Administrative Assistant

Houston, Texas | Full-time, in-office, Monday through Friday Reports to: Firm Operations Lead Base salary starting at $45,000 annually, depending on experience and qualifications Position summary Chery Finn CPAs PLLC Houston, Texas | Full-time, in-office, Monday through Friday Reports to: Firm Operations Lead Base salary starting at $45,000 annually, depending on experience and qualifications Position summary Chery Finn CPAs is seeking a dependable and highly organized Administrative Assistant to provide daily administrative support and front-line client service for our Houston CPA firm. This role helps keep communications, documents, scheduling, client onboarding, signatures, billing follow-up, and office needs moving accurately and promptly. The Administrative Assistant will work within established procedures, maintain visibility over assigned open items, and elevate technical, sensitive, or unusual matters rather than allowing them to stall or making unsupported decisions. The right person communicates professionally, notices details, follows through without constant reminders, and is comfortable learning several software systems. This is an administrative and client-service position. It is not a tax preparation, bookkeeping, or technical advisory role. Primary responsibilities Answer incoming calls, welcome visitors, capture complete messages, and route requests promptly and professionally. Monitor and triage assigned shared-inbox messages, identify urgency, prepare approved routine responses, and track follow-up until each item is answered, assigned, or escalated. Communicate clearly and courteously with clients, prospects, vendors, and team members by phone and email. Escalate complaints, technical questions, sensitive matters, and unusual requests to the appropriate person. Scheduling and client coordination Schedule and confirm client meetings, coordinate calendar logistics, and handle routine rescheduling and reminders. Collect prospect information, update approved records, and prepare standard consultation, proposal, or onboarding materials as directed. Help new clients complete engagement, payment, document, portal, and scheduling steps. Maintain accurate client and prospect information in approved systems and checklists. Document and tax-administration support Request, receive, name, save, file, and route documents according to established procedures. Update workflow status, open-item records, next actions, and follow-up dates. Support administrative tax-return steps, including document intake, client approval tracking, e-file signature collection, and delivery of approved final documents. Confirm that required technical approval exists before completing an authorized delivery or filing-related administrative step. Help clients with routine portal, upload-link, and document-submission questions without providing technical tax advice. Billing and office administration Support authorized billing administration, routine payment reminders, failed-payment follow-up, and identification of discrepancies or exceptions requiring review. Process incoming and outgoing mail, scan and route documents, maintain supplies, and complete routine office checks. Support office presentation, visitor readiness, vendor logistics, and purchases within approved procedures and limits. Maintain checklists and document recurring steps while flagging unclear or outdated instructions. Secondary support responsibilities The following are supporting responsibilities and are not the primary focus of the position: Assist with meeting logistics, agenda collection, materials, calendar updates, and recording assigned action items. Support recruiting administration by organizing applications, scheduling interviews, preparing materials, and assisting with approved candidate communications. Support employee and contractor onboarding through approved document collection, workspace preparation, scheduling, materials, introductions, and access-request follow-up. Assist with birthdays, paid holidays, office closures, team activities, recognition, recruiting events, and other approved firm communications or logistics. Required skills and qualifications Clear, professional written and verbal communication. Strong organization, attention to detail, and timely follow-through across multiple open items. Professional judgment when handling confidential client, candidate, employee, and firm information. Ability to prioritize competing requests, recognize urgency, and ask for clarification rather than guess. Comfort learning and working across multiple software platforms, including email, cloud documents, client portals, calendars, spreadsheets, workflow tools, and document-management systems. Ability to follow established procedures, maintain accurate records, and accept feedback. Reliable availability for a full-time, in-office, Monday-through-Friday position in Houston. Preferred experience At least two years of administrative, client-service, or office experience in a professional environment. Experience in a CPA/accounting firm or legal firm. Experience with high-volume client communication, scheduling, document collection, billing support, CRM systems, client portals, or workflow-management tools. Experience working in a deadline-driven environment with seasonal or peak-period demands. Prior experience with every system is not required, but the successful candidate must be comfortable learning new technology and following documented workflows. Role boundaries The Administrative Assistant performs trained and authorized administrative work. The role does not independently: Provide tax, accounting, legal, or other professional advice. Approve tax filings or technical conclusions. Set or change client scope, pricing, discounts, credits, or refunds. Resolve serious billing disputes or client complaints without escalation. Make sensitive personnel, policy, or disciplinary decisions. Approve unusual payments, changed payment instructions, or commitments outside established authority. Compensation and benefits Base salary starting at $45,000 annually, depending on experience and qualifications. Paid time off. 401(k) plan. Paid holidays. What success looks like Within approximately 90 days, the successful candidate should be able to: Handle agreed routine phone, inbox, scheduling, document-intake, filing, and follow-up workflows with decreasing supervision. Communicate with clients and colleagues professionally and accurately. Maintain complete records of assigned work, next actions, and follow-up dates in the correct systems. Keep documents, signatures, scheduling requests, and administrative handoffs from stalling without a visible owner or next step. Recognize urgent, sensitive, technical, or unclear matters and escape them promptly. Follow established procedures consistently while identifying gaps or recurring problems that need clarification. Provide dependable front-desk and administrative coverage for the firm. Work environment This is a full-time, in-office position at the firm's Houston office, Monday through Friday. The role supports a deadline-driven professional-services firm. Work volume and client follow-up may increase during tax filing seasons and other deadline periods. #J-18808-Ljbffr Chery Finn CPAs PLLC