Regulations, and NDA's. Assisted in the development and amendments of project contracts based on company’s strategy.
ERNST & YOUNG Dubai, UAE 2013 to 2015
Consulted on various risk assessments, finance, strategy, integration, and compliance engagements within the defense, oil & gas, infrastructure, IT, government, and real estate sectors. Major clients included ADNOC, UAE Armed Forces, and Abu Dhabi Pension.
SENIOR CONSULTANT
● Conducted finance, contract, process, and procedural audits of very sophisticated multi-tiered businesses.
● Created processes, procedures, and flowcharts with strong controls.
● Developed risk/compliance assessments and made suggestions to strengthen processes and contracts.
● Evaluated KPI’s, as well as their calculations, payments, and deductions to ensure that the goals stayed aligned within both organisations.
● Wrote EY business proposal for consulting bids
.