Senior Accounting Specialist

Purpose

The Senior Accounting Specialist is responsible for overseeing payroll, reconciliation, commission payouts, and financial reporting processes while providing leadership and operational direction within the Accounting Department. This role serves as the department’s senior point of support, ensuring financial processes are accurate, compliant, and aligned with company standards. The ideal candidate combines strong accounting knowledge with leadership capability, process ownership, sound decision-making, and the ability to guide team members while driving accountability and operational excellence.

This position is designed as a leadership development role, with the expectation that the individual will transition into the Accounting Manager position within approximately six - twelve months based on performance, demonstrated leadership, and business needs.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Ensure the confidentiality of payroll data within the department.
• Provide day-to-day oversight of accounting operations related to payroll, reconciliations, commissions, and financial reporting.
• Support the Director of Operations in supervising departmental workflows, identifying inefficiencies, and implementing process improvements.
• Lead the training, onboarding, and ongoing development of accounting team members to ensure high performance and consistency.
• Monitor departmental productivity, accuracy, and compliance with internal procedures.
• Serve as the primary resource for escalated payroll, reconciliation, and commission-related issues.
• Exercise sound judgment and independent decision-making to resolve operational challenges while escalating high-level concerns appropriately.
• Maintain accountability for departmental organization, workflow execution, and deadline management.
• Ensure the accounting department handbook, SOPs, and workflow documentation remain accurate and updated.
• Oversee the accurate and timely processing of payroll, commissions, LOA payments, and direct payments.
• Review payroll calculations, validate data, and confirm funding approvals before payroll is finalized.
• Audit payroll and commission records regularly to ensure compliance with company policies and compensation structures.
• Investigate payroll discrepancies, resolve errors, and implement corrective actions as needed.
• Manage payroll systems and ensure payroll-related records are secure and accurate.
• Verify that agent commission rates are calculated and applied correctly across all accounting functions.
• Maintain accurate payroll-related documentation, reports, and records.
• Oversee reconciliation processes to ensure financial accuracy and completeness.
• Prepare, review, and finalize Profit & Loss reports, Net Profit reports, and other requested financial analyses.
• Generate payroll and accounting reports for leadership review.
• Ensure all agency management system activities are accurate and up to date.
• Analyze financial discrepancies and recommend improvements to reporting accuracy and efficiency.
• Act as the accounting liaison between carriers, brokers, and internal departments to resolve payment and reconciliation issues.
• Partner with leadership to prepare accounting operations for organizational initiatives, including OEP readiness.
• Oversee the preparation and distribution of OEP-related payroll/accounting documents and ensure readiness before annual deadlines.
• Maintain working knowledge of field agent and in-house agent compensation structures to ensure proper payroll processing.
• Serve as backup support for front-office operations when needed.

Job Qualifications

The ideal candidate for this position will bring both professional expertise and a growth-oriented mindset, demonstrating the following qualifications:

• 3–5 years of accounting, payroll, commission processing, or reconciliation experience.
• Proven ability to lead workflows, train team members, and maintain accountability within a department.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, payroll systems and agency/accounting platforms.
• Strong analytical, mathematical, and problem-solving skills with the ability to resolve discrepancies accurately and independently.
• Strong organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise discretion with sensitive payroll and financial information.
• Fluent in English and Spanish (reading, writing, and speaking).
• High school diploma or GED required; accounting/payroll certifications preferred.
• Demonstrates initiative, accountability, and ownership over results.
• Capable of coaching others, improving processes, and driving department performance.
• Makes informed decisions independently while collaborating effectively with leadership.
• Builds trust across departments through professionalism, responsiveness, and reliability.
• Receptive to feedback and committed to continuous learning and leadership growth.