AUDIT PARTNER

We are hiring an Audit Partner to lead a government audit practice — a book built on Yellow Book engagements and Single Audits for states, counties, cities, special districts, school districts, housing authorities, transit agencies, and the nonprofits that carry federal awards. This is a partner seat with real ownership. You will own client relationships, sign opinions, set the technical direction of the practice, and lead a delivery team split between the United States and India. It is a build-and-run role, not a caretaker role: the practice is growing, the offshore capability is central to how that growth is delivered, and the person in this seat shapes both. Why This Role Exists Now Three changes have reshaped government audit practice, and they are the reason this seat is open: The 2024 Yellow Book revision. The first major update to Government Auditing Standards since 2018 is now in effect, and it lands squarely on quality management and engagement-level documentation. The Single Audit threshold moved to $1 million. Effective for fiscal years ending on or after September 30, 2025, the Uniform Guidance threshold rose from $750,000. It reshaped the client base at both ends — some entities fell out of scope, while others crossed in as federal funding grew. Quality management standards took effect. SQMS No. 1 became effective December 15, 2025, with SQMS No. 2 governing engagement quality reviews and SAS 146 addressing engagement-level responsibilities. Firms performing GAGAS engagements apply the quality management requirements in Government Auditing Standards. What You Will Own Engagement leadership and opinions Serve as engagement partner on financial statement audits performed under GAAS and Government Auditing Standards (Yellow Book), and on Single Audits performed under Uniform Guidance. Take final responsibility for audit opinions, reports on internal control over financial reporting and on compliance, and the schedule of findings and questioned costs. Approve major-program determination and risk assessment, and resolve judgment calls on compliance requirements, questioned costs, and finding disposition. Own engagement economics: scoping, realization, budget-to-actual, and the decision to walk away from work that cannot be performed profitably or independently. Leading the India-based team This is the part of the role that distinguishes it, and it is the part most candidates will not have done at partner level. The offshore team is not a back office you hand files to — it performs substantive audit procedures, and that carries specific obligations you will personally carry: Supervision cannot be delegated. Professional standards require the firm to plan and supervise the work of anyone performing procedures on the engagement, wherever they sit. Signing an opinion on work you did not adequately direct and review is the single largest risk in this model. GAGAS CPE reaches the offshore team. Every auditor who plans, directs, performs procedures for, or reports on a GAGAS engagement must complete 80 hours of CPE every two years — at least 20 hours in each year, and at least 24 hours in subjects directly related to government auditing or the government environment. That requirement follows the work, not the passport. You will be accountable for the offshore team meeting it. Client confidentiality and consent. Before client information reaches a third-party service provider, the firm must either hold a confidentiality agreement meeting professional requirements or obtain the client's consent. Professional standards draw no distinction between a provider three miles away and one on another continent. Government clients frequently have their own contractual and statutory restrictions layered on top. Build the review discipline that makes the model work: workpaper standards, documentation expectations, review-note turnaround, and a real overlap window across a roughly 12.5-hour time difference. Develop the offshore team technically — governmental accounting is not intuitive to auditors trained on commercial engagements, and fund accounting, GASB reporting, and Uniform Guidance compliance testing have to be taught deliberately. Quality and technical direction Set the practice's positions on GASB implementation, Yellow Book independence for nonaudit services, and Uniform Guidance interpretation. Own peer review readiness and remediation for the government practice, and serve as or coordinate engagement quality reviews where required. Maintain independence in fact and appearance, including the documented evaluation and safeguards required when nonaudit services are provided to an audit client. Growth and client development Own and expand a portfolio of government and nonprofit clients, including RFP responses and competitive procurements — the dominant route to government work. Maintain relationships with state auditor offices, approved-firm lists, and grantor agencies where applicable. Represent the firm in the government finance community: GFOA, AGA, state societies, and client-facing training. People Recruit, develop, and retain audit professionals in both locations; own promotion and compensation recommendations for your team. Mentor managers and senior auditors toward director and partner, including those on the India team. What We Are Looking For Required Active CPA license in good standing, with the ability to be licensed in the states where you will sign opinions. Ten or more years of public accounting audit experience, with a substantial and recent concentration in government and single audit work. Demonstrated engagement-partner or senior-manager-ready experience on Yellow Book engagements and Single Audits — not incidental exposure, but ownership. Current on the 2024 Yellow Book revision, the revised Uniform Guidance, and the quality management standards now in effect. Compliance with GAGAS CPE requirements, including the government-specific hours. Working command of GASB reporting: fund financial statements, government-wide conversion, and the recent standards your clients are implementing. Experience supervising or reviewing the work of an offshore or geographically distributed audit team. Strongly preferred Experience carrying a book of business and winning work through government RFP processes. Direct experience building or restructuring an offshore delivery model — the workpaper standards, review protocols, and training pipeline, not just the staffing. Peer review experience, as reviewer or as the partner responsible for the firm's response. Presence in the government finance community: speaking, committee service, or published technical work. #J-18808-Ljbffr Nelson Connects