Finance Operations Role - Consulting Firm
Job Description
- Design and document Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all recurring bookkeeping and compliance activities.
- Drive adoption of standardised templates, working papers, checklists, and reporting formats across the team and the client portfolio.
- Establish clear service-delivery standards, including turnaround time norms, review layers, and escalation protocols.
- Conduct periodic process audits to identify deviations and drive corrective actions.
2. Planning & Execution of Compliance Calendar :
- Maintain a comprehensive, account-level compliance and filing calendar covering all statutory due dates across the portfolio.
- Plan team workload at least 4-6 weeks ahead of due dates to ensure adequate capacity and no last-minute crunches.
- Track task progress daily/weekly, identify bottlenecks early, and re-allocate resources to maintain on-time delivery across all accounts.
- Escalate capacity or complexity issues to leadership promptly with a proposed resolution plan.
3. Client Management & Communication :
- Act as the primary relationship manager for an assigned portfolio of 10-20 client accounts on ongoing bookkeeping and compliance retainers.
- Conduct regular structured interactions with clients - status calls, monthly review meetings, and ad-hoc queries - ensuring a high-touch, professional service experience.
- Anticipate client needs, surface issues proactively, and escalate risks before they materialise.
- Coordinate client onboarding, data requests, and document collection in a systematic, low-friction manner.
- Identify and flag scope creep on a timely basis.
4. Review & Quality Control :
- Review all bookkeeping entries, reconciliations, financial statements, and compliance workpapers prepared by the team before client submission or regulatory filing.
- Maintain a zero-defect mindset - implement multi-layer review checklists and sign-off protocols for all deliverables.
- Coach and mentor team members through review observations, turning corrections into structured learning moments.
- Track and report team-level error rates and turnaround times as KPIs for continuous quality improvement.
5. Statutory Filings & Proactive Client Advisories :
- Maintain a master register of all statutory filing obligations (GST, TDS, Income Tax, ROC, PF, ESI, PT, and others as applicable) for each client.
- Circulate advance-notice advisories to clients at least 7-14 days ahead of critical due dates, along with data requirements and action checklists.
- Review draft filings for accuracy, completeness, and regulatory alignment before submission.
- Monitor regulatory changes and update clients and the internal team on implications and revised timelines.
6. AI & Automation Implementation :
- Identify high-volume, repetitive tasks (data entry, bank reconciliations, GST return preparation, payroll inputs, etc.) that are prime candidates for automation.
- Lead evaluation and deployment of AI-assisted tools and automation workflows (RPA, accounting software integrations, AI-driven data extraction) to reduce manual effort.
- Collaborate with technology partners or internal teams to configure and test automation solutions before rollout.
- Track efficiency gains from automation (time saved, error reduction) and report them as part of team performance metrics.
- Champion a culture of digital adoption within the team and stay updated on emerging tools in accounting technology
