Finance Manager

Location: Boston, MA

Reports to: Chief Finance and Operations Officer

Start Date: Immediate

Compensation: $64,000 - $68,000 / year, plus a generous benefits package; more information can be found below.

Who We Are

At Steppingstone, our mission is to prepare students from under-resourced communities to access, navigate and graduate from college.

• In Boston, we provide academic, social-emotional, and college readiness programming from as early as fifth grade and continuing through college graduation through the Steppingstone Scholars Program (SSP).
• Nationally, we connect the people, practices, and innovations essential for eliminating barriers to college and career success, through the National Partnership for Educational Access (NPEA).

Our Core Values

• Mission First

Keep Scholars front and center in all we do.

Lead with Inclusion - Elevate every voice, consider every perspective.

Stronger Together - Team up and trust each other.

Own It - Act with integrity, stay accountable, and be transparent.

Learn. Grow. Innovate. - Embrace change, drive creativity, and never stop learning.

Who You Are:

The Finance Manager is a member of the organization’s Finance team and works closely with the Chief Finance and Operations Officer (CFOO) to provide critical financial information, resources and support to the Steppingstone team. This position involves managing or supporting all finance and accounting functions, including budgeting, bookkeeping, financial reporting, and compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The Finance Manager will ensure timely and accurate financial statements, manage the general ledger, and implement financial controls to safeguard assets. Additionally, this role will assist in the preparation for audits and may liaise with external auditors to ensure compliance. This role is also responsible for processing the organization’s biweekly payroll.

Essential Functions of the Role:

Below are the core responsibilities of the Finance Manager at Steppingstone. This list is not meant to be exhaustive; the Finance Manager may perform other duties as assigned or required.

Maintaining Accurate Financial Records

• Review accounts payable transactions in Bill.com and resolve discrepancies as they arise;
• Make other journal entries and enter data as needed into QuickBooks; review accounts receivable, cash receipts & other revenue transactions in QuickBooks according to approved procedures;
• Perform reconciliations for review and approval, e.g. monthly bank statements, credit card statements, reconciling Quickbooks to Salesforce;
• Manage the monthly, quarterly and annual closing processes to finalize financial records systematically;

Financial Reporting

• Generate accurate financial statements including the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement; perform initial analysis and share key takeaways with the CFOO;
• Assist with the preparation of various financial reports and analyses as needed;

Payroll + Financial Management

• Process bi-weekly payroll for the organization; flag anomalies in payroll preview and raise with the CFOO to resolve ahead of finalizing payroll;
• Field questions from employees about paychecks;
• Prepare financial performance metrics, prepare reports for senior management, and provide insights into operational costs, trends, and opportunities for cost savings;
• Budgeting and Forecasting
• Support the creation and management of the organization’s budget;
• Prepare budget variance reports; Compare actual expenditure to budgets, examining discrepancies; report discrepancies to the CFOO; work with managers to adjust forecasts as directed;
• Prepare other budget analyses as needed;
• Internal Controls
• Develop and enforce internal controls to safeguard assets and ensure the accuracy of financial reporting;
• Identify and address potential financial risks within the organization’s finance and accounting processes.

Audit and Compliance Support

• Ensure adherence to financial policies, regulatory requirements and internal controls;
• Ensure that financial reports comply with regulatory standards (e.g., GAAP, IFRS).
• Ensure that the necessary documentation and financial records are available and organized for audits;
• Support the timely preparation and filing of tax returns, adhering to local, state, and federal regulations.

General Finance Operations Support

• Advise team members across the organization on team/departmental finance-related processes;
• Support the implementation of team/department-specific finance-related processes as necessary, e.g. supporting the NPEA team with invoicing;
• Create and maintain accurate, detailed, internal process documentation for this role.
• Foster an environment where employees know what information is available to them, understand how to find it, and are encouraged and incentivized to utilize the knowledge-sharing tools that are in place; develop communication and training programs to raise awareness of knowledge management initiatives and encourage participation;
• Own the creation and maintenance of Finance-focused knowledge management resources (e.g. finance-related content on SteppingZone).

To Apply: Please read the Requirements in the sections below prior to submitting an application. Please submit your resume and thoughtful cover letter.

Employee Compensation & Benefits:

Compensation Philosophy

At Steppingstone, we believe in compensating staff members fairly in relation to each other, their qualifications, and their impact on behalf of the organization. As a result, to ensure organizational parity, Steppingstone does not negotiate salary offers; instead each salary offer is determined carefully using external and internal benchmarking. If you have questions, we welcome you to raise them during the hiring process.

Benefits

Steppingstone also provides competitive, comprehensive benefits. While Steppingstone reserves the right to change benefits at any time, current benefits include:

• Generous paid time off (over 8 weeks total, as outlined below)
• 15 days PTO
• 2 days Discretionary Time Off
• 5 wellness days

1. 5 holidays

• 2 weeks paid office closure (the weeks before Labor Day and New Year’s Day)
• $500 Home Office Set-up Stipend; plus $50 quarterly
• Health, Dental and Vision coverage
• Life, Short-Term and Long-Term disability insurance
• Healthcare Reimbursement Account Plan (HRA)
• Pet Insurance
• Flexible Schedule
• Retirement Plan
• Tuition & Professional Development reimbursement
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Health and Dependent Care
• Pre-tax Transportation Plan (Transit & Parking)
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Membership to the National Partnership for Educational Access (NPEA)

A candidate will be found unsuitable for employment with Steppingstone and automatically disqualified if they use threatening language or behavior either written, verbal, or physical during any phase of the interview process.

Steppingstone is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate against any individual, employee, or application for employment in accordance with law.

Requirements

Hybrid Schedule:

This position is a hybrid role with 2 to 3 days per week in office with some flexibility around work hours. A $500 home office set-up stipend will be provided upon hire, followed by quarterly stipends of $50. Laptops are provided to each employee to enhance the hybrid experience.

Education, Experience and Skills:

Required

• Bachelor's Degree in Accounting, Finance, or related field;
• 3-5 years of experience in finance or accounting;
• Comprehensive understanding of basic accounting principles and practices;
• Strong technical skills and general comfort with technology;
• Proficient in Google Workspace;
• Experience with finance, accounting and related software;
• Intermediate Excel skills for budgeting, forecasting, and financial modeling, including demonstrated proficiency with pivot tables, VLOOKUP, and complex formulas;

Preferred

• Related certifications such as CPA (Certified Public Accountant) or CMA (Certified Management Accountant);
• 3-5 years of experience in finance or accounting in non-profit, government, or similar sectors;
• Experience with Paylocity, Quickbooks, Bill.com; comfort with Asana for project and task management;
• Advanced Excel skills for budgeting, forecasting, and financial modeling, including demonstrated proficiency with pivot tables, VLOOKUP, and complex formulas
• Experience in the non-profit or education field.
• Demonstrated commitment to educational access and success;

Competencies Required for Success in the Role:

• Supports peers’ growth through shared expertise, collaboration, and reliability; models accountability by taking responsibility for own actions and decisions;
• Anticipates potential challenges and opportunities in projects or program delivery; offers insights to improve alignment with strategic priorities.
• Tests and refines innovative approaches within their functional area and uses data and feedback to refine and improve practices;
• Finds common ground and shares information and best practices; seeks input from others to improve results;
• Tailors communication to different audiences, conveying complex information clearly; provides constructive feedback, encourages open dialogue, and facilitates effective information-sharing;
• Maintains focus on tasks and goals; follows through on commitments and actively improves performance based on feedback;
• Manages multiple priorities independently; solves problems to keep projects moving. Monitors and evaluates progress of plan or project, making adjustments as needed to achieve desired outcome;
• Anticipates potential problems before they occur and proposes viable solutions.

Physical demands:

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to work at a desk, communicate information, move about the office, operate office equipment and utilize a computer for extended periods of time.

Pursuant to the ADA, Steppingstone will provide reasonable services and accommodation(s) to employees with qualified disabilities in order to perform the essential functions of their employment, except when doing so would be unduly disruptive and/or result in undue hardship to the organization.

Travel required: For the purposes of payroll and other related job functions, this role may be required to travel to program locations that are not easily accessible by public transport (currently Milton, MA and Jamaica Plain, MA, though program locations are subject to change) and other events in the greater Boston area.