Finance Analyst

Edelman; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 56,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical and dental insurance

Vision insurance

401K

Life insurance

Disability insurance

Paid time off

Travel assistance

Wellness programing

Job summary

Edelman in Chicago seeks a Financial Analyst to own payroll and freelance cost reconciliation within North American Controllership. The role combines detailed accounting execution with analytical judgment, partnering with Payroll, Resource Management, and HR to forecast and control costs.

The successful candidate has a 2+ year accounting/finance background, strong Excel skills, and comfort with large data sets. This on-site position offers competitive salary and benefits.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance with 2+ years of relevant experience.
• High degree of confidentiality and ability to manage sensitive data responsibly.
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel and automation tools including ChatGPT and Copilot.
• Demonstrated analytical ability and understanding of financial statements, budgeting, and forecasting concepts.
• Ability to organize and analyze detailed financial data, identify inconsistencies, and clearly communicate findings with explanations and/or proposed solutions in a clean and timely manner.

Responsibilities

• Prepare journal entries for month end close including expense accruals and reclassification entries.
• Coordinate with Payroll and HR to resolve identified discrepancies.
• Update forecast for hires, terminations, promotions, compensation changes, and other workforce activity.
• Maintain supporting schedules used to forecast for salaries and other employee expenses.
• Partner with the Controller and Employee Relations in review of the severance accrual.
• Prepare monthly forecast-to-actuals variance commentary.
• Manage the freelance tracking process, evaluating spend by practice and identifying cost-saving opportunities.
• Document freelance processes and develop an efficient tracking/reporting process.

Skills

Microsoft Excel

Automation tools

Analytical ability

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance

Tools

Workday

Adaptive

Job description

We are in relentless pursuit of an equitable and inspiring workplace that is respectful of all, reflects and represents the world in which we live, and fosters trust, collaboration and belonging. Consistent with this approach, we hire the best qualified candidates for all positions.

The Financial Analyst will sit within the North American Controllership function and report to the Finance Manager. The Analyst will have primary responsibility for the accounting, reconciliation and forecasting of U.S. workforce-related costs, including salaries, professional freelance and temporary clerical costs, taxable fringe benefits and employee perquisites. The role will also support employee welfare budgeting and play a significant role in redesigning the end-to-end freelance management process.

This is a visible role requiring regular partnership across front- and back-office functions, including Payroll, Resource Management, Human Resources & Employee Relations, and various market and practice leaders. The successful candidate will be expected to combine detailed accounting execution with analytical judgment, proactively investigate exceptions and communicate both findings and recommended solutions.

Basic Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance with 2+ years of relevant experience. High degree of confidentiality and ability to manage sensitive data responsibly. Strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel and automation tools including ChatGPT and Copilot. Demonstrated analytical ability and understanding of financial statements, budgeting, and forecasting concepts. Ability to organize and analyze detailed financial data, identify inconsistencies, and clearly communicate findings with explanations and/or proposed solutions in a clean and timely manner.

Preferred Knowledge And Skills

Excellent written, oral, and interpersonal communication skills. Strong attention to detail and ability to manage recurring deadlines while responding to ad hoc requests. Consistently demonstrates curiosity, willingness to learn and sound judgment. Comfortable working with large datasets and developing repeatable analytical processes. Familiarity with Workday and Adaptive products a plus. CPA candidates a plus (role will be eligible for Edelman’s tuition reimbursement program after 6 months of employment and CPA testing and licensing fee expense reimbursements, if desired).

Key Responsibilities

Salaries & Freelance Compensation

Own The Reconciliation Process Of Salaries And Freelance Costs As Part Of Month End Close By Timely, Completely And Accurately Comparing Payroll Wage Reports And General Ledger (GL) Balances To Forecasted Costs Within Adaptive And Subsequently Investigating And Resolving All Exceptions As Appropriate. This May Require

• Preparing journal entries for month end close including expense accruals and reclassification entries.
• Coordinating with Payroll and HR to resolve identified discrepancies.
• Updating forecast for hires, terminations, promotions, compensation changes, and other workforce activity.
• Maintaining supporting schedules used to forecast for salaries and other employee expenses.
• Partnering with the Controller and Employee Relations in review of the severance accrual.
• Preparing monthly forecast-to-actuals variance commentary.
  
  

Freelance Process

Responsibilities

Manage the freelance tracking process, evaluating spend by practice, analyzing trends and identifying ongoing opportunities for cost savings. Additionally, collaborate with Resource Management and Finance to document existing freelance processes, identify opportunities for improvement, and develop an efficient process for tracking, managing, and reporting freelance activity. General responsibilities may include:

• Reviewing requests to engage freelance.
• Entering and reconciling purchase orders for agency freelancers.
• Monitoring freelance spend against forecast and approved budgets.
• Maintaining accurate freelance tracking and supporting schedules, including start dates, end dates, rates, expected costs, and organizational alignment.
• Partnering with Resource Management and Finance to reconcile the active freelance population and validate ongoing business need.
  
  

Other Employee Costs

In partnership with HR Compliance and Payroll, coordinate the budgeting and tracking of non-salary compensation and miscellaneous taxable fringe benefits including reimbursed office parking, statutorily required stipends and cash equivalent compensation (gift cards). Responsibilities include reviewing the ledger population for completeness and classification, investigating forecast to actual variances, quarterly compilation of data required by Payroll for processing, and periodic updating of policies and procedures.

May also support in the budgeting of employer payroll taxes and pension plan contributions.

Other Budget Support

Support the Finance Manager with maintaining employee welfare budget trackers for market, practice and other business leaders as needed including:

• Making periodic updates to trackers to reflect actual spend per the GL
• Maintenance of project codes and providing transaction-level approvals within Workday as needed
• Assisting leaders in understanding available budgets, actual spending, forecast outlook, and budget purpose
• Researching and explaining forecast to actuals variances.
• Coordinating with budget owners to identify accruals and prepare needed monthly entries.
• Support the Finance Manager and Controller in other areas of budgeting, forecasting, accounting and ad hoc investigations from time to time, as needed.
  
  

$56,000 - $70,000 per year

An employee’s pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, travel requirements, revenue-based metrics, any contractual agreements, and business or organizational needs. The range listed is just one component of DJEH’s total compensation package for employees. Other rewards may include annual bonuses, a Paid Time Off policy, and region-specific benefits.

DJEH offers a wide range of benefits: medical and dental insurance, vision, 401K, life insurance, disability insurance, paid time off, travel assistance and wellness programing.

DJEH is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and believes in diversity, equity, and inclusion. We seek applications from all qualified candidates without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, religion, physical or mental disability, military and veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law. If you require a reasonable accommodation in any part of the employment process, please let us know.