SENIOR BILLING & ACCOUNTS SPECIALIST, Research Finance & Property Management

Boston University • Boston, MA

7d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Billing & Accounts Specialist owns end to end invoicing and accounts receivable for a diverse and highly complex portfolio of sponsored projects, ensuring timely, accurate billing, active accounts receivable follow-up and full payment resolution in accordance with sponsor terms, federal and nonfederal regulations, and University policy. The role requires advanced interpretation of award documents, prepares and submits invoices as specified by the sponsor and continuously improves processes by automating workflows and leveraging SAP to its fullest extent. This position requires knowledge of sponsored research administration, strong analytical skills, and the ability to navigate complex systems. Major duties of this position also include: Prepare, submit, and track sponsor invoices (cost reimbursable, milestone and other award types) across agency portals; research, analyze, and resolve short payments, overpayments, unapplied cash, and sponsor discrepancies; actively monitor aging and follow up on delinquencies through to final resolution. Investigate complex payment issues including partial payments, denied costs, sponsor offsets, and timing differences; coordinate with sponsors, central offices, and internal stakeholders to achieve full and accurate cash recovery. Generate and analyze monthly unbilled and A/R reports, surface risks, trends, and actionable insights for management. Review and recommend write offs with full justification and supporting documentation; present packages to Research Financial Operations management for approval. Review and interpret complex award and contract terms (federal, nonfederal, industry, and foundation) to ensure sponsor compliant invoicing and reporting; apply evolving federal and nonfederal regulations and assess downstream billing and cash impact. Use SAP to its fullest extent, including invoice creation and posting, A/R subledger analysis, dunning and collections, cash application review, and portfolio level reporting; identify root causes of aged or problematic receivables and assist management in recommendations to standardize SOPs for billing and collections to drive consistency and scalability. Provide excellent customer service to PIs, administrators, and central partners; proactively communicate status, issues, and resolutions. Contribute to training and dissemination of policy updates. Partner with management on strategic and data driven projects to advance departmental goals and operational efficiency.

Requirements

• Bachelors degree in a related field.
• 3-5 years of progressive experience in research administration, sponsored programs billing and accounts receivable, and financial reconciliation within a university or similar research environment.
• Demonstrated excellence in organization, time management, communication, and attention to detail, strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Intermediate (or higher) Excel skills (lookups, pivots, complex formulas) for data acquisition, analysis, and reconciliation.
• A proactive, diplomatic self starter who works independently and as part of a small, collegial team; able to prioritize routine tasks and ad hoc needs under multiple deadlines.

Nice To Haves

• Hands on experience with SAP (billing, A/R, cash management, and reporting modules) and sponsor e billing portals.

Responsibilities

• Prepare, submit, and track sponsor invoices (cost reimbursable, milestone and other award types) across agency portals
• Research, analyze, and resolve short payments, overpayments, unapplied cash, and sponsor discrepancies
• Actively monitor aging and follow up on delinquencies through to final resolution
• Investigate complex payment issues including partial payments, denied costs, sponsor offsets, and timing differences
• Coordinate with sponsors, central offices, and internal stakeholders to achieve full and accurate cash recovery
• Generate and analyze monthly unbilled and A/R reports, surface risks, trends, and actionable insights for management
• Review and recommend write offs with full justification and supporting documentation; present packages to Research Financial Operations management for approval
• Review and interpret complex award and contract terms (federal, nonfederal, industry, and foundation) to ensure sponsor compliant invoicing and reporting; apply evolving federal and nonfederal regulations and assess downstream billing and cash impact
• Use SAP to its fullest extent, including invoice creation and posting, A/R subledger analysis, dunning and collections, cash application review, and portfolio level reporting; identify root causes of aged or problematic receivables and assist management in recommendations to standardize SOPs for billing and collections to drive consistency and scalability
• Provide excellent customer service to PIs, administrators, and central partners; proactively communicate status, issues, and resolutions
• Contribute to training and dissemination of policy updates
• Partner with management on strategic and data driven projects to advance departmental goals and operational efficiency

Benefits

• Boston Universitys generous benefits package includes health, dental, life insurance, and paid time off!
• Full-time employees are also eligible for tuition remission for courses at Boston University.
• Note: the remission benefit extends to dependents as well.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees