Senior Manager – Finance & Accounting

We are seeking an experienced Senior Manager – Finance & Accounting with strong knowledge of US GAAP, payroll accounting and general ledger operations to lead and strengthen our F&A service delivery.

The successful candidate will combine technical accounting expertise with operational leadership. The role requires an understanding of how payroll transactions, payroll taxes, employee benefit deductions, employer liabilities and client billing interact with the general ledger and financial statements.

The individual will oversee multiple accounting processes and client portfolios, ensure the accuracy and timeliness of deliverables, strengthen internal controls, manage client relationships and drive standardization, automation and continuous improvement.

This is a hands-on leadership role requiring the ability to investigate complex accounting variances, establish effective reconciliation controls, review financial deliverables and develop a high-performing team.

Key Responsibilities

A. US GAAP and General Ledger Accounting

• Apply a strong working knowledge of US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) to accounting operations and financial reporting.
  
• Oversee general ledger maintenance, journal entries, account reconciliations, trial balance preparation and month-end and quarter-end close activities.
  
• Review accruals, prepayments, provisions, expense allocations, balance sheet schedules and adjusting journal entries.
  
• Understand the appropriate accounting treatment for payroll expenses, employer payroll taxes, employee deductions, benefits, accrued compensation and related liabilities.
  
• Review financial statements, management reporting packages and supporting schedules for accuracy, completeness and consistency.
  
• Identify accounting discrepancies, investigate root causes and ensure appropriate resolution and documentation.
  
• Support accounting policy implementation, audit requirements and client-specific reporting conventions.
  

B. Payroll Accounting and Reconciliation

• Oversee payroll accounting activities for US-based clients, ensuring payroll transactions are accurately reflected in the general ledger.
  
• Understand the accounting flow for gross wages, net pay, employer payroll taxes, employee tax withholdings, benefits deductions, retirement contributions and other payroll-related liabilities.
  
• Review reconciliations between payroll systems, payroll tax systems, bank statements and general ledger accounts.
  
• Ensure payroll registers, payroll summaries, tax liabilities, funding reports and accounting entries reconcile appropriately.
  
• Investigate differences arising from payroll adjustments, voids, reversals, off-cycle payrolls, timing differences and prior-period corrections.
  
• Monitor payroll clearing accounts, accrued payroll, payroll tax payable, benefits payable and other payroll-related balance sheet accounts.
  
• Validate payroll-related accruals and period-end cut-off, ensuring expenses and liabilities are recorded in the appropriate accounting period.
  
• Work with payroll operations and tax teams to resolve discrepancies and strengthen end-to-end controls.
  
• Ensure reconciliations are supported by appropriate documentation and completed within agreed deadlines.
  

C. Finance & Accounting Service Delivery

• Manage day-to-day delivery across multiple F&A processes and client accounts.
  
• Oversee bank and balance sheet reconciliations, accounts payable, vendor payments, accounts receivable monitoring, journal entries and general ledger support.
  
• Review client billing support, invoice reconciliations and financial data imports and exports between operational platforms and accounting systems.
  
• Ensure accurate trial balances, financial reporting packages, management books and audit schedules.
  
• Establish review mechanisms, maker-checker controls, escalation protocols and documented standard operating procedures.
  
• Monitor service-level agreements (SLAs), turnaround times, accuracy, productivity and client-specific deliverables.
  
• Manage accounting backlogs, aged reconciling items, exceptions and unresolved transactions through structured follow-up.
  

D. Client Management and Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as a senior point of contact for US clients on accounting operations, payroll accounting reconciliations and financial reporting matters.
  
• Participate in client review meetings, operational discussions, transition planning and process improvement initiatives.
  
• Explain accounting variances, reconciliation differences, control gaps and corrective actions clearly to clients and internal stakeholders.
  
• Coordinate with client finance teams, payroll teams, tax teams and technology stakeholders to resolve issues.
  
• Manage escalations professionally and ensure timely communication of risks, dependencies and deliverables.
  
• Support new client transitions, process documentation, knowledge transfer and stabilization of accounting operations.
  

E. Team Leadership and People Development

• Lead, coach and develop a team of accounting professionals, team leaders and subject matter experts.
  
• Establish clear ownership, review responsibilities, performance expectations and escalation procedures.
  
• Monitor team capacity, workload distribution, productivity and quality.
  
• Develop team members’ knowledge of US GAAP, payroll accounting, reconciliation techniques and financial reporting.
  
• Build a strong review culture focused on accuracy, accountability, documentation and timely delivery.
  
• Conduct performance reviews, identify skill gaps and implement structured training and development plans.
  

F. Process Improvement, Controls and Automation

• Identify opportunities to standardize accounting processes, eliminate manual effort and improve operational efficiency.
  
• Drive automation of reconciliations, journal entries, exception reporting and recurring financial reports where appropriate.
  
• Use advanced Excel, reporting tools and accounting systems to improve visibility and decision-making.
  
• Develop dashboards to monitor SLA adherence, reconciliation status, aged items, quality, productivity and client deliverables.
  
• Strengthen internal controls, audit trails, segregation of duties and data confidentiality.
  
• Lead root-cause analysis and corrective and preventive actions to reduce recurring errors.
  
• Support process transitions, documentation, continuous improvement and scalable service delivery.
  

Requirements

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, Accounting or Finance; M.Com, MBA Finance, CA Inter, CPA or equivalent professional qualifications are preferred.
  
• Approximately 15 years of relevant experience in Finance & Accounting, general ledger, accounting operations or financial services, with meaningful experience in US accounting.
  
• Demonstrable working knowledge of US GAAP and its application to general ledger accounting, financial reporting, accruals and period-end close.
  
• Strong practical experience in payroll accounting and payroll-to-general-ledger reconciliation.
  
• Experience reconciling payroll registers, payroll tax liabilities, bank transactions, clearing accounts and general ledger balances.
  
• Experience managing month-end close, account reconciliations, journal entries, trial balances and financial reporting.
  
• Prior experience managing teams and reviewing accounting deliverables.
  
• Experience in a US-focused BPO, shared services, accounting outsourcing, payroll services, PEO, ASO or HRO environment is strongly preferred.
  
• Exposure to US payroll platforms, payroll tax systems and general ledger applications is desirable.
  
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including lookups, pivot tables, reconciliation analysis and data validation.
  
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills, with the ability to interact professionally with US clients.
  
• Willingness to work in a schedule that provides appropriate overlap with US business hours.
  

Technical Knowledge and Competencies

The ideal candidate should demonstrate practical knowledge of:

• US GAAP and general ledger accounting.
  
• Payroll accounting and payroll-related balance sheet reconciliations.
  
• US federal, state and local payroll tax concepts and associated liabilities.
  
• Employee benefit deductions, employer contributions and retirement-related accounting.
  
• Bank reconciliations, accounts payable, accounts receivable and client billing support.
  
• Month-end and quarter-end close processes.
  
• Accruals, journal entries, trial balances and financial reporting.
  
• Audit documentation, internal controls and compliance support.
  
• Accounting systems, payroll platforms and financial data integrations.
  
• Advanced Excel, analytical problem-solving and process automation.