NetZeroCities Programme Finance Officer

Job Title: NetZeroCities Programme Finance Officer 

Team:  NetZeroCities Team (Cities Team) 

Contract: Fixed term contract for 12 months, with possibility to extend/convert into permanent over time 

Level: Intermediate

Please refer to our Capability Framework  

Salary:  Competitive for Not-for-profit organisation  

Start Date: As soon as possible 

Location: Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Slovenia, UK, Italy

ABOUT US      

Climate KIC (Knowledge and Innovation Community) is Europe’s foremost climate innovation initiative. We understand that global temperature rise is exceeding 1.5C and this demands unprecedented change. It requires new social dynamics, ways of doing business, capital flows, policymaking, economic models, and new ways of living. That is why our mission is to leverage the power of systems innovation to transform whole places, industries and value chains by 2030, working across sectors to develop and scale ambitious programmes. Climate KIC’s strategy 2024-2030, Transformation, with Urgency, is available here.    

Climate KIC operates as a not-for-profit foundation working through public-private partnership, wielding both public and private funding. Established in 2010 and headquartered in Amsterdam, we orchestrate a community of more than 150 organisations including large corporations and SMEs, municipal and regional governments, universities and research institutes, as well as non-governmental organisations and civil society actors.     

Climate KIC leads the implementation of the European Union’s Mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities and the launch pilot of the Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change, both with the objective of catalysing rapid and deep transformation on a large scale, creating the precedent and economic transition conditions for demonstration, learning, capacity building, fast followership and investment. Achieving the EU Cities Mission will mean avoided scope 1 and 2 emissions alone of an estimated 0.7GT CO2e between now and 2040.    

Climate KIC has a Remote-First approach, where colleagues work remotely from home based in one of the countries where we have a branch or employing entity (and can work out of local offices or co-working seats, where they exist). We meet at our local offices to exchange and connect and use online collaboration tools to work with each other and with our community. On occasion, we meet in person as teams, and once per year as an organisation.    

As a mission-driven organisation dedicated to climate transformation, we consider the climate impact of our own actions, for example travel, catering, or IT equipment.    

ABOUT THE ROLE

Climate KIC is supporting cities across Europe to accelerate their transitions to climate neutrality through systems innovation. A key component of this work is delivered through NetZeroCities, a flagship programme of the EU Cities Mission for 100 Climate-neutral and Smart Cities by 2030, designed to help European cities become climate neutral by 2030.

The NetZeroCities Programme Finance Officer plays a central role in the financial coordination of a large, multi-partner EU funded programme supporting cities on their path to climate neutrality. You will ensure strong financial oversight, accurate forecasting, and high-quality reporting to the European Commission, working closely with programme managers, consortium partners, and internal finance teams. 

This position is ideal for someone who is detail oriented, comfortable navigating complexity, and motivated by delivering robust financial management in a dynamic, multistakeholder environment. 

Key Responsibilities

Financial Planning & Reporting 

• Support financial planning, forecasting, and reporting for the NetZeroCities Specific Grant Agreements (SGAs), ensuring alignment with programme management needs and CINEA requirements. 

• Monitor budgets and expenditures, identifying variances and supporting corrective actions. 

Programme & Partner Coordination 

• Work with the PMO, Programme Managers, and Cluster Manager to manage financial workflows and collect partner financial reporting data. 

• Develop and maintain clear, efficient financial management tools and processes that support transparency and strategic decision making. 

City Expert Support Facility (CESF) 

• Support CESF budget execution and contracting, including preparing financial documentation, coordinating approvals, and tracking expenditure against allocations. 

Internal Budgeting & Resource Management 

• Contribute to internal budgeting processes, including staff time tracking, internal cost recovery, and monitoring budget performance across workstreams. 

Audit & Compliance 

• Support funder audits by coordinating documentation, ensuring compliance with funding rules, and preparing audit responses in collaboration with finance and programme teams. 

Payments & Financial Administration 

• Facilitate timely and accurate grant and supplier payments in collaboration with accounts payable and programme managers. 

 Key Working Relationships

• NetZeroCities Programme Managers 

• NetZeroCities Cluster Manager 

• NetZeroCities Programme Management Team 

• NetZeroCities Consortium Partners 

• Climate KIC Cities Team 

• Climate KIC Finance Team 

• Climate KIC Business Desk (Grant Management Support) 

ABOUT YOU

You are a collaborative, reliable team player who thrives in a fast paced environment and is comfortable rolling up your sleeves during peak periods. You combine strong analytical skills with excellent communication, enabling you to work effectively with both finance and nonfinance colleagues. You are organised, solution oriented, and able to balance attention to detail with an understanding of the bigger picture. 

Education/Qualifications

• AAT qualification (or equivalent), or a bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Business Administration, Economics, or a related field.

Experience

• Minimum 3+ years’ experience in accounting or financial project management, ideally in a complex, multidisciplinary environment.

• Experience working in the not-for-profit sector.

• Experience with international grant funded projects.

• Strong understanding of basic accounting principles.

• Experience with EU/Horizon grant funding and familiarity with the European Commission’s Participant Portal (desirable).

   

Skills

• Fluent English; an additional European language is an advantage.

• Comfortable using collaborative digital tools (Office365, Teams, Notion, Miro, Zoom, Smartsheet, Mentimeter, etc.).

• Advanced Excel skills

• Strong time management skills and a track record of meeting deadlines.

• Strong Attention to Detail

• Strong stakeholder relationship building skills.

Location  

Candidates must have the right to work in the location they’re applying for (I.e. not require visa sponsorship) prior to applying for the position. Ideally, the successful candidate will be based close to a Climate KIC office, but we support fully remote or hybrid forms of working and offer a high degree of flexibility.  

Occasional travels abroad, once per quarter within EU countries.

At Climate KIC, we are wholeheartedly committed to building a diverse and representative team and an inclusive workplace that values different life experiences and perspectives, and we encourage personal development, learning and growth.   

When recruiting, we look to achieve diversity in the candidate pool. We actively encourage applications from underrepresented groups and are happy to consider reasonable adjustments that will foster success in potential colleagues from diverse backgrounds and life situations. And because our team has differing needs and personal circumstances, we offer a high degree of flexibility to accommodate working patterns. We’re happy to discuss your situation during the interview and see how best we can support you. Don’t let Imposter Syndrome stop you from applying!   

To ensure that we can respond to every single applicant, we will close the role once we receive a reasonable pool of candidates to assess - (often within a week).