Open to opportunities

Stella Kimathi

@stellakimathi

Head of Accounting leader with 13+ years improving controls, audits, and financial reporting across multi-jurisdiction teams.

Kenya

Message

What I'm looking for

I’m looking for a Head of Accounting role where I can strengthen financial governance, internal controls, and audit readiness while leading high-performance teams. I’m especially interested in work that supports meaningful impact through strategic oversight and fraud prevention.

I’m a dynamic accounting leader with over 13 years of progressive experience overseeing financial operations across energy, real estate, infrastructure and manufacturing sectors. In my current role as Chief Financial Controller, I’ve led accounting operations, internal controls, and audit readiness to deliver measurable improvements in compliance and performance.

I design and implement robust accounting processes across accounts receivable, accounts payable, and vendor management—reducing payment processing time by 25% and strengthening fraud prevention. I develop U.S. GAAP-compliant accounting policies and internal control procedures, achieving 100% success rates in external audits, while improving month-end/year-end close accuracy and timeliness by 30%.

I also bring strategic planning strength, having led enterprise budgeting, rolling forecasts, and standardized KPI dashboards that improved forecast accuracy by 15–25%. I’m energized by high-accountability teams—mentoring and training accountants to elevate control compliance, strengthen governance across jurisdictions, and support capital programs through sound financial stewardship.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Chief Financial Controller

Current

Jaguar Energy Limited

Apr 2025 - Present (1 year 2 months)

Provided group finance leadership across Kenya, Uganda, and Mauritius, designing accounting and payment management processes that reduced payment processing time by 25% and strengthened fraud prevention. Built U.S. GAAP-compliant internal controls and managed month-end/year-end closes and external audits, achieving 100% on-time audit completion and unqualified opinions.

Internal Controls Fraud Prevention Month End Close Audit Coordination Vendor Management NetSuite ERP

Business Planning & Reporting

Tatu City (Rendeavour Group)

Oct 2024 - Apr 2025 (6 months)

Led enterprise planning and reporting across multiple geographies, improving forecast accuracy by 15–25% through end-to-end group budgeting and rolling forecast models. Developed standardized cross-geography KPI dashboards to enhance executive visibility and support data-driven resource allocation.

Rolling Forecasts Financial Planning KPIs Cross Geography Analysis Data Driven Decision Making Resource Allocation

Senior Accountant

Gulf Energy Limited

Aug 2018 - Dec 2019 (1 year 4 months)

Optimized the month-end close process with real-time reconciliation practices, reducing the accounts closure timeline by 30% and improving reporting timeliness. Strengthened internal controls and audit processes to mitigate fraud exposure and improved accounts receivable credit controls to keep bad debt below 2% of revenue.

Month End Close Reconciliation Internal Controls Fraud Prevention Accounts Receivable Credit Control Accounts Payable Vendor Management Financial Reporting Reconciliations

Accountant

Gulf Energy Limited

Jul 2012 - Jul 2018 (6 years)

Provided core accounting, compliance, and financial oversight across petroleum trading and power generation operations, strengthening reconciliation discipline and reporting accuracy. Implemented invoice verification and vendor payment improvements to eliminate overpayments and support timely, audit-ready financial reporting.

Compliance Audit Coordination Accounts Receivable Management Credit Control Risk Management