Finance Operations Manager

Connect Search, LLC; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Connect Search, LLC seeks a Finance Operations Manager to oversee the finance shared services, including AP, T&E, and accounting support across entities with Ramp and NetSuite as core platforms. Lead a small team, drive automation, and implement AI-driven improvements.

The role emphasizes controls, reporting, and cross-functional collaboration with Finance and HR to optimize processes and accelerate month-end close.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business, or related field.
• 5+ years in finance operations, accounts payable, or accounting, ideally multi-entity.
• Prior experience managing a team, including performance management and coaching.
• Working knowledge of accounting fundamentals: journal entries, reconciliations, and month-end close.
• Hands-on experience administering finance/T&E platforms (Ramp, NetSuite, or comparable) strongly preferred.
• Experience improving or automating financial processes, including AI-enabled tools.
• Strong analytical skills with advanced proficiency in Excel.
• Excellent communication skills; able to explain technical topics to non-finance stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Oversee multi-entity AP: timely, accurate invoice processing, approvals, and payments.
• Manage end-to-end T&E processing, policy compliance, and reimbursements.
• Own systems ownership for Ramp and NetSuite; document SOPs and guides.
• Produce recurring finance ops reporting (AP aging, T&E spend, cycle time).
• Lead AI-driven automation projects within AP and finance systems.

Skills

Excel proficiency

Analytical skills

Communication skills

AI/tool familiarity

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting/Business

Tools

Ramp

NetSuite

Job description

The Finance Operations Manager owns the day-to-day health of the finance shared services function—Accounts Payable, Travel & Expense (T&E), accounting support, and systems administration. The role maintains core platforms (Ramp, NetSuite), manages a small AP/T&E team, and drives process standardization across entities. The ideal candidate pairs strong process discipline and people leadership with a bias toward automation and AI-driven improvement.

About the Role

The Finance Operations Manager is responsible for overseeing the finance shared services function, ensuring efficient operations in Accounts Payable, Travel & Expense management, and accounting support.

Responsibilities

Systems & Platform Ownership

• Administer Ramp (T&E and P2P): user access, workflow configuration, and issue triage.


• Partner with IT and vendors to resolve system issues and manage platform upgrades.


• Own system documentation (SOPs and user guides) for finance platforms.

Travel & Expense (T&E) Management

• Own the end-to-end T&E process: expense review, policy compliance, and timely reimbursement.


• Maintain T&E policy with the Senior Finance Director and communicate changes to employees.


• Monitor T&E spend and flag anomalies, out-of-policy spend, or misuse.


• Be the primary contact for employee questions on expenses and card usage.


• Coordinate with HR/Payroll on T&E items requiring payroll processing (e.g., imputed income).

Accounts Payable Operations

• Oversee multi-entity AP: timely, accurate invoice processing, approvals, and payments.


• Monitor approval chains, elevate bottlenecks, and streamline multi-entity routing.


• Support AP-related month-end close, including accruals and reconciliations.

Accounting Support

• Assist with month- and year-end close: journal entries, reconciliations, and accrual reviews.


• Ensure accurate GL coding of AP transactions and resolve discrepancies with Accounting.


• Support balance sheet reconciliations for AP accounts (e.g., accrued liabilities, prepayments).


• Help maintain accounting policies for payables and system-generated transactions.

Controls & Compliance

• Maintain and strengthen internal controls over payment processing and system access.


• Support internal and external audit requests related to AP and systems.


• Monitor compliance with company policy and regulatory requirements across entities.


• Track and remediate control gaps identified through audits or process reviews.

Reporting & Analytics

• Produce and distribute recurring finance ops reporting (AP aging, T&E spend, cycle time, exception rates) to the Senior Finance Director and stakeholders.


• Develop and maintain dashboards and KPIs for operational performance, service levels, and spend across entities.


• Deliver ad hoc analysis to support decisions and respond to leadership requests.


• Ensure accurate, consistent, timely reporting from Ramp, NetSuite, and adjacent systems.


• Establish reporting cadences and standards and automate reports to reduce manual effort.

Process Improvement & Automation

• Identify manual, repetitive tasks across AP and systems and design automated solutions.


• Partner with the Senior Finance Director on the finance team's broader AI and automation roadmap.


• Lead or support system implementations (e.g., Ramp go-live): testing, training, and change management.

AI Projects & Initiatives

• Own AI-driven automation projects across AP and systems, from use case through implementation.


• Evaluate and pilot AI tools (e.g., invoice extraction, exception detection, workflow assistants) to cut manual processing.


• Build AI-assisted reporting and reconciliation tools to speed month-end close.


• Document AI project outcomes and ROI and present recommendations to the Senior Finance Director.


• Train the team on new AI tools and workflows and champion AI adoption within finance ops.

Team Management

• Manage a team of AP/T&E analysts and coordinators: hiring, onboarding, and performance management.


• Set priorities, assign workload across entities, and monitor turnaround and quality.


• Hold regular 1:1s and team meetings and coach direct reports.


• Complete performance reviews and support career development planning for the team.


• Foster a culture of accountability, process discipline, and continuous improvement.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Serve as liaison between finance operations and business stakeholders across entities.


• Coordinate with FP&A and Accounting on data accuracy and reporting needs.


• Communicate system changes, deadlines, and process updates clearly to affected teams.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business, or related field.


• 5+ years in finance operations, accounts payable, or accounting, ideally multi-entity.


• Prior experience managing a team, including performance management and coaching.


• Working knowledge of accounting fundamentals: journal entries, reconciliations, and month-end close.


• Hands-on experience administering finance/T&E platforms (Ramp, NetSuite, or comparable) strongly preferred.


• Experience improving or automating financial processes, including AI-enabled tools.


• Strong analytical skills with advanced proficiency in Excel.


• Excellent communication skills; able to explain technical topics to non