The Lead Accounting Subject Matter Expert (SME) serves as the functional authority for accounting and financial business processes throughout the CIS implementation. This individual will represent the Water Revenue Bureau's (WRB) Accounting Division during all phases of the project, including statement of work requirements, solution design, configuration, testing, data conversion, training, cutover planning, and post-go-live stabilization.
The SME is expected to possess extensive knowledge of the City's current Basis2 accounting processes and understand how customer billing, payments, financial transactions, and general ledger activities support the City's water revenue operations.
Key Responsibilities:
Serve as the primary Accounting representative for the CIS implementation project
Provide functional expertise regarding current Basis2 accounting processes and business rules
Define and validate future-state accounting workflows and system functionality
Review and validate functional requirements, design documents, configuration workbooks, and business process documentation
Identify opportunities to standardize, streamline, and improve accounting processes while minimizing customizations
Collaborate with Finance, Customer Service, Billing, Collections, Payment Operations, IT, and vendor implementation teams
Participate in system configuration workshops and design sessions
Validate accounting-related system configurations and ensure compliance with City accounting policies and governmental accounting standards
Support data cleansing, data validation, and financial data conversion activities
Validate financial interfaces, payment settlement processing, reconciliation processes, and General Ledger postings
Assist in developing training materials, standard operating procedures, and end-user documentation
Support cutover planning, production readiness, hyper care, and post-go-live issue resolution.
Work Activities and Essential Functions:
The Lead Accounting Subject Matter Expert (SME) will perform the following activities in support of the Customer Information System (CIS) implementation:
Billing & Revenue Accounting
Validate current and future-state billing and revenue accounting processes
Review billing transactions, revenue recognition, and financial impacts
Validate billing adjustments, reversals, cancel/rebill processing, and account corrections
Verify billing calculations, meter read impacts, and billing exception processing
Ensure accounting requirements are accurately reflected in the configured solution
Payment Processing & Settlement
Validate payment processing across all payment channels, including ACH, lockbox, credit/debit card, and electronic payments
Review payment settlement and reconciliation processes
Validate returned payments, reversals, refunds, and adjustment processing
Verify daily balancing, settlement, and cash reconciliation functionality
Validate payment processing interfaces and related financial transactions
Accounts Receivable
Validate customer accounts receivable balances and financial transactions
Review processing for credits, refunds, write-offs, adjustments, and payment applications
Validate collections-related accounting transactions and financial impacts
Verify aging calculations, receivable balances, and financial reporting
Ensure accounts receivable transactions are processed accurately throughout the customer lifecycle
General Ledger & Financial Integration
Validate General Ledger posting logic and accounting distributions
Review Chart of Accounts mappings and financial transaction processing
Verify journal entries and financial interface transactions
Validate integrations between the CIS and enterprise financial systems
Review month-end, year-end, reconciliation, and revenue reporting processes
Financial Controls & Compliance
Validate accounting controls, audit requirements, and financial compliance
Review segregation of duties and financial security requirements
Verify system controls supporting accurate financial reporting
Validate financial data integrity throughout accounting processes
Identify accounting risks and recommend appropriate resolutions
Solution Design & Configuration
Participate in functional requirements, design, and configuration workshops
Review and validate functional requirements, solution designs, and system configuration
Evaluate proposed system functionality against operational and accounting requirements
Recommend process improvements that leverage standard system functionality
Collaborate with business stakeholders, project teams, vendors, and technical resources to resolve accounting-related issues
Data Conversion
Validate converted customer, billing, payment, accounts receivable, and financial data
Review data reconciliation results and verify accounting accuracy
Validate the completeness and integrity of converted accounting data prior to production
Testing & Quality Assurance
Participate in System Integration Testing, User Acceptance Testing, and other testing activities
Validate end-to-end accounting, billing, payment, and financial business processes
Review testing results and verify resolution of accounting-related defects
Confirm accounting functionality meets business requirements and is ready for production
Go-Live & Post-Implementation Support
Participate in cutover planning and production readiness activities
Provide accounting expertise during go-live and hypercare
Validate production transactions and financial processing following deployment
Assist with issue triage, root cause analysis, and post-implementation stabilization
Confirm accounting operations continue to function accurately following implementation
Requirements
Candidates must possess extensive hands-on experience using the Basis2 Customer Information System within Water Revenue Bureau's accounting operations.
Demonstrated expertise in water utility accounting processes
Thorough understanding of customer billing and revenue accounting
Strong knowledge of payment processing and settlement operations
Experience with Accounts Receivable accounting
Experience validating General Ledger postings and financial reconciliations
Knowledge of governmental accounting principles and financial controls
Experience interpreting accounting transactions and financial reporting
Ability to analyze current business processes and identify improvement opportunities
Ability to translate business requirements into functional system requirements
Ability to evaluate proposed system functionality against operational needs
Experience participating in cross-functional initiatives involving accounting, operations, and technology
Highly Desired/Preferred
Previous participation in a CIS, ERP, billing, or financial system implementation
Experience supporting system testing, including User Acceptance Testing
Experience validating financial data conversions
Knowledge of utility billing and customer information systems
Experience working with system integrators or software vendors
Familiarity with system interfaces, data migration, and reporting validation
Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field CPA or governmental accounting experience is a plus
Soft Skills & Other Requirements:
Strong collaboration and teamwork across business and technical organizations
Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Ability to explain complex accounting concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences
Excellent organizational and time management skills
Ability to prioritize multiple deliverables in a fast-paced project environment
Sound judgment and attention to detail
Ability to influence decisions through subject matter expertise
Adaptability and willingness to embrace organizational change
Customer-focused mindset with a commitment to continuous improvement
Ability to build productive working relationships with project leadership, stakeholders, vendors, and peers
