Financial Accountant

Critical features of this job are described under the headings below. They may be subject to change due to changes in our business processes or other business-related reasons.

POSITION SUMMARY:  Performs advanced professional accounting relative to receipts, expenditures and other payments, encumbrances, fund transfers, revenues and/or grants.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Essential duties and responsibilities may include the following. Other duties may be assigned.
•    Handles the accounting function of assignment grouping of accounts and/or subaccounts, (such as bond resolutions, mortgage servicing function, operating accounts, grant segments, etc.), including, but not limited to, entry of appropriate journal entries, periodic reconciliations, preparation and maintenance of appropriate financial schedules, reports, analysis, and other associated tasks.
•    Assists Accounting division management with the supervision of the Accounts Payable process, including, but not limited to, review of payment processing procedures and offering recommendations for improvement, review (and subsequent approval or denial) of Accounts Payable vouchers, supervision of vendor maintenance, and resolving Accounts Payable issues as they arise in a timely and efficient process.
•    Assists with budgeting activities for assigned areas, such as for specific grants.
•    Records Automated Clearing House (ACH)/fedwire deposits into the State of Tennessee’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, “Edison”, or other electronic data bases as required in compliance with established procedures and practices.
•    May review, enter, and/or approve federal drawdowns through the applicable federal government data systems.
•    Prepare or assist in preparation of federal reporting and financial reporting.
•   May review various cash management reports related to the mortgage servicing function and reconcile daily; may reconcile various accounts related to mortgage loans and reconcile on a daily or monthly basis.
•    Reviews the Accounts Receivable ledger, and researches and resolves aged items; reconciles the Accounts Receivable ledger to THDA’s General Ledger.
•    Prepares statistical journal vouchers as assigned, for example for federal administrative fee revenue, and enters such into appropriate electronic system.
•    Enters journal entries into THDA’s accounting system and/or Edison based on appropriate support and documentation.
•   Ensures that monetary receipts are appropriately deposited and entered into the assigned accounting systems in a timely manner, with the subsequent approval or denial of cashiering batches, and that such batches are subsequently completed.
•    Reviews financial transactions, including preparing periodic journal entries to record the results of such transactions; performs subsequent reconciliations to ensure that such journal entries are appropriate.
•    Assists the Accounting team by performing the duties of other similar positions in the event of staff absence.
•   Assists the Controller with technology research and development projects associated with the accounting and proprietary line-of-business applications systems used by the Accounting division; may serve as a subject matter expert for one or more professional software systems.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities required.

Education and Experience:
•    Bachelor’s degree in accounting, or a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in good standing.
•    Two years of experience in professional accounting work.
•    Experience in governmental accounting, mortgage revenue bonds, and/or mortgage servicing.
The above qualifications express the minimum standards of education and/or experience for this position. Other combinations of education and experience, if evaluated as equivalent, may be taken into consideration.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Competencies:
•    Considerable knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles, including Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB)/Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) standards, advanced accounting theory and practice, auditing, budgeting, and data processing.
•    Strong accounting skills and good math skills.
•    Ability to research, interpret, and appropriately resolve complex accounting issues.
•    Knowledge of current business practices and principles.
•    Strong interpersonal skills.
•    Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
•    Ability to transfer data between accounting/financial/data systems and other programs, such as Microsoft Access, Excel, Word, etc.
•    Builds and maintains positive relationships with internal and external constituents.
•    Strong organizational skills.
•    Strong time management skills; uses time effectively; consistently meets deadlines.
•    Documents regularly, thoroughly, accurately, and completely.
•    High level of detail and accuracy.
•    Ability to work effectively and efficiently within a team environment.
•    Exercises good and consistently fair judgment, courtesy, and tact in dealing with the staff and public in giving and obtaining information.
•    Computer literate; knowledge and skills in use of professional accounting software; proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and the internet; able to effectively adapt to and use other computer systems as needed for daily activities.

Special Demands: 
The special demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a staff member to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
•    While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; stand; use hands to finger, handle or feel; and talk and hear.
•    The employee is occasionally required to walk; reach with hands and arms, and stoop, kneel, or crouch.
•    Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust focus.