Internal Controls Optimization Lead

Dow Jones & Company; Princeton (NJ); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare Plans

Paid Time Off

Retirement Plans

Comprehensive Insurance Plans

Wellness Resources

Education Benefits

Family Care Benefits

Commuter Transit Program

Subscription Discounts

Employee Referral Program

Financial Health Programs

Cybersecurity Protection

Job summary

Dow Jones & Company is seeking an Internal Controls Optimization Lead in New Jersey to drive evaluation, streamlining, and enhancement of the internal control environment within a transforming AI-enabled Finance organization.

You will collaborate across Finance Operations, lead process improvement, and implement automated controls while maintaining effective risk management and compliance monitoring. Strong communication and project coordination are essential.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of related work experience in internal controls, audit, compliance, or finance operations.
• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance, or equivalent work experience.
• Knowledge of auditing principles and Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance.
• Understanding of finance operations processes (order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, record-to-report).
• Ability to troubleshoot and resolve internal control and compliance issues independently.
• Experience with designing and implementing internal control policies and procedures.
• Strong data analysis skills and prior business process improvement experience.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; ability to explain issues to varied audiences.
• Willingness to learn new AI solutions and adapt to changing tools.

Responsibilities

• Lead and/or engage in business process improvement initiatives to simplify, standardize, and automate controls.
• Evaluate control impact of process and system changes; recommend rationalization and design enhancements.
• Assist with adoption of new audit and monitoring tools, including AI-enabled solutions.
• Research and resolve general compliance issues; escalate as needed.
• Analyze Finance Operations data to support issue resolution and management reporting.
• Maintain audit-ready documentation of decisions, changes, and remediation status.

Skills

Internal controls

Audit & compliance

Finance operations

SOX compliance

Data analysis

Communication

Project coordination

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance

Tools

ERP systems

Billing & reporting tools

AI-enabled audit tools

Job description

About the Team

This role offers direct exposure to a transforming, AI-enabled Finance organization, a broad view across Finance Operations workflows, and the opportunity to shape a leaner, more automated control environment at one of the world's most trusted business-information companies.

About the Role

As a key member of the Internal Audit team, the Internal Controls Optimization Lead supports the evaluation, streamlining, and enhancement of the organization's internal control environment, with the goal of reducing compliance cost while maintaining the effectiveness of risk management. The role spans traditional control frameworks and automated, machine-learning-enabled systems, and contributes to business process improvement initiatives and related projects across Finance Operations. The Lead supports ongoing compliance monitoring and drives the resolution of internal control inquiries and enhancements. A defining feature of the role is pace: the successful candidate will evaluate and integrate fast-changing knowledge and audit tooling - including AI-driven capabilities - into internal processes and controls, and communicate effectively with stakeholders across departments as the Finance organization evolves. You will report to the Intnl Controls/Compliance Manager and be based in our New Jersey office.

You Will:

• Lead and/or engage in business process improvement initiatives and projects as assigned, identifying opportunities to simplify, standardize, and automate controls.
• Evaluate the control impact of process and system changes; recommend control rationalization and design enhancements that reduce manual effort without reducing assurance.
• Support the adoption of new audit and monitoring tools, including AI-enabled solutions, into day-to-day control operation. Assist business operations with implementation of new solutions.
• Independently research and bring to resolution general compliance issues as they arise, escalating appropriately.
• Compile, analyze, review, and research Finance Operations data to support issue resolution, management reporting, and AI-supported improvement initiatives.
• Maintain clear, audit-ready documentation of decisions, control changes, and remediation status.

You Have:

• Minimum 5 years of related work experience in internal controls, audit, compliance, or finance operations.
• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance, or equivalent work experience.
• Demonstrated knowledge of auditing principles and standards and Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance.
• Relevant background and understanding of finance operations processes (e.g., order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, record-to-report).
• Demonstrated ability to independently troubleshoot and resolve internal control and compliance issues.
• Proficiency in the design and implementation of internal control policies and procedures.
• Strong data analysis skills and demonstrated prior business process improvement experience.
• Ability to quickly understand, interpret, and communicate business and technical issues to varied audiences; excellent written and verbal communication.
• Ability to quickly learn and utilize a variety of systems and new developing AI solutions; strong organization, time management, and multi-tasking skills.
• Professional certification or active pursuit thereof (CPA, CIA, or CISA) (Preferred).
• Experience in project coordination or management for systems implementations (Preferred).
• Experience with financial systems modules (ERP, billing, or reporting platforms) (Preferred).
• Exposure to process documentation and improvement methodologies (Preferred).

Our Benefits

• Comprehensive Healthcare Plans
• Paid Time Off
• Retirement Plans
• Comprehensive Insurance Plans
• Lifestyle Programs & Wellness Resources
• Education Benefits
• Family Care Benefits & Caregiving Support
• Commuter Transit Program
• Subscription Discounts
• Employee Referral Program
• Financial Health Programs
• Cybersecurity Protection

Learn more about all our US benefits

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Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other protected characteristic under applicable law. EEO/Disabled/Vets

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