Accounting Manager - IPS Enterprises (Immediate Opening)

Role Mission:

The Accounting Manager is responsible for overseeing core general ledger, payroll accounting, and capital asset processes to ensure accurate, timely, and compliant financial reporting. This role plays a critical part in month-end, quarter-end, and year-end close activities, with a strong focus on payroll accounting, balance sheet integrity, inter-company reconciliation, and capital asset management across multiple entities and funding sources.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

No supervisory responsibilities are expected during the first year. Supervisory duties may be assigned in subsequent years based on organizational needs and demonstrated performance.

Location:

This is a full-time remote position with preference given to candidates who live in Florida, and Ohio.

Travel Expectations:

While this is a remote position, there will be in-person meetings across various regions. Candidates must be willing to travel up to 20% during the busiest times of the year.

What You will Do – Accountabilities

Essential Duties:

Payroll Accounting & Reconciliation

• 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.

Cash & Bank Reconciliations

• 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.

General Ledger & Balance Sheet Management

• 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.

Capital Assets Accounting

• 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.

Financial Close & Audit Support

• 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.

Knowledge and Skills:

• 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.

Required Experience and Certifications:

• 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.
• Licenses or Certifications (if applicable): CPA preferred but not required.

What We Offer:

Compensation & Benefits:

Salaries for people entering this role typically fall between $81,889 and $95,810, commensurate with relevant experience and qualifications and in alignment with internal equity. This role is also eligible for performance pay based on organizational performance and goal attainment.

Additionally, we offer medical, dental, and vision plans, disability, life insurance, parenting benefits, flexible spending account options, generous vacation time, referral bonuses, professional development, and a 403(b) plan. You can find more information about our benefits at https://ideapublicschools.org/careers/benefits/.

* IDEA may offer a relocation stipend to defray the cost of moving for this role, if applicable.

Learn more about IDEA 

At IDEA the Staff Experience Team uses our Core Values to promote human connection and a culture of integrity, respect, and belonging for all Team and Family members.  Learn more about our Commitment to Core Values here: https://ideapublicschools.org/our-story/#core-values