| JOB SUMMARY: |
As the newest Senior Manager of Accounts Payable at NORC at the University of Chicago, you’ll help lead a high-performing team responsible for the full lifecycle of AP operations—from invoice processing and vendor management to payment execution and compliance. This is a strategic and hands-on leadership role where you'll drive operational excellence, implement process improvements, and ensure adherence to federal and organizational standards.
You’ll be a key partner to senior leadership, delivering insights through performance metrics and supporting system upgrades and audits. Your expertise will shape policies and procedures, enhance automation, and ensure seamless month-end and year-end close activities. If you're energized by fast-paced environments, passionate about team development, and eager to explore new technologies, this role offers a dynamic opportunity to make a lasting impact.
This position is based in our Chicago Loop office with a hybrid arrangement (i.e., 2 day in-office).
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| DEPARTMENT: Accounting |
Accounting is the backbone of NORC’s financial health and strategy, helping to transform numbers into insights and opportunities. NORC’s accounting team is committed to ongoing process improvement and smart internal controls, as well as productive and collaborative relationships with teams across NORC to ensure that the organization thrives.
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| RESPONSIBILITIES: |
- Manage full-cycle accounts payable processes, including invoice processing, vendor management, and payment execution.
- Supervise Accounts Payable staff, fostering a culture of collaboration and accountability.
- Create, document, and enforce policies, procedures, and best practices to ensure operational excellence.
- Track key AP performance indicators and metrics, delivering trends and insights to senior leadership.
- Monitor and review weekly pay cycles and handle emergency payments as needed.
- Provide oversight for Concur, including the Intelligent Audit tool and other enhancements.
- Prepare and provide documentation ready for audits.
- Manage month-end and year-end closing activities related to accounts payable, including accruals and reconciliations.
- Support ERP and AP system upgrades, maintenance, or implementations.
- Oversee all 1099 compliance, remaining up to date on any new requirements.
- Complete cash draws for certain federal agencies and update procedures to comply with Defend the Spend and other federal initiatives.
- Review and post daily cash receipts; serve as backup related to daily cash reporting.
- Oversee all aspects of the Procurement Card (P-Card) and Corporate Card programs.
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| REQUIRED SKILLS: |
- Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or a related field.
- 7+ years of progressive accounts payable experience, including 5+ years in a managerial or supervisory role.
- Proven leadership in team development, performance management, and coaching.
- Curious about and willing to explore new tech tools.
- Demonstrated success implementing process improvements, automation, and internal controls.
- Motivated by and thrives in a fast-paced environment with frequent ad hoc requests.
- Advanced Microsoft Excel skills: ability to analyze and visualize financial data.
- Excellent problem-solving, communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience with travel reimbursement and AP in a government contracting environment.
- Experience with Deltek Costpoint, SPO workflows and Concur with Intelligent Audit.
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| SALARY AND BENEFITS: |
The pay range for this position is $97,000 - $147,000.
Hybrid work model in the heart of Chicago.
This position is classified as regular. Regular staff are eligible for NORC’s comprehensive benefits program. Benefits include, but are not limited to:
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Generously subsidized health insurance, effective on the first day of employment
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Dental and vision insurance
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A defined contribution retirement program, along with a separate voluntary 403(b) retirement program
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Group life insurance, long-term and short-term disability insurance
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Benefits that promote work/life balance, including generous paid time off, holidays; paid parental leave, bereavement leave, tuition assistance, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
NORC’s Approach to Equity and Transparency
Pay and benefits transparency helps to reduce wage gaps. As part of our commitment to pay equity and salary transparency, NORC includes a salary range for each job opening along with information about eligible benefit offerings. At NORC, we take a comprehensive approach to setting salary ranges and reviewing raises and promotions, which is overseen by a formal Salary Review Committee (SRC).
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| WHAT WE DO: |
NORC at the University of Chicago is an objective, non-partisan research institution that delivers reliable data and rigorous analysis to guide critical programmatic, business, and policy decisions. Since 1941, our teams have conducted groundbreaking studies, created and applied innovative methods and tools, and advanced principles of scientific integrity and collaboration. Today, government, corporate, and nonprofit clients around the world partner with us to transform increasingly complex information into useful knowledge.
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| WHO WE ARE: |
For over 80 years, NORC has evolved in many ways, moving the needle with research methods, technical applications and groundbreaking research findings. But our tradition of excellence, passion for innovation, and commitment to collegiality have remained constant components of who we are as a brand, and who each of us is as a member of the NORC team. With world-class benefits, a business casual environment, and an emphasis on continuous learning, NORC is a place where people join for the stellar research and analysis work for which we’re known, and stay for the relationships they form with their colleagues who take pride in the impact their work is making on a global scale.
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| EEO STATEMENT: |
NORC is an equal opportunity employer. NORC evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, sexual orientation, and other legally protected characteristics.
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