Research Accounting Systems Strategist Our client is seeking an experienced
Research Accounting Systems Strategist to support a complex research finance and accounting systems environment. This position will sit at the intersection of
research finance, sponsored research, accounting, and Workday, helping ensure that system functionality, enhancements, and research-related financial activity operate effectively and flow accurately through the organization's financial environment.
This is an excellent opportunity for someone who understands the complexities of
research and grants accounting and can combine that knowledge with strong Workday and financial systems experience. The ideal candidate will be a proactive, independent professional who can quickly establish relationships across research, finance, accounting, and systems teams and take ownership of issues through resolution.
Key Responsibilities
- Support the ongoing design, implementation, testing, and optimization of Workday research administration and accounting functionality.
- Participate in the assessment and implementation of new research accounting functionality and financial reporting capabilities.
- Support testing, implementation, and upgrades across Workday, InfoEd, OnCore, Minuet/Inteum, and Fund Driver.
- Execute and document end-to-end testing associated with Workday updates.
- Test system and business-process changes and validate their downstream financial impact.
- Ensure research-related activity is flowing into the appropriate accounting and financial statement areas.
- Help ensure financial activity resulting from system changes can be appropriately reconciled.
- Provide functional and systems support to stakeholders across research administration, research accounting, and finance.
- Generate scheduled and ad hoc financial reports for internal stakeholders.
- Provide system data and supporting documentation for audit and compliance activities.
- Maintain process documentation, user guides, and standard operating procedures.
- Train and support end users on Workday and other relevant systems and reporting functionality.
- Partner with cross-functional business and technology teams, vendors, and consultants to identify and implement system enhancements.
- Recommend process improvements based on user feedback and system performance.
- Serve as a knowledgeable partner during discussions surrounding system enhancements, reporting changes, and research finance processes.
Required Experience & Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Information Systems, Business Administration, or a related field.
- Minimum of 5 years of experience in research accounting, finance, or accounting systems design.
- Strong understanding of research finance and sponsored research accounting, including the complexities associated with grants and awards.
- Experience supporting financial systems within a research, higher education, or nonprofit environment.
- Hands-on experience with Workday and ERP systems.
- Ability to understand system changes and connect those changes to their downstream accounting and financial impact.
- Strong understanding of accounting workflows, including the ability to follow financial activity through the appropriate accounting treatment and reconciliation process.
- Experience supporting system testing, implementation, upgrades, or continuous improvement initiatives.
- Familiarity with sponsored research regulations and financial compliance requirements, including Uniform Guidance and NIH requirements.
- Experience with project management, change management, and business-process improvement.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to translate technical and systems-related issues into clear business language.
- Strong organizational, documentation, and attention-to-detail skills.
- Ability to work independently, take ownership, and effectively manage priorities in a complex cross-functional environment.
Preferred Experience
- Experience with Workday reporting.
- Knowledge of InfoEd and OnCore.
- Exposure to Minuet/Inteum and Fund Driver.
- Experience supporting Workday within a complex sponsored-research or grants environment.
- Additional experience connecting research administration processes with accounting and financial reporting.
What Will Make Someone Successful in This Role? The successful candidate will bring more than technical systems knowledge. Our client is seeking someone who understands
how research and grants activity should ultimately translate into accurate accounting and financial reporting.
This individual should be comfortable investigating issues independently, testing system changes, identifying financial implications, and partnering with multiple teams to see problems through to resolution. The ability to establish credibility quickly, build strong working relationships, and provide thoughtful input to stakeholders will be particularly important.
This position does
not require someone to operate solely as a deeply technical Workday systems architect. Instead, the strongest fit will combine solid Workday knowledge with research finance expertise, accounting knowledge, systems testing capabilities, and the ability to understand how changes affect the broader financial environment.
Never miss an opportunity! Create an alert based on the job you applied for.
