Accounting and Payroll Specialist

Steppingstone Foundation, Inc.; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 58,500 - 71,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous paid time off (over 8 weeks total)

$500 Home Office Set-up Stipend

Health, Dental and Vision coverage

Flexible Schedule

Job summary

Steppingstone Foundation, Inc. is looking for a Payroll and Accounting Specialist to join their mission-driven team in Boston. This role focuses on maintaining accurate financial records, processing payroll, and supporting budgeting efforts. Ideal candidates are committed to educational access and possess a strong foundation in accounting principles.

With responsibilities also including financial reporting and compliance support, this hybrid position offers flexibility with three days in the office. Comprehensive employee benefits, including generous PTO and health coverage, make this a desirable opportunity for qualified applicants.

Qualifications

• Experience in accounts payable and cash receipts processing.
• Intermediate level experience with Excel/Google Sheets (VLOOKUP, Pivot Tables).
• Experience with QuickBooks, Paylocity, and BILL preferred.

Responsibilities

• Maintain accurate records of financial transactions.
• Process bi-weekly payroll and resolve anomalies.
• Generate financial statements and assist with reports.
• Support the creation and management of the organization’s budget.
• Ensure compliance with financial policies and regulations.

Skills

Commitment to educational access and success

Knowledge of basic accounting principles

Quantitative analysis skills

Customer-service orientation

Ability to manage multiple projects

Strong relationship-building skills

Initiative and problem-solving

Clear communication style

Comfort with technology

Education

Associate’s degree or equivalent experience

Tools

QuickBooks

Excel/Google Sheets

Job description

Join a mission-driven team supporting and empowering future college graduates!

Who We Are

At Steppingstone, our mission is to prepare students from under-resourced communities to access, navigate, and graduate from college.

• Through the Scholars Program in Boston, we provide academic, social-emotional, and college readiness programming from as early as fifth grade and continuing through college graduation.
• Through the National Partnership for Educational Access (NPEA), we connect the people, practices, and innovations essential for eliminating barriers to college and career success.

Who You Are

The Payroll and Accounting Specialist role is a strong fit for a professional who is passionate about educational access and wants to put their skills to use in a mission-based organization. The ideal candidate will have the skills to maintain accurate records of all the organization’s financial transactions and be responsible for processing the organization’s biweekly payroll.

Start Date: September 2026

Salary: $65,000

Responsibilities

Maintaining Accurate Financial Records

• Review accounts payable transactions in Bill.com and resolve discrepancies as they arise;
• Enter accounts receivable, cash receipts & other revenue transactions in QuickBooks according to approved procedures;
• Make journal entries and enter data as needed into QuickBooks;
• Perform reconciliations for review and approval, e.g. monthly bank statements, credit card statements, reconciling Quickbooks to Salesforce;
• Manage the monthly, quarterly and annual closing processes to finalize financial records systematically;

Financial Reporting

• Generate accurate financial statements including the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement; perform initial analysis and share key takeaways with the CFOO;
• Assist with the preparation of various financial reports and analyses as needed;

Payroll Processing

• Process bi-weekly payroll for the organization; flag anomalies in payroll preview and raise with the CFOO and HR to resolve ahead of finalizing payroll;
• Field questions from employees about paychecks

Budgeting

• Support the creation and management of the organization’s budget;
• Prepare budget variance reports; Compare actual expenditure to budgets, examining discrepancies; report discrepancies to the CFOO; work with managers to make corrections as appropriate;

Audit and Compliance Support

• Ensure adherence to financial policies, regulatory requirements and internal controls;
• Ensure that financial reports comply with regulatory standards (e.g., GAAP, IFRS).
• Ensure that the necessary documentation and financial records are available and organized for audits;
• Identify and report potential financial risks within the organization’s finance and accounting processes;
• Support the timely preparation and filing of tax returns, adhering to local, state, and federal regulations.

General Finance Operations Support

• Support employees across the organization with finance-related processes;
• Create and maintain accurate, detailed, internal process documentation for this role;
• Foster an environment where employees know what information is available to them, understand how to find it, and are encouraged and incentivized to utilize the knowledge-sharing tools that are in place; develop communication and training programs to raise awareness of knowledge management initiatives and encourage participation;
• Own the creation and maintenance of Finance-focused knowledge management resources (e.g. finance-related content on SteppingZone).

Requirements

Required Knowledge and Skills

• Demonstrated commitment to educational access and success
• Knowledge of basic accounting principles and practices
• Excellent quantitative analysis skills and attention to detail
• Strong customer-service orientation with both internal and external customers
• Experience working with individuals with different backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences
• Experience as an effective team member in a changing environment; ability to manage multiple projects and priorities
• Strong relationship-building and group facilitation skills across differing stakeholders; resolves conflicts constructively and respectfully
• Demonstrated initiative, flexibility, and independent problem-solving capabilities
• Clear written and verbal communication style; ability to adapt communication style to different audiences
• Knowledge of and comfort with technology

Education and Work Experience

• Associate’s degree or equivalent experience required
• Accounts payable, and cash receipts processing experience
• Intermediate Excel/Google Sheets experience (demonstrated experience with VLOOKUP, Pivot Tables, Complex Formulas)
• Experience with QuickBooks, Paylocity, and BILL preferred

Schedule

This position is a hybrid role with three days per week in office with some flexibility around work hours. A $500 home office set-up stipend will be provided upon hire, followed by quarterly stipends of $50. Laptops are provided to each employee to enhance the hybrid experience.

Physical Demands

• Lifting up to 20 pounds, standing, walking, sitting, reaching, operating computer and office equipment
• Pursuant to the ADA, Steppingstone will provide reasonable services and accommodation(s) to employees with qualified disabilities in order to perform the essential functions of their employment, except when doing so would be unduly disruptive and/or result in undue hardship to the organization.

Employee Benefits

• Generous paid time off (over 8 weeks total, as outlined below)
• 15 days PTO
• 2 days Discretionary Time Off
• 5 wellness days
• 12.5 holidays
• 2 weeks paid office closure (the weeks before Labor Day and New Year’s Day)
• $500 Home Office Set-up Stipend; plus $50 quarterly
• Health, Dental and Vision coverage
• Life, Short-Term and Long-Term disability insurance
• Healthcare Reimbursement Account Plan (HRA)
• Pet Insurance
• Flexible Schedule
• Retirement Plan
• Tuition & Professional Development reimbursement
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Health and Dependent Care
• Pre-tax Transportation Plan (Transit & Parking)
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Membership to the National Partnership for Educational Access (NPEA)

Steppingstone Core Values

Mission First - Keep Scholars front and center in all we do.

Lead with Inclusion - Elevate every voice, consider every perspective.

Stronger Together - Team up and trust each other.

Own It - Act with integrity, stay accountable, and be transparent.

Learn. Grow. Innovate. - Embrace change, drive creativity, and never stop learning.

A candidate will be found unsuitable for employment with Steppingstone and automatically disqualified if they use threatening language or behavior either written, verbal, or physical during any phase of the interview process.

Steppingstone is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate against any individual, employee, or application for employment in accordance with law.

Steppingstone will never require lie detector tests or other assessments designed to gauge the honesty of an applicant's responses in accordance with Massachusetts law.