Financial Assistant
Northwestern University
Chicago, IL
Full-time
Finance
Posted on August 5, 2023
Department:MED-Dermatology
Salary/Grade:NEX/11
Job Summary:
- Provides day-to-day financial & accounting support using an advanced knowledge of applicable skills, methods & practices & some innovation, analysis, & reasoning to choose appropriate alternatives from among pre-defined policies & procedures to complete work that includes successive steps & involves some non-routine problems &/or decisions.
- Applies industry and professional standards, university policy and procedure, federal and state laws and other regulations.
- Provides administrative &/or clerical support.
- Please highlight areas of responsibility below:
- Accounting policy & procedure
- Accounts payable
- Accounts receivable
- Additional/special pay
- Analysis
- Appropriation charges
- Audit
- Balancing
- Bank and balance sheet acct
- Bank deposits
- Benefits accounting
- Budget
- Business continuity planning
- Capital spending
- Cash receipt
- Chart &/or account coding
- Cost accounting
- Creating new accounts
- Endowment and gift accounting
- Expense reimbursement
- Financial Statements
- Forecasting
- Grants &/or awards
- Inventory
- Investment asset accounting
- Journal &/or ledger
- Payroll
- Petty cash
- Plant, debt & loan acct
- Procurement card program
- Purchase orders
- Recharge
- Reconciliation
- Risk accounting
- Reporting
- Salary administration
- Student accounts
- Student funding
- Student loans
- Transfer charges
- Treasury
- Wire transfers
Budget:
- Maintains & tracks individual budget accounts.
- Coordinates annual budget process including tasks associated with the open/close processes.
- Updates calendar, spreadsheets, templates & forms; monitors submissions.
- Completes reconciliation procedures.
- Creates summary reports.
- Prepares account, budget, cost, expenditure &/or funds analysis.
- Provides reports to managers/PIs in tracking payment status & notification when balances & activities do not comply with policy, procedures or are inadequately prepared.
- Creates reports & queries; reviews for incomplete records, data entry errors, &/or accounting mistakes.
- May analyze open encumbrances that are no longer valid & recommend appropriate modifications to ensure smooth processing of financial transactions.
- Completes & maintains transactions in enterprise systems.
- Provides review and oversight of all types of financial transactions some of which may be complex in regard to size or duration of account.
- Reviews; ensures approval based on alternatives regarding practice & policy.
- Troubleshoots problems.
- Performs vendor/account research as needed.
- Obtains additional information from or provides instruction & guidance for customers/vendors; corrects or escalates.
- Provides financial policy interpretation to determine the validity of customer requests & ensure compliance.
- Contacts outside agencies, banks &/or banking systems to obtain clarification of rules &/or regulations.
- Enters information into database.
- Proides assistance regarding grant financial administration such as preparing financial information for grant submission.
- Completes post award accounting.
- Sets-up sub-contracts &/or start-up research accounts.
- Modifies grant budgets.
- Closes grants.
- Approves expenditures on travel, consulting &/or equipment, along with various forms, such as Intra Institutional Vouchers, Requests for Accounting Corrections, the Research Assistant and Scholarship Appointments, &/or payroll adjustments, in accordance with granting agency guidelines & University policies & procedures.
- Processes subcontract payments according to rules & regulations of granting agencies.
- Reconciles subcontract payments.
- Corrects charges to various accounts.
- Provides excellent customer service, over the phone and in person answering standard questions regarding status of requests, policies and procedures for processing transactions, &/or instructions for completing paperwork.
- Instructs & advises regarding options and appropriate courses of action & follows-up inquiries to ensure customer satisfaction.
- Provides administrative support in regard to HR matters such as hiring, onboarding, benefits, compensation, etc.
- Completes other administrative &/or clerical activities such as organizing meetings; reserving AV equipment.
- Coordinates office, lab &/or building repairs & maintenance.
- Maintains inventory.
- Assists with training of new staff members
- Creates & provides financial training on practice, procedure, policy &/or laws & regulations to customers.
- Performs other duties as assigned.
- High school diploma or the equivalent.
- 3 years accounting &/or bookkeeping or other relevant experience.
- Excellent computer skills including proficiency in the use of spreadsheet, database and word processing software.
- Familiarity with financial reporting.
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills, in-person and via phone/web.
- Exceptional organizational skills, time management efficiency, and personal accountability.
- Excellent attention to detail.
- Ability to work independently and in a team environment.
- Ability to work with minimum supervision and guidance.
- Ability to receive and benefit from feedback; willingness to expand skill set and improve.
- Flexibility in adapting to new procedures and environments.
- Strong project coordination skills and the ability to prioritize tasks across multiple projects.
- Efficient and resourceful in problem-solving.
- Demonstrated ability to take ownership of the work, possessing initiative, and good follow-through.
- Bachelor's degree with a focus in accounting/finance, or business administration.
- Grant management and administrative experience.
- General understanding of accounting principles, experience with budgeting & financial management.
- Extensive knowledge of NU Financials and University policies.
- Experience implementing process improvement
- Experience with Northwestern University systems, NU Financials, Cognos, SES and myHR.
- Experience with PeopleSoft (Oracle), reporting, query-rule building.
- Excellent excel skills and an ability to utilize advanced functions within excel to perform complex data analysis and reconciliations.
- Demonstrated ability to collaborate with others to create yearly and multi-year reports.
- Demonstrated ability to create, interpret and present management-level reports.
- Ability to present financial information to colleagues with non-financial backgrounds.
- Ability to formulate realistic plans/contingencies and establishes appropriate measurements of anticipated results.
- Displays consistency and success in adhering to deadlines.
At Northwestern, we are proud to provide meaningful, competitive, high-quality health care plans, retirement benefits, tuition discounts and more! Visit us athttps://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/index.htmlto learn more.
Work-Life and Wellness:
Northwestern offers comprehensive programs and services to help you and your family navigate life's challenges and opportunities, and adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles.
We support flexible work arrangements where possible and programs to help you locate and pay for quality, affordable childcare and senior/adult care. Visit us athttps://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/work-life/index.htmlto learn more.Professional Growth & Development:
Northwestern supports employee career development in all circumstances whether your workspace is on campus or at home. If you're interested in developing your professional potential or continuing your formal education, we offer a variety of tools and resources. Visit us athttps://www.northwestern.edu/hr/learning/index.htmltolearn more.
Northwestern strongly recommends COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters for people who can obtain them as a critical tool for minimizing severe illness. More information can be found on the COVID-19 and Campus Updates webpage.
The Northwestern campus sits on the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa as well as the Menominee, Miami and Ho-Chunk nations. We acknowledge and honor the original people of the land upon which Northwestern University stands, and the Native people who remain on this land today.
Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer of all protected classes, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply. Click for information on EEO is the Law.
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