Accounting Specialist - Biscayne Bay Campus

Florida International University is a Top 50, preeminent public research university with 55,000 students from all 50 states and more than 140 countries, as well as an alumni network of more than 340,000. Located in the global city of Miami, the university offers more than 200 degree programs at the undergraduate, graduate and professional levels, including medicine and law. FIU faculty are leaders in their fields and include National Academy members, Fulbright Scholars and MacArthur Genius Fellows. A Carnegie R1 institution, FIU drives impactful research in environmental resilience, health and technology and innovation. Home to the Wall of Wind and Institute of Environment, FIU stands at the forefront of discovery and innovation. With a focus on student success, economic mobility and community engagement, FIU is redefining what it means to be a public research university.

The Accounting Specialist serves as a key operational contributor to the Finance team at the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management (CSHTM), ensuring the financial integrity and compliance of daily operations. This role is responsible for managing the procure-to-pay lifecycle, including processing credit card authorizations, liaising with hospitality partners for folio reconciliation, and auditing Travel Authorizations (TA) and Expense Reports (ER) for policy adherence. The Accounting Specialist actively
manages departmental reimbursements involved with University and Foundation funds and ensures strict adherence to PCI compliance standards. Working closely with the Director, the incumbent analyzes financial data to support strategic decision-making and assists in the preparation of the annual budget and monthly financial close activities.

• Maintains and updates complex financial spreadsheets, including transaction logs and reconciliation templates, to accurately track expenses, cash flow, and key performance indicators (KPIs) for departmental review.
• Performs data entry and other office functions including monitoring invoices, following up for payments, maintaining records, logs, and files.
• Liaises with external hospitality partners (hotels/venues) to execute credit card authorizations and secure post-stay folios, ensuring accurate billing and documentation for events and travel.
• Reconciles credit card statements, identifies discrepancies, and flags issues for resolution.
• Prepares and processes reimbursement packages for Direct Support Organizations (DSO/Foundation), ensuring strict adherence to donor requirements and documentation standards for timely fund transfers.
• Assists in the preparation of the annual budget package. Performs budgetary transactions for CSHTM, including the generation of Smart Bills, Journals IDs and budget amendments.
• Prepares and supports creating Travel Authorizations (TA) and Expense Reports (ER) forms for faculty/administrators, ensuring compliance and completeness.
• Serves as the vendors, faculty, staff, administration primary contact or technical contact; Handles sensitive cardholder information and/or processes credit cards transactions for the department/unit; Will have access to a third party system (software, gateway, etc.) that processes, transmits, and/or stores cardholder information
• Coordinates the procurement lifecycle, including the submission of requisitions, creation of purchase orders, and receiving of goods. Monitors vendor payments to ensure timely disbursement and maintains accurate procurement records.

High school diploma or equivalent and three (3) years of accounting/bookkeeping experience; OR an equivalent combination of relevant education and/or experience.

• Experience with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, particularly PeopleSoft Financials (for requisitions, POs, and journals) and travel management systems (for TAs and ERs).
• Intermediate to advanced skills in Microsoft Excel, specifically the ability to create and manage pivot tables, VLOOKUPs, and complex formulas to track expenses and reconcile accounts.
• Prior experience generating or processing Smart Bills and internal billing transactions within a university or large organizational setting.
• Demonstrated experience managing the full requisition-to-payment cycle, including creating purchase orders, verifying goods receipts, and resolving invoice discrepancies with vendors.

Staff

Begin time: 8:30 AM

End time: 5:00 PM

Required to spend 50% or more of time operating a computer

Expanded Background Check

• Ability to work flexible hours as needed.
• Ability to travel locally

Current Employee

As a current employee, you must log into Employee Self Service (ESS) to apply for this and any other internal career opportunity of interest. In this account, you are able to track your applicant status in "My Applications".

To be considered eligible for the position as an internal candidate, departmental staff must meet minimum requirements of the position and be in good performance standing.

Before you begin the process, we recommend that you are prepared to attach electronic copies of your resume/ curriculum vitae, cover letter or any other documents within the application process. It is recommended that you combine your cover letter and resume into one attachment. Attached documents should be in Microsoft Word or PDF format.

*This posting will close at 12:00 am of the close date.

Prospective Employee

If you have not created a registered account, you will be asked to create a username and password for use of the system. It is recommended that you provide an active/valid e-mail account as that will be the main source of communication regarding your status within the process. In this account, you are able to track your applicant status in "My Applications".

To be considered eligible for the position as an internal candidate, departmental staff must meet minimum requirements of the position and be in good performance standing.

Before you begin the process, we recommend that you are prepared to attach electronic copies of your resume, cover letter or any other documents within the application process. It is recommended that you combine your cover letter and resume/curriculum vitae into one attachment. Attached documents should be in Microsoft Word or PDF format. All applicants are required to complete the online application including work history and educational details (if applicable), even when attaching a resume.

*This posting will close at 12:00 am of the close date.

Since 1945, the Florida Legislature has made a provision to give preference in the hiring process to United States war veterans in recognition of their military, naval, or air service who meet specific conditions. The conditions are as follows:

• Veterans with a VA service-connected disability
• Spouses of veterans with permanent and total service-connected disability
• Honorably discharged veterans with wartime service.
• Unmarried widow or widower of a veteran who died as a result of a service-connected disability
• A veteran who has served in a qualifying campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized, to include the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

Florida International University honors this policy and will comply with Veterans' Preference guidelines when filling staff positions. Any applicant claiming Veterans' Preference will be required to attach a DD214 with each application submitted for verification.

If there are any questions concerning Veterans' Preference, please contact Talent Acquisition & Management by calling 305-348-2500.
For additional information on Veterans' Preference, visit http://www.floridavets.org/.

Clery Notice

In compliance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act, the University Police department at Florida International University provides information on crimes statistics, crime prevention, law enforcement, crime reporting, and other related issues for the past three (3) calendar years. The FIU Annual Security report is available online at: https://police.fiu.edu/download/annual-security-fire-safety-report/.

To obtain a paper copy of the report, please visit the FIU Police Department located at 885 SW 109th Avenue, Miami, FL, 33199 (PG5 Market Station).

Pay Transparency

Florida International University will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information.

FIU is a State University System of Florida member, Equal Opportunity, Equal Access, and Affirmative Action Employer for individuals with disabilities and veterans. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status. For inquiries regarding nondiscrimination, contact FIU's Office of Civil Rights Compliance and Accessibility at 305.348.2785 or email ocrca@fiu.edu.