Accounting Manager, School of Medicine Integrated Resources - Finance

University of Washington Medical Center•Seattle, WA

4d•$77,616 - $116,424•Remote

About The Position

The Integrated Resources - Finance team has an exciting opportunity for an Accounting Manager. The School of Medicine (SoM)’s Integrated Resources - Finance team was established in June 2023 with the launch of Workday Finance. The model centralizes finance functions to enhance efficiency, ensure compliance, and streamline operations. The mission of the Integrated Resources - Finance team is to standardize financial processes to ensure compliance, drive efficiency and effectiveness, and deliver high-quality, reliable financial services. By continuously improving service delivery, data accuracy, and stakeholder responsiveness, Integrated Resources - Finance supports SoM’s mission to improve the health of the public. The Accounting Manager is responsible for providing operational and technical leadership for the Accounting Team within Integrated Resources - Finance. This position will engage with stakeholders to identify solutions for complex accounting cases while ensuring compliance with University of Washington (UW) and SoM finance policies. In addition, this position will collaborate with team members, central finance teams, SoM Financial Planning & Analysis team, and SoM departments to address time-sensitive requests. The Accounting Manager will continuously monitor and evaluate Accounting team performance. This position is accountable for leading accounting-specific process improvement initiatives that impact the SoM’s overall financial statement. In collaboration with the other Integrated Resources - Finance team, as well as with other members of the SoM Financial Planning and Analysis Team and UW central office, this position will develop standardized processes. This role plays a critical part in auditing the SoM accounting record changes, ensuring compliance with UW and SoM financial policies, and communicating updates on accounting processes and finance policies to both the Integrated Resources - Finance team and SoM departments. The Accounting Manager oversees supervisors who lead day-to-day transactional work, ensuring they have the tools, training, and guidance needed to maintain service quality and compliance. The Accounting Manager reports directly to the Integrated Resources - Finance Director and partners closely with the Integrated Resources - Finance Partnership team and others within the SoM Financial Planning and Analysis team. This role will also serve as a liaison between SoM departments and central UW finance offices. Success in this position requires strong accounting expertise, in-depth knowledge of Workday and the Foundation Data Model (FDM), excellent problem-solving abilities, and advanced interpersonal skills to effectively engage with senior leadership and departmental finance teams. This role is essential for ensuring that SoM Integrated Resources - Finance accounting practices comply with UW, state, and funding agency policies and procedures, while also maintaining the accuracy and efficiency of accounting change processes. This position holds accountability for operational efficiency within the Accounting Team while delegating transactional and frontline duties to supervisors and other accounting roles.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in accounting, business, finance, or other related field.
Four to five years of progressively responsible experience in accounting-related processes.
Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.
A track record of successfully managing year-end and month-end activities, managing multiple projects, and delivering projects on schedule.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills for a variety of audiences.
Ability to lead meetings, give presentations, work with facts, and be able to tell a story with numbers.
Demonstrated success in building and sustaining positive customer and other relationships.
Commitment to working within an organizational framework of continuous process improvement.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite.

Nice To Haves

Experience with an ERP system.
Proficiency with Workday.
Familiarity with University of Washington processes and procedures regarding accounting.
CPA or credits towards a CPA.

Responsibilities

Lead strategic design, implementation, and monitoring of accounting operations across the team, including developing performance standards (key performance indicators, service level agreements) and aligning workflows with UW, state, and funding agency policies.
Collaborate with the Director and Partnership Team to create and standardize procedures within the Accounting team, ensuring consistency and compliance.
Oversee the supervisors on the Accounting team and provide direct support in training and standardization of accounting transactions, ensuring timely and accurate processing of transactions across the SoM.
Ensure all transactions comply with policies and regulations from the UW, state, funding agencies, and SoM as well as ensure that relevant documentation is complete and accessible.
Review and standardize the training materials developed and maintained by the accounting supervisors to ensure alignment of accounting training and best practices.
Utilize reporting tools to monitor transactions to ensure they are fully processed and approved in a timely manner maintaining accountability and efficiency.
Perform analysis of transaction volumes and utilize the findings and trends to balance workload distribution across the team.
Drive team-specific process improvement initiatives in all accounting tasks including accounting change requests, ticketing workflows, and more.
Report on data and trends to ensure relevant information is shared throughout the Accounting team.
Ensure all record retention practices adhere to UW policies and Washington State laws, optimizing both efficiency and audit readiness.
Meet with SoM departments to analyze and resolve complex issues and document cases. Results will be used to train Accounting team members.
Act as a subject matter expert for accounting systems, ticketing system, reporting, data analysis and manipulation, procedures, contacts, and policies.
Work collaboratively with other finance teams in the SoM Dean’s Office and UW Medicine to maintain consistency in accounting practices.
Delegate resolution of user requests to supervisors while monitoring quality outcomes.
Personally coordinate and resolve exceptionally complex, sensitive, or high-risk accounting transactions when escalation requires senior-level intervention, ensuring compliance and minimizing operational or reputational risk.
Oversee month-end and year-end timelines and resource assignments, ensuring supervisors execute operational requirements.
Communicate policy updates to stakeholders as they relate to overall accounting operations and compliance strategy.
Oversee the management of the ticketing system operations and maintenance including maintaining group members, revising assignment groups, and supporting accounting staff in routing and resolving tickets in an efficient manner.
Collaborate with Supervisors to ensure stakeholder feedback is incorporated into process improvements and training updates.
Facilitate the accounting systems’ onboarding process by setting up access and accounts for new Integrated Resources - Finance Supervisors, ensuring a smooth start for staff within SoM.
Provide education and guidance to department users on best practices and conduct regular drop-in or formal training sessions.
Maintain strong relationships with the end users, UW central finance offices, SoM Financial Planning & Analysis team, stakeholders, and leadership to ensure cohesive collaboration.
Lead and participate in strategic meetings with other teams and UW departments to align procedures, goals, and initiative plans.
Lead high-level, ad hoc accounting-related projects that impact team operations or cross-team workflows.
Supervise a team of accounting supervisors, ensuring they have clear priorities, operational tools, and professional development opportunities.
Provide coaching, mentorship, and performance evaluations of direct reports.
Lead recruitment, onboarding, and training efforts for new Supervisors.
Participate in recruitment activities for other accounting roles, including reviewing resumes, participating in interviews, and contributing to the selection process contribute to team cohesion and performance.
Foster a collaborative, inclusive, and high-performing team culture.
Act as backup to the supervisors by overseeing the team, reviewing and approving journal vouchers, approving timesheets, managing absence requests, and ensuring smooth operations in the supervisor’s absence.
Provide input and feedback for personnel evaluations and the annual review process for accounting roles.
Provide timely and actionable feedback to new and existing employees to foster their growth and performance.
Consult Human Resources to engage in the corrective action process as necessary.
Connect supervisors with Human Resources to engage in performance management of accounting roles as needed.