Tax Supervisor

Ascend Partner Firms; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Walter Shuffain in Worcester (Boston area considered) seeks a Tax Supervisor to serve a broad, generalist client base. This hands-on role covers the books and returns, reviews staff work, and owns the final product's quality.

The ideal candidate has 5+ years in public accounting with a generalist tax background; CPA is preferred. This in-office role emphasizes leadership, mentoring junior staff, and delivering excellent client service. Base salary ranges from $100,000 to $120,000.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of public accounting experience with a generalist tax background.
• Hands-on proficiency in general ledger, reconciliations, and adjusting entries.
• Experience in smaller-firm environments with mixed books and returns is preferred.
• Bachelor's in Accounting; CPA Certification preferred.

Responsibilities

• Prepare and review individual, business, and fiduciary tax returns across various industries.
• Perform cleanup work and ensure reliable books before engagements.
• Serve as a generalist across compliance, write-up, and advisory work.
• Plan, coordinate, and supervise engagement phases; own end work product.
• Train, mentor, and evaluate junior staff; provide guidance for growth.
• Interact with clients throughout engagements and build relationships.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Teamwork

Client service

Mentoring

Time management

Education

Bachelor's in Accounting

CPA Certification

Job description

Walter Shuffain is looking to bring on a Tax Supervisor to serve a broad, generalist base of clients. This is a hands-on role for someone equally comfortable in the books and in the return — a professional who can get into general ledger, work through the debits and credits of a cleanup, and carry the engagement through to a filed return. Supervisors at Walter Shuffain are the heart of our team. They carry engagements with little supervision, direct and review the work of staff accountants, and own the quality of the end product.

This position is based in our Worcester office, with candidates in the Boston area also considered. The work is hands-on and the role carries day-to-day guidance for junior staff, so it is an in-office position.

About Walter Shuffain

Established in 1994, WS Advisors is a Boston-based advisory and accounting firm dedicated to delivering thoughtful tax, financial, and business guidance that helps clients make confident, forward-looking decisions. We pride ourselves on a collaborative culture rooted in accountability, respect, responsiveness, and continuous learning, where diverse perspectives are welcomed and individual growth is encouraged.

Recognized for excellence, innovation, and a supportive work environment, WS Advisors has been named an IPA Top 200 Firm, an IPA Fastest Growing Firm, an IPA Best of the Best Firm, and one of Accounting Today's Best Firms to Work For. We invest in our people and foster meaningful careers built on teamwork, integrity, and shared success.

About Ascend

Backed by private equity from people-focused Alpine Investors, Ascend is building a dynamic platform for regional accounting firms that enables them to stay independent while accessing the resources of a Top 25 firm to help them grow. Ascend provides access to growth capital, robust talent acquisition and training, leading quality management resources, best-of-breed technology, AI tools, an offshore captive, shared back-office services, a catalytic leadership system, and modernized equity incentives so that firms can surmount today’s industry challenges to reach their full potential. For more information, visit www.ascendtogether.com.

Essential Functions

• Prepare and review individual, business, and fiduciary tax returns across a broad range of industries and client types.
• When necessary, perform clean-up work for a base of clients — review of general ledger accounts, correcting client records, and posting adjusting entries — so each engagement starts from a reliable set of books.
• Serve as a generalist across the client base, moving between compliance, write-up, and advisory work as client needs require.
• Plan, coordinate, and supervise the phases of assigned engagements and assume responsibility for the end work product.
• Train, mentor, and evaluate junior staff members, providing guidance and support to enhance their professional growth.
• Work directly with clients throughout the engagement, including participation in client meetings, and foster client relationships throughout the year.
• Communicate effectively with clients to understand their needs and deliver exceptional service.
• Maintain the highest technical and professional standards.
• Oversee multiple client engagements across industries, ensuring timely and high-quality deliverables.
• Stay current on industry trends, regulatory changes, and best practices.
• Provide performance feedback and assist in staff evaluations.
• Promote a collaborative and inclusive work environment.

Education, Skills and Experience

• 5+ years of public accounting experience with a generalist tax background.
• Experience in a smaller-firm environment where the role spanned both the books and the return is strongly preferred; a mix of smaller-firm and larger-firm experience is ideal.
• Hands-on proficiency in general leader, including cleanup work, reconciliations, and adjusting entries is nice to have.
• Bachelor's in Accounting; CPA Certification preferred.
• Strong knowledge of accounting principles, practices, and tax regulations.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Must be a team player as well as be able to supervise junior staff.

The annual base salary range for this role is $100,000-120,000. This range includes the anticipated low and high end of Walter Shuffain's salary range for this position. Actual compensation may vary based on various factors, including experience, education and/or skill level.