Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. IDEA Public Schools is seeking an Accounting Manager to oversee core general ledger, payroll accounting, capital asset, cash reconciliation, and inter-company accounting processes. The role supports accurate and compliant financial reporting, month-end and year-end close activities, audit engagements, and continuous improvement across multiple entities and funding sources.
Responsibilities
- Review and post payroll journal entries, ensuring accurate coding across all required GL dimensions (e.g., object, fund, location/campus, function, program, region)
- Review payroll liability accounts, including federal and state payroll taxes, to ensure accuracy and timely reconciliation
- Prepare and record monthly payroll-related accruals, including:
- Accrued wages for payrolls earned but not yet paid
- PTO liability changes
- Earned bonuses and stipends
- Employer payroll taxes and benefits related to payroll accruals
- Reconcile employee benefits invoices (medical, dental, vision) to payroll deductions and employer contributions
- Investigate and resolve benefit variances, including missing terminations, coverage changes, and rate discrepancies
- Confirm benefit payments are accurately recorded and properly coded in the general ledger
- Ensure employer-paid benefits align with approved budgets and cost allocation methodologies
- Perform inter-company payroll reconciliations for shared service arrangements across entities
- Perform high-complexity cash reconciliations, ensuring bank balances agree to the general ledger and investigating timing differences, reconciling items, and errors across operating accounts
- Reconcile payroll bank accounts, including payroll disbursements, employer tax payments, and employee deductions
- Verify payroll funding activity aligns with payroll reports and bank statements
- Investigate and resolve reconciling items in a timely manner
- Own the accuracy and integrity of the general ledger across all assigned entities and funds
- Prepare, review, and post standard and adjust journal entries in accordance with GAAP and organizational accounting policies
- Maintain and reconcile key balance sheet accounts monthly, including Prepaid expenses, other receivables, other payables and liabilities, Accrued expenses, Cash and clearing accounts
- Ensure all reconciling items are clearly documented, reviewed, and resolved within established close timelines
- Monitor balance sheet accounts for unusual trends, aging items, or variances and proactively investigate and correct issues
- Ensure proper classification between current and long-term accounts where applicable
- Support inter-company accounting by ensuring due-to/due-from balances are accurately recorded and reconciled
- Maintain consistent use of required GL dimensions (e.g., fund, object, location, function, program, region) to support accurate financial reporting and compliance requirements
- Recognize capital assets from monthly operating expenditures in accordance with organizational capitalization policies and applicable accounting standards
- Maintain and reconcile the capital asset subledger to the general ledger, ensuring completeness and accuracy
- Manage Construction in Progress (CIP) activity, including:
- Recording CIP costs by project and funding source
- Reviewing supporting documentation to ensure costs are properly classified and allowable
- Monitoring CIP balances and coordinating with finance, facilities, and project stakeholders to identify projects ready for capitalization
- Capitalize completed CIP projects to Building Assets upon project completion or placement in service, ensuring proper asset classification, accurate in-service dates and correct useful lives and depreciation methods
- Calculate and record quarterly depreciation for all capital assets, including buildings, leasehold improvements, furniture, fixtures, and equipment
- Prepare and maintain capital asset roll-forward schedules, reconciling: beginning balances, additions, transfers from CIP, disposals and retirements, depreciation expense and ending balances
- Reconcile capital asset roll-forward schedules to the general ledger on a quarterly and annual basis
- Track asset disposals, impairments, and retirements, ensuring proper accounting treatment and documentation
- Support the timely and accurate completion of monthly, quarterly, and annual close processes in accordance with established close calendars and internal deadlines
- Ensure all journal entries, accruals, reconciliations, and roll-forward schedules for assigned areas are completed, reviewed, and finalized on time
- Prepare and maintain audit-ready schedules, reconciliations, and supporting documentation for areas under management, including payroll, capital assets, cash, and balance sheet accounts
- Maintain clear documentation standards to support transparency, consistency, and repeatability across close cycles
- Support interim, year-end, and Single Audit engagements by:
- Responding to audit requests and inquiries in a timely manner
- Providing complete and accurate schedules, reconciliations, and source documentation
- Assisting with audit walkthroughs and internal control testing
- Partner with the Comptroller and cross-functional teams to resolve audit findings, implement corrective actions, and strengthen internal controls
- Continuously identify opportunities to improve close efficiency, documentation quality, and audit preparedness
Skills
- Candidates must be willing to travel up to 20% during the busiest times of the year
- Strong understanding of GAAP, internal controls, financial closing practices, and financial systems
- Expertise in payroll, capital asset, general ledger, cash reconciliation, and inter-company accounting
- Demonstrated experience supporting monthly, quarterly, and annual close processes, with accountability for timeliness and accuracy
- Ability to prepare clear, well-documented workpapers and audit-ready schedules and documentation and supporting interim, year-end, and Single Audit engagements
- Experience with multi-entity and inter-company accounting, including reconciliations and shared services cost allocations
- Skilled in building productive relationships and providing high-quality support to staff, and cross-functional stakeholders through clear, timely, and purposeful communication
- Excellent organizational, reconciliation, analytical, and critical thinking skills
- Commitment to accuracy, integrity, and continuous improvement
- Ability to work effectively in a multi-entity, fast-paced environment with competing priorities
- Education: Bachelor's degree in accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related field
- Experience: 3–5+ years of progressive experience in financial operations, and accounting roles; nonprofit, education, fund-accounting or multi-entity environments experience is highly preferred
- CPA preferred but not required
Benefits
- Performance pay based on organizational performance and goal attainment
- Medical, dental, and vision plans
- Disability insurance
- Life insurance
- Parenting benefits
- Flexible spending account options
- Generous vacation time
- Referral bonuses
- Professional development
- 403(b) plan
- IDEA may offer a relocation stipend to defray the cost of moving for this role, if applicable.
- Full-time remote position
Company Overview