Forensic Accounting Senior Manager

Plante & Moran, PLLC; Grand Rapids (MI); On-site; USD 131,000 - 194,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) plan

Flexible Time Off

Job summary

Plante Moran’s Forensic Senior Manager role leads engagements, scopes work, and sets the plan for investigations across industries. You’ll guide data analytics, interviews, and reporting to boards or courts, while managing client relationships and expanding services.

The position emphasizes practice development, cross‑serving, and travel. A CPA and a track record in managing teams are essential for success in a growing national firm.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of forensic-related experience in accounting or consulting.
• CPA designation required; additional credentials (CFE/CIA/CMA) preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or related field.
• Experience leading engagements and teams with full project lifecycle.
• Strong client relationship management and sales experience.
• Ability to travel overnight or internationally as needed.
• Proficiency with firm systems including Office and Copilot.

Responsibilities

• Manage forensic engagements with focus on asset misappropriation.
• Prepare and review written reports conveying findings.
• Evaluate internal controls and use data analytics to identify fraud risks.
• Interviews with clients and external sources to obtain information.
• Oversee staff; coach and provide timely feedback.
• Contribute to practice development and fees-sold goals.
• Manage multiple projects and client relationships; monitor budgets.
• Lead billing activities and realize project revenue.

Skills

Forensic accounting

Data analytics

Client communication

Team leadership

Project management

Business development

Interviews

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting

CPA designation

CFE/CIA/CMA preferred

Tools

Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Copilot

Financial accounting systems

Job description

Count on us. Our "we-care" culture is more than just a motto; it's a promise. From day one, we prioritize your growth, well-being, and success. You can count on us to support your career journey and help you achieve your professional goals. Join us. Our management consulting team focuses on our clients’ critical business needs. From Forensic and Valuation Services (FVS) services to operations and everything in between, our integrated solution approach is designed to help enable and manage growth, leverage resources, and mitigate costs and risks. At Plante Moran, we have a privilege of serving clients and providing consultative services as they face challenges and seek new opportunities.

The Forensic Senior Manager manages the day-to-day aspects of our forensic accounting investigations and litigation support matters. This person scopes engagements, sets the work plan, and makes judgment calls on where to look, what evidence to pursue, how to proceed with analyses, and when findings are sufficient to report. Typical work includes data analytics, electronic evidence review, interviews, quantification of losses/damages, and written reports to boards and courts of law, among other recipients. The client base spans all industries. This team member serves as the primary point of contact for attorneys, boards, insurers, and law enforcement, with the engagement partner in an oversight role rather than a daily one. Involvement with the business development process is also required as a part of this role.

Your role

Your work will include, but not be limited to:

• Manage forensic accounting engagements, with an increased emphasis on asset misappropriation matters
• Prepare and review written reports conveying findings
• Evaluate internal control structures and conduct data analytics to help identify weaknesses and associated fraud risks, making recommendations to clients on how they can mitigate those risks
• Interact with and interview clients and other external sources to obtain relevant information and documents
• Delegate and manage the work of forensic staff while monitoring and maintaining timely feedback and coaching opportunities
• Engage in practice development activities to achieve fees-sold goals
• Manage multiple projects and deal fluidly and effectively with multiple client relationships
• Analyze budgets and time summaries for planning and billing purposes, lead billing activities, and take responsibility for achieving realization goals

The qualifications

• 10+ years of recent or current experience in a forensic-related practice within a public accounting firm or a related industry consulting firm.
• CPA designation is required; at least one supplemental credential, such as a CFE, CIA and/or CMA is also preferred.
• Bachelor's Degree in Accounting or any related field is required.
• Experience running engagements and teams and relevant skills in project execution with hands‑on experience in the full life cycle of a project.
• Business experience in working with clients and managing multiple projects.
• Proven practice development (sales) experience is required.
• Demonstrated experience communicating with clients and other stakeholders to address inquiries and exchange relevant information.
• Ability to travel overnight or internationally may be required.
• Ability to engage in client expansion and cross-serving, meaningfully contribute to fees sold, and recognize the importance of lead generation.
• Technology skills required to:
  1. Work with firm systems, including Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Copilot.
  2. Work with financial accounting systems.
  3. Identify uses of technology to improve client deliverables and enhance engagement team and forensic practice efficiency.

This is an exempt position, so you may have to work hours that exceed the standard 40-hour work week.

What makes us different?

On the surface, we’re one of the nation’s largest audit, tax, consulting, and wealth management firms. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll see what makes us different: we’re a relatively jerk-free firm (hey, nobody ‘s perfect) with a world-class culture, consistent recognition as one of Fortune Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For,” and an endless array of opportunities.

At Plante Moran, diversity, equity and inclusion means that all staff members have equitable and fair opportunities to succeed, in an inclusive environment, with their individual, unique identities. So, what are you waiting for?

Plante Moran enjoys a “Workplace for Your Day” model which, simply put, means we strive for flexibility and balance while staying true to our principally in‑person model. We believe that face‑to‑face interactions are paramount for individual and collective development, but also encourage individuals to work with their supervisor and team to determine their optimal working environment each day.

Plante Moran is committed to a diverse workplace. We strive to create a culture where each person feels accepted and valued. We believe that each person’s ultimate potential begins with first acknowledging their inherent dignity. When we can recognize — and celebrate — our many human differences, we’re able to create a workplace where all staff feel a sense of belonging and an opportunity to succeed. This allows us to attract and retain the best talent, serve clients through diverse thinking, and better represent and support the various communities in which we live and work.

Plante Moran is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Plante Moran maintains a drug‑free workplace.

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship, with the exception of qualified candidates who are bilingual in either Japanese and English or Chinese and English.

Unsolicited resumes from search firms or employment agencies, or similar, will not be paid a fee and become the property of Plante Moran.

We are pleased to offer eligible staff a robust benefits package. Eligibility and contribution requirements for some of these benefits vary based on the number of hours staff work per week.

• Health, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance.
• Flexible Time Off and various pre‑determined holidays, as well as a 401(k) plan.
• Flexible benefits plans.
• Business‑related travel expense, lodging, and meal reimbursement for business‑related use.
• Program that includes a pension plan for eligible administrative and paraprofessional staff.
• A discretionary bonus plan is available for eligible staff.
• Some contingent staff positions have the option to elect health insurance in addition to limited paid sick time.

The compensation range reflects the base salary we reasonably expect to pay for this position across our offices in the following regions: CO, IL, OH, and MA. Please review the position description for the applicable geographic location. Generally, experienced hires are not hired at or near the maximum salary range, as compensation decisions take into account a wide variety of factors, including but not limited to: responsibilities, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and geography. For early career roles, including campus hires, we offer standardized, market‑based starting salaries among individuals within the same hiring group. This approach ensures fairness and reflects current industry benchmarks for entry‑level talent.

The compensation range for this role in CO, IL, OH, and MA is: $131,000.00-$194,000.00 #LI-HD1

This application window is a good‑faith estimate of the time that this posting will remain open. This deadline will be promptly updated if the deadline is extended.

Our founders often referred to our firm as "a people firm disguised as an accounting firm." Why? Because people are at the core of everything we do, and our firm was built on values and principles that support this philosophy to this day.