Manager - Financial & Operations Advisory

Johnson Lambert LLP; North Carolina; On-site; USD 130,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid time off 25 days

Half-day Fridays in summer

Medical & dental benefits

401(k) with employer match

Volunteer time off

Job summary

Johnson Lambert LLP is seeking a Manager for the Financial & Operations Advisory (FOA) practice in the United States. You will lead engagements across insurance finance, assurance, and regulatory work, building client relationships and guiding a growing team.

The role blends delivery excellence with business development to expand FOA's footprint. Ideal candidates bring 5+ years in insurance accounting, strong governing-standards knowledge, and leadership skills to mentor seniors and associates

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or related field.
• 5+ years in accounting/finance with most experience in insurance.
• Hands-on with NAIC statements, RBC, regulatory filings; experience with annual statement software.
• Experience managing teams and multiple projects with budgets and timelines.
• Strong knowledge of US GAAP and NAIC SAP accounting and reporting.

Responsibilities

• Lead multiple concurrent engagements across FOA practice areas (Controller/CFO support, GAAP/regulatory filings).
• Scope engagements, draft proposals, manage budgets, staffing, and timelines.
• Serve as primary client contact and build relationships with CFOs and finance teams.
• Perform and review complex technical work (STAT/GAAP statements, NAIC filings, RBC, regulatory matters).
• Lead process improvement, quality reviews, and coaching of staff.

Skills

Financial leadership

Client relationship management

Project management

Regulatory knowledge

Communication to execs

Education

Bachelor's in Accounting/Finance

CPA preferred

Tools

NAIC software

Excel

ERP/GL systems

Job description

We are looking for a Manager who can both lead projects and create work product. An insurance finance and accounting professional who manages a portfolio of diverse engagements, develops a team, and helps grow a new practice. You will be one of the core leaders shaping FOA's delivery model, client relationships, and culture during a period of rapid growth.

This role is built for someone entrepreneurial: you want to help win work, not just deliver it, and you want compensation that rewards the outcomes you drive. Strong performers will have a clear path to Senior Manager and beyond as the practice scales.

ABOUT JOHNSON LAMBERT

Johnson Lambert LLP is a national CPA firm with 40+ years of niche focus on the insurance and nonprofit industries. We work with 750+ insurance clients nationwide — spanning property & casualty, life, health, title, reinsurance, captives, and MGAs — and are the 5th largest auditor of P&C insurers in the U.S. Our professionals are active in the AICPA, NAIC, and IASA, keeping us close to the issues insurance leaders face every day.

ABOUT FOA

Financial & Operations Advisory (FOA) is Johnson Lambert's newest practice area, built to complement our Audit, Tax, and Risk Advisory practices. FOA gives insurance organizations (and nonprofits) hands-on financial leadership, operational support, and technical accounting expertise sized to the situation, working inside the client's structure, with no ramp period.

Our promise is simple: “Insurance is hard. We can help.” We step in when a key role goes dark, a new system doesn't know what the old one knew, new regulatory requirements land on a stretched team, growth outpaces finance, an audit surfaces control gaps, or a strategic project has budget and backing but no owner.

FOA is in a build-and-scale phase, with a three-year plan to grow revenue and the team substantially. Joining now means helping shape the practice, its offerings, templates, technology, and culture, not just staffing it.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

Engagement Leadership & Delivery

• Lead multiple concurrent engagements across FOA practice areas — from interim Controller/CFO support and STAT/GAAP reporting to regulatory filings, reinsurance accounting, system implementations, and transaction support.
• Scope engagements and help draft proposals, Statements of Work, and fee estimates; manage budgets, staffing, timelines, and realization to targets.
• Serve as the primary day-to-day client contact; build trusted relationships with CFOs, Controllers, and finance teams.
• Perform and review complex technical work: STAT and GAAP financial statements, NAIC quarterly/annual statements, RBC and other regulatory filings, reinsurance accounting, reconciliations, and financial models.
• Research complex accounting and regulatory matters and author or review technical position memos citing authoritative guidance (NAIC SSAPs and AP&P Manual, ASC 944 and related Topics, and other applicable frameworks).
• Lead process, controls, and system improvement work, including current-state assessments, remediation of audit findings, and change management.
• Own quality: apply FOA's quality review framework and ensure deliverables are accurate, well-documented, and client-ready.
• Supervise, coach, and develop Senior Associates, Associates, Interns, and other resources; provide timely feedback and conduct performance reviews.
• Plan and balance team workloads across engagements; delegate effectively to drive efficiency and effectiveness.
• Help build FOA's onboarding and long-term training program and mentor team members toward advancement.
• Participate in recruiting and interviewing to grow the team.
• Model FOA's culture: fun, collaborative, and challenging.

Business Development & Practice Growth

• Identify and pursue new opportunities with existing and prospective clients; maintain a pipeline of prospects and likely projects.
• Partner with Johnson Lambert's Audit, Reinsurance, Tax, BAS, and other teams on cross-selling and referrals.
• Represent FOA at industry events and contribute to thought leadership, articles, and marketing campaigns.
• Help develop and refine FOA's template library, client intake process, pricing approach, and technology stack (ERP/GL, annual statement software, AI, and workflow automation).
• Contribute to FOA's financial goals, including revenue, margin, and realization targets.

WHAT YOU BRING

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• 5+ years of progressive experience in accounting and/or finance in industry, or a combination of industry and public accounting. The majority of that experience must be in the insurance sector.
• Hands-on experience with NAIC quarterly/annual statements, RBC, and regulatory filings; experience with annual statement software.
• Experience managing, supervising, and developing others, including reviewing their work.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects or engagements simultaneously, including budgets, timelines, and project communications.
• Strong knowledge of statutory (NAIC SAP) and U.S. GAAP accounting and reporting for insurance entities.
• Advanced Excel skills and regular AI usage. Experience with GL/ERP systems and comfort with large data sets.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including presenting to senior executives, boards, and audit committees.
• Sound professional judgment, with the ability to research and document conclusions on complex accounting matters.
• Self-starter with initiative who is eager to learn.
• Positive attitude and willingness to take on new and unfamiliar challenges.

Preferred

• Active CPA license. CPA is preferred, not required.
• Experience across multiple insurance sectors (P&C, life, health, title, captives, MGAs).
• Experience with reinsurance accounting, LDTI (ASU 2018-12) for life/annuity entities, or other complex insurance accounting topics.
• Experience with system implementations or conversions and data/BI tools.
• Business development experience: proposal writing, pipeline management, or sourcing new work.
• Experience leveraging remote teams and AI/automation tools to improve delivery efficiency.
• Nonprofit accounting exposure is a plus.

WHO YOU ARE

• Entrepreneur: you see opportunities others miss and act on them.
• Player-coach: you lead from the front, doing the work while developing the people around you.
• Client-first: clients trust you because you understand their business and their pressure points.
• Outcome-driven: you are motivated by measurable results and want to be rewarded for them.

COMPENSATION, REWARDS & GROWTH

• Competitive base salary plus a meaningful performance-based incentive tied to outcomes.
• Clear, merit-based path to Senior Manager and beyond as FOA scales, with leadership opportunities in a growing practice.
• Direct partnership with firm leadership and a real voice in building the practice's services, tools, and team.

HOW WILL JL SUPPORT YOU

• 25 days of paid time off for all professional level employees
• Half-day Fridays during the summer
• Employer-subsidized medical & dental benefits for both employee and family
• 401(k) with employer match
• 2 paid days off annually for personal community service activities

This position may be filled at either the Senior Associate or Manager level depending on candidate qualifications and experience.

Johnson Lambert prides itself for the hands-on approach and relationships we build with future employees, employees, and clients. We believe each application is the potential for a future relationship with JL. Therefore, a member of our HR team personally reviews all applications submitted.