Head of Accounts Payable

About the role

The Independent Food Company, a UAE‑based hospitality group, is looking for a Head of Accounts Payable to build a controlled, scalable AP function across all its brands. You will own the full Procure‑to‑Pay cycle, eliminate manual processing risks, and lay the foundation for a future Finance Centre of Excellence.

Key responsibilities

• Design and implement an end‑to‑end AP process covering invoice capture, 3‑way matching, payment runs and vendor master governance.
• Deploy a digital approval workflow aligned with delegation of authority and replace ad‑hoc email approvals.
• Introduce OCR/AI‑based invoice automation targeting >80% auto‑capture and a 40% reduction in processing time.
• Enforce segregation of duties, duplicate‑payment controls and fraud‑prevention mechanisms.
• Clean and maintain the vendor master, including KYC/AML and UBO documentation.
• Manage payment terms, cash‑flow inputs to Treasury and relationships with suppliers and aggregators.

Required profile

• Proven senior experience in accounts payable or Procure‑to‑Pay transformation, preferably in a multi‑entity environment.
• Strong understanding of AP controls, 3‑way matching, and vendor master management.
• Track record of implementing automation tools (OCR/AI) and digital approval workflows.
• Ability to lead change, work cross‑functionally and communicate with finance, treasury and operations teams.

Required skills

• OCR technology
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) for invoice processing
• Bank API integration
• KYC/AML compliance
• UBO data handling