Senior Accountant – General Ledger & Financial Reporting

ARA’s Corporate Accounting Department seeks a passionate and experienced Senior Accountant with strong technical skills, prior audit experience, and a continuous improvement mindset.

Our team supports the dedicated employee owners who make Applied Research Associates, Inc.

(ARA) the success it is today.

We are hiring a Senior Accountant to act as our revenue recognition subject matter expert (ASC 606), ensure quality and streamlined general ledger processes, and support the migration of our financial statement and management reporting from excel, such that it is produced directly from our ERP Systems (Costpoint & Adaptive Planning).

We are committed to providing exceptional customer service and delivering timely and accurate financial and management reporting, and audit support to a growing company.

We value teamwork, individual and group accountability, and strive for a balanced, enjoyable work environment.

What you’ll do as ARA’s Senior Accountant

ASC 606 Revenue Recognition


* Oversee revenue recognition for the company, providing high level review, revenue and revenue variance reporting and contract closeout revenue true-up


* Review complex multi-element customer contracts, document revenue recognition for these contracts, and ensure proper accounting


* Evaluate current revenue recognition practices for large, fixed price contracts and develop and document new procedures for on-line products, software, and commercial sales


* Provide clear, documented accounting support for both internal and external (audits) inquiries

Financial Statement Modernization


* Support transitioning our financial statement and management reporting out of multi-tab Excel workbooks so it can be generated directly from our ERP systems


* Help develop and validate dashboard reports


* Support the deployment of financial statement projections using ARA’s enterprise tools

General Ledger & Financial Accounting


* Support month-end close and year end close processes


* Prepare balance sheet reconciliations, accruals, and financial disclosures with accuracy and attention to detail


* Evaluate the impact of new accounting standards to ensure successful transition and proper reporting

Operational Efficiency


* Identify process bottlenecks, build standardized processes to ensure timely and accurate data, help identify and evaluate AI tools to automate manual accounting workflows


* Partner directly with leadership to support daily operational accounting

Audit, Controls & Compliance Support


* Maintain strong internal controls and ensure adequate process documentation


* Provide comprehensive support for external financial audits, internal audits, and government/customer audits


* Collaborate with auditors to provide required data, resolve inquiries, and strengthen audit readiness

Systems Leadership & Process Modernization


* Support system upgrade testing, enhancements, and business system eval...