Manager, Production Accounting

This is a Full Time Job

The successful applicant will be responsible for providing high-level industry support of original content production, along with broader content creation through development of our financial accounting and reporting process for original owned productions. This role will have a high degree of interaction with the company's finance leadership, production and executive teams. The candidate must be hands-on, entrepreneurial, passionate about content and physical production, quick-thinking, elastic, able to pivot when necessary, systematic, has impeccable ethics, and is able to juggle multiple and diverse projects with a strong emphasis on organization and an unwavering attention to detail. The candidate will execute on a vision to develop a world class production finance operations team, comprising of its people, systems and policies.

This individual should demonstrate a high aptitude for critical thinking and analysis, tax credit, financial systems and labor/union foundational knowledge. You will be a part of a dynamic and creative SPT Production Finance team working directly with our production business units. The successful candidate will be a strategic partner to management teams enterprise wide. He/she should be extremely comfortable counseling business partners and influencing them towards decisions that have a valued business impact. The successful will work closely with freelance accountants during the course of production to provide compliance support.

Essential Responsibilities
• Effectively manage the financial operations and cost reporting for assigned productions.
• Administer the financial on-boarding and off-boarding process for the various productions including supporting pre-production, post and wrap accounting inclusive of reporting, payroll, A/P, petty cash, journal entries, p-card activity and collection of receivables & deposits.
• Hire and Manage production accountants and assistants, coordinate show budgeting and production accounting process with accountants.
• Manage the set-up of show accounting system using appropriate payroll software.
• Ensure standard accounting procedures are met and oversee daily/weekly show cost reporting.
• Assist with implementing tax, labor and sourcing policies and objectives.
• Manage production cash flow and support the weekly and quarterly corporate financial accounting and corporate cash management processes.
• Implement and ensure uniform budget policies.
• Key financial management liaison between production executives, show accountants, show producer/UPM, and corporate finance.
• Ensure that the SPT financial controllership and production policies and procedures are uniformly implemented operationally and that payroll/AP/Reporting are in accordance with standards established by SPT.
• Liaise with Labor Relations, Production Finance, Internal Audit, Finance Ops, Treasury, and IT to ensure policies are current and effectively implemented.
• Identify problem and/or issues as quickly as possible including breakdown in communication between departments, UPMs, producers and accountants. Furthermore, inform Labor Relations of payroll issues with potential exposure to penalties.
• Approve and authorize various accounting procedures.
• Assist in the training and mentoring of Prep/Wrap Accountants and other staff members with the goal of developing stellar talent.
• Maintain knowledge of current industry trends pertaining to union MOA updates, rate increases and compliance issues.
• Liaise with corporate tax, production audit, controllership, production and government relations teams to ensure proper compliance, including refreshing studio documentation and desktop procedures.
• Perform ad-hoc projects as required.

Technical Skills:
• Intermediate experience with Excel and other Microsoft / Apple products.
• Intermediate knowledge of Vista, Smart Accounting, PSL and related production accounting applications.
• SAP experience preferred but not required.

Basic Qualifications
• Education: BA/BS degree or equivalent graduate degree preferred.
• Candidate must have 5+ years of film and/or television industry production accounting experience

Eligibility Requirements:
• Willingness to travel (domestic and international) and work extended hours if needed.
• Must be willing to submit to background check.
• Must have work authorization to work in the United States.
• Must be 18 years or older.
• Must be willing to work in Culver City, CA.
• Interested candidates must submit a resume/CV online to be considered.

Desired Characteristics
• Excellent communication skills, written / verbal, and ability to interact with employees at all levels, including upper management.
• Passionate about original programming with a keen interest in building and refining new business models.
• Robust understanding of payroll process, union labor agreements and tax requirements.
• Proven ability to lead and manage teams of 3+ employees.
• Candidates are required to be highly analytical, as well as strong effective communicators.
• High aptitude and enthusiasm for complex problem solving and analysis utilizing financial applications, including great Excel skills.
• He/she must thrive in a fast-paced environment, possess a high level of academic curiosity, focus on generating results and exhibit the highest personal and professional standards of integrity and ethics.