Staff Accountant

Location
Bolingbrook,IL

Description

ESC has an exciting opportunity for a Staff Accountant to support a corporate Accounting team within a dynamic business environment in Bolingbrook, IL . This 10-month contract role is ideal for an experienced accounting professional who thrives in a fast-paced environment and enjoys supporting capital projects, fixed asset accounting, and month-end close activities. This position will initially support the Project Accounting function before transitioning into Fixed Asset Accounting responsibilities as business needs evolve, partnering closely with cross-functional teams to ensure accurate financial reporting, compliance, and operational excellence. This role is hybrid , with an onsite schedule of Tuesday-Thursday, every other week (6 days in-office per month).

Job Description:

• Support monthly accounting close activities, including preparing journal entries, account reconciliations, variance analysis, and financial reporting.
• Provide accounting support for Project Accounting initiatives before transitioning into Fixed Asset Accounting responsibilities.
• Review IT project invoices, timesheets, contracts, and supporting documentation to validate software capitalization eligibility in accordance with company accounting policies.
• Create and maintain capital projects and project master data within SAP S/4HANA , ensuring accurate setup and documentation.
• Track project funding approvals, incremental funding requests, fund transfers, and maintain complete audit documentation.
• Review and approve project contracts and Statements of Work (SOWs) submitted through procurement workflows, ensuring compliance with capitalization policies.
• Monitor accounting support requests, research system issues, troubleshoot errors, and partner with business stakeholders to resolve accounting and ERP-related questions.
• Process Construction-in-Progress (CIP) settlements by placing completed capital projects into service and coordinating rollout schedules with business partners.
• Calculate fixed asset disposals, write-offs, and retirements while maintaining accurate accounting records.
• Perform periodic reviews of asset activity to validate additions, disposals, and depreciation-related transactions.
• Prepare depreciation reporting packages, acquisition reviews, exclusion analyses, and asset reporting.
• Conduct ongoing reviews of Construction-in-Progress activity to ensure expenditures meet capitalization requirements under U.S. GAAP.
• Prepare monthly expense project reporting and communicate financial results to business partners.
• Partner closely with Finance, IT, Procurement, and other cross-functional teams to support accounting operations and resolve financial issues.
• Assist with ad hoc accounting projects, financial analysis, reporting, and process improvement initiatives as assigned.

Must Have Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance.
• 2-4+ years of professional accounting experience.
• Experience supporting month-end close activities, including journal entries, account reconciliations, and variance analysis.
• Strong understanding of U.S. GAAP and accounting internal controls.
• Experience working with SAP S/4HANA or another large ERP system ( SAP strongly preferred ).
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including Pivot Tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, and data analysis functions.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills with exceptional attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, meet deadlines, and work independently in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to collaborate across multiple business functions.

Nice to Have Qualifications:

• Experience with Project Accounting , Software Capitalization , Fixed Asset Accounting , Construction-in-Progress (CIP) , or Capital Project Accounting .
• Experience with Ariba or similar procurement/workflow systems.
• Experience supporting IT or capital investment projects.
• Knowledge of depreciation processes, asset lifecycle management, and fixed asset reporting.
• Experience identifying process improvements within accounting operations.
• Ability to quickly learn new accounting processes and transition between responsibilities as business needs evolve.