Senior Accountant

Ascend Partner Firms; United States; Remote; USD 75,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Ascend is seeking a Senior Accountant to own accurate, timely month-end close execution for an assigned group of Partner Firms. Working within the Ascend Partner Services accounting team, this individual will manage the general ledger, balance sheet reconciliations, and variance commentary for their firms, while serving as a trusted, responsive partner to Partner Firm leadership.

The Senior Accountant will also play a hands‑on role in integrating newly acquired firms onto Ascend’s accounting

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• 3+ years of progressive accounting experience in public accounting, corporate accounting, or a multi-entity environment, with hands-on ownership of the month-end close.
• Strong working knowledge of U.S. GAAP, with exposure to ASC 606 and ASC 842.
• Experience with close management software (FloQast strongly preferred) and a modern ERP; advanced Excel skills.
• Experience supporting external audits in PE-backed, acquisitive, or high-growth environments is a plus.
• Attention to detail and commitment to accuracy.
• Proactive communicator who builds relationships with stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong organizational, critical thinking, and prioritization skills; manage multiple entities and deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Execute the month-end close for assigned Partner Firms on an accelerated timeline.
• Own the trial balance for assigned firms, ensuring accounts are complete and supported.
• Deliver variance commentary and flag unusual items to management.
• Reconcile all assigned balance sheet accounts monthly in FloQast with documentation.
• Investigate and resolve reconciling exceptions promptly.
• Prepare and deliver audit PBCs with organized documentation.
• Maintain audit-ready books year-round.
• Support accounting integration of newly acquired Partner Firms and drive go-live.
• Train firm staff on Ascend accounting processes and communicate integration status.
• Guide offshore accounting team with clear instructions and timely reviews.
• Collaborate across Ascend Partner Services and contribute to a strong team culture.
• Identify and document process improvements for continuous close improvements.

Skills

Attention to detail

Proactive communicator

Multi-entity management

Stakeholder relationship skills

Critical thinking

Prioritization abilities

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field

Tools

FloQast

Modern ERP

Advanced Excel

Job description

About Ascend

Ascend empowers entrepreneurial CPAs to reach their goals with an innovative growth model that brings their firms into the new age. Backed by private equity from people-focused Alpine Investors, Ascend is building a modern platform for regional accounting firms that enables them to stay independent while accessing the resources of a large CPA firm to help them grow. Ascend provides access to growth capital, robust talent acquisition, best-of-breed technology, a catalytic leadership system, shared back-office services, and modernized equity incentives so that firms can surmount today’s industry challenges and reach their full potential. Founded in January 2023, the company attained revenues sufficient to qualify it as a Top 100 U.S. accounting firm within six months of operations.

For more information, visit ascendtogether.com.

About Alpine Investors

Alpine Investors is a people-driven private equity firm that is committed to building great companies by working with, learning from, and developing exceptional people. Alpine prides itself on fostering cultures where people value empowerment, diversity, fairness, integrity, and intellectual honesty. Founded in 2001, Alpine specializes in investments in companies in the software and services industries. Alpine has over $17 billion in AUM and has offices in San Francisco, New York, and Salt Lake City.

For more information on the firm, visit www.alpineinvestors.com

Position Summary

Ascend is seeking a Senior Accountant to own accurate, timely month-end close execution for an assigned group of Partner Firms. Working within the Ascend Partner Services accounting team, this individual will manage the general ledger, balance sheet reconciliations, and variance commentary for their firms, while serving as a trusted, responsive partner to Partner Firm leadership. The Senior Accountant will also play a hands‑on role in integrating newly acquired firms onto Ascend’s accounting standards and in guiding the work of our offshore accounting team.

The Senior Accountant will report to an Accounting Manager within the Controller’s organization.

Key Responsibilities

Month-End Close & General Ledger

• Execute the month-end close for assigned Partner Firms on an accelerated timeline, including posting journal entries, completing accruals, and preparing supporting workpapers that are accurate on the first pass.
• Own the trial balance for assigned firms, ensuring every account is complete, supported, and ready for review.
• Deliver variance commentary with every close, clearly explaining what changed and flagging unusual items to management before being asked.

Balance Sheet Integrity & Reconciliations

• Reconcile all assigned balance sheet accounts monthly in FloQast with documented support and reviewer sign-off.
• Investigate and resolve reconciling exceptions promptly so that no stale or unsupported items are carried forward.

Audit Readiness & Controls

• Prepare and deliver audit PBCs for assigned firms by deadline, with organized documentation that keeps reviewer and auditor questions to a minimum.
• Maintain self-explanatory workpapers and consistent documentation standards that support audit-ready books year-round.

M&A Integration

• Support the accounting integration of newly acquired Partner Firms, applying Ascend standards to new entity setups and driving a quick, clean go-live.
• Train new firm staff on Ascend accounting processes and communicate integration status clearly to the broader team.

Relationship Management & Team

• Serve as a responsive, proactive point of contact for assigned Partner Firms, building trust and delivering an exceptional service experience.
• Guide offshore accounting team members on assigned tasks with clear instructions, timely review, and constructive feedback, ensuring deliverables are accurate and on time.
• Collaborate across Ascend Partner Services, escalating cross-functional items as needed and contributing to a strong team culture.

Continuous Improvement

• Bring a mindset of continuous improvement to the close; identify friction in day-to-day work, fix it, and document and share process improvements with the team on a regular basis.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field from an accredited college or university;
  CPA or progress toward CPA licensure preferred.
• 3+ years of progressive accounting experience in public accounting, corporate accounting, or a multi-entity environment, with hands‑on ownership of the month-end close.
• Strong working knowledge of U.S. GAAP, with exposure to ASC 606 and ASC 842 preferred.
• Experience with close management software (FloQast strongly preferred) and a modern ERP; advanced Excel skills.
• Experience supporting external audits and working in a PE-backed, acquisitive, or high-growth environment is a plus.
• Exceptional attention to detail and a commitment to getting it right the first time.
• Proactive communicator who surfaces issues and wins early, with the ability to build strong relationships with stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong organizational, critical thinking, and prioritization skills, with the ability to manage multiple entities and deadlines at once.

At Ascend, we provide a fair and equal employment opportunity for all candidates regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, age, marital status, disability, or any other legally protected characteristic. Ascend hires and promotes individuals solely based on qualifications for the position to be filled and business needs.