Senior Accountant

Michels Corporation

13d

About The Position

Michels Trenchless Pty Ltd is part of the global Michels family of companies. We specialise in trenchless underground construction for pipeline, energy, and infrastructure projects across Australia. Based in Wangaratta, Victoria, we operate a large fleet of maxi-HDD rigs and have a skilled drilling team. As a family-owned business, we value integrity, dedication and diversity. We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace. As we continue to grow and expand, we actively seek to include people from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences in our team. This role oversees all core finance operations for the Australian entity—including payroll, accounts payable, tax compliance, and reporting—while serving as the main point of coordination for vendors, auditors, and external providers. It also supports broader global finance tasks and ensures accurate, compliant financial processes. The main areas of responsibilities are based on your experience and would as a minimum include:

Requirements

• Understanding accounting principles, tax law, and financial reporting is a must
• Qualification (as a minimum Diploma of accounting, ideally Bachelor's Degree in Accounting, Auditing or Economics and / or Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) or similar)
• At least 5 years of overall experience in Finance, with at least 3 years in payroll and Trade Accounts Payable functions, ideally in international construction business
• Strong communication skills, professional correspondence, including official (i.e. tax related)
• Proficiency in Excel and ERP
• Structured approach to work, time management skills, multi/tasking and speed, self-starter

Nice To Haves

• Ideally be able to lodge business activity statements (BAS) with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and ensure timely submission

Responsibilities

• Payroll: Understand payroll calculations and relevant tax matters (social charges, exemptions, fringe benefits) for Australia, having at least 3 years of expertise with a similar task
• Maintain payroll related files and records, including time capturing and reconciliation of pay rates to the contracts
• Submit monthly data to outsourced payroll team, including worked hours per staff, sickness records, vacations, change in rates, entry and exit of staff etc.
• Be a point of contact and control outsourced payroll provider for timely and accurate payroll process, including submission of payroll slips and relevant tax filings
• Assist in payroll related audits to outsourced payroll provider, internal audits and tax & labor authorities, coordinate payroll and labor audits locally
• Be proficient in maintaining and verifying the records in time-capturing software, align with project managers and/or HR on discrepancies
• Accounts Payable: Process and validate invoices by digitizing, entering transactional data, verifying accuracy, checking for mandatory tax relevant compliance and resolving discrepancies or rejected items
• Serve as the primary fraud‑prevention and compliance checkpoint for all invoices and payments
• Manage vendor relationships by communicating promptly and professionally
• Batch, process, and prioritize payments through electronic funds transfer (EFT)
• Prepare 13-week cashflow planning for payments, avoid dunning letters and overdues and collect early payments discounts
• Be in charge of reconciling Trade Accounts Payable balance sheet position and supplier open items statements, including year-end reconciliations for the audit
• Tax and compliance knowledge/understanding: Maintain a foundational understanding of Goods and Services Tax (GST) rules and requirements across applicable jurisdictions
• Ideally be able to lodge business activity statements (BAS) with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and ensure timely submission
• Assist with the preparation, review, and timely filing of GST returns and related reports
• Ensure accurate GST treatment of transactions in accordance with applicable tax regulations and internal policies
• Assist in completion and submission income tax returns by deadlines
• Regulatory compliance: Ensure adherence to ATO and ASIC standards to avoid penalties
• Billing & Accounts Receivable: Maintaining the Accounts Receivable balance sheet
• Maintaining accurate billing and invoicing records
• Verifying overdue invoices and ensuring follow-up on collections.
• Reporting on Cash forecasting
• Other potential opportunities for global finance support: Prepaid expense and insurance amortization
• Bank reconciliations
• Payroll costing journal entries
• Cost accruals
• Intercompany reconciliations
• Cash receipt application
• Transfer pricing
• Tax Expatriate matters
• Assist with data collection to support audits
• Correspondence coordination in relation to the duties above, including tax authorities and statutory authorities

Benefits

• We expand the limits of and are a world leader in trenchless construction
• We will never ask you to prioritise speed ahead of safety
• We are family owned and operated, guided by our core values
• We share experience and insights to develop industry leaders
• We value and care about our people and their families, providing development opportunities and competitive benefits

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees