ABOUT THE FIRM
We are a global investment management firm reimagining what the next-generation investment organization should look like. As artificial intelligence, automation, data systems, and evolving market structure reshape the industry, we believe the traditional asset management operating model is due for reinvention.
We are investing aggressively in the people, infrastructure, workflows, and technologies that will define that future business model — one that is more intelligent, adaptive, scalable, and integrated across investing, trading, operations, and decision-making.
Accounting and financial operations sit closer to the center of that evolution than most firms recognize. Billing, reconciliation, and financial reporting are not back-office formalities — they are the system of record that everything else depends on, and the function where automation, clean data, and well-designed workflows compound into firmwide leverage. We are actively rebuilding how this function operates: replacing manual, spreadsheet-bound processes with automated, auditable, and scalable systems.
This is an environment for builders, problem-solvers, and intellectually curious operators who want to help shape the future state of the investment industry.
THE ROLE
We are seeking an Accounting Platform Associate to help build and evolve how the firm runs its financial operations — combining core accounting work across billing, receivables, and reconciliation with the design of the workflows, controls, and automation that make those processes faster, cleaner, and more scalable.
Our team is actively exploring how AI, automation, and integrated data systems can transform financial operations — from automated reconciliation and exception handling to performance-based billing logic and self-updating reporting. This role sits directly at the intersection of accounting discipline and platform development, where the person doing the work also redesigns how it gets done.
The ideal candidate understands the mechanics of accounting deeply — how cash, billing, and the general ledger actually tie out — and also sees where manual effort, fragile spreadsheets, and disconnected systems create risk and drag. They want to fix those things, not just live with them. The role offers broad exposure across operations, technology, and investment teams, and a direct hand in shaping how a modern investment firm's financial backbone is built.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Design and build improved financial workflows across billing, receivables, payables, and reconciliation — turning manual, repetitive processes into automated, auditable, and scalable systems.
- Collaborate across teams to integrate financial data and systems into firmwide reporting and drive the evolution of financial operations by developing AI-enabled tools that streamline processes, reduce manual touchpoints and surface issues early.
- Lead the full billing cycle, including monthly, quarterly, and performance-based billings, ensuring accurate and timely billing and oversee account setup to maintain data integrity from the onset.
- Manage accounts payable, accounts receivable, and collections while improving processes for efficiency and scalability.
- Own cash and general ledger reconciliations, enhancing processes and strengthening internal controls to improve accuracy, efficiency, and audit readiness.
- Prepare and deliver financial reporting on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, and ad hoc basis, including regulatory filings (1099s, LM-10, and similar), while building toward reporting that updates itself.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience in accounting or financial operations — ideally including high-volume A/R and A/P — within an asset management, financial services, or comparably rigorous environment.
- Familiarity with the billing and reconciliation lifecycle and financial reporting requirements, with genuine interest in how that lifecycle can evolve through automation and better-designed systems.
- Comfort working with accounting and financial systems — strong Excel, and experience with platforms such as Geneva, QuickBooks, Concur, or comparable tools — not just using them, but improving how they are used.
- Strong working knowledge of billing and financial concepts and the ability to handle multiple priorities accurately in a deadline-driven environment.
- A bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, business, operations, or a related field; relevant professional progress or certification is a plus but not a substitute for capability.
- Analytical mindset with the ability to evaluate tradeoffs, identify inefficiencies, and contribute to operational and process improvements.
- Strong communication skills, an ownership mentality, and willingness to challenge existing assumptions constructively.
Experience with workflow tools, automation, analytics, or process improvement initiatives is helpful, but depth of curiosity, adaptability, and learning orientation matter more than any single technical skillset.
CULTURE & ENVIRONMENT
We operate in a high-accountability environment where expectations are high and the work is consequential. We value individuals who take ownership, communicate proactively, and follow through consistently.
We are particularly interested in people who are energized by change and motivated by improvement — individuals who want to rethink established processes, experiment thoughtfully with new technologies, and help shape how a modern investment organization operates.
This is not simply a maintenance role within an established framework. It is an opportunity to help build and evolve the future operating model of the firm.
COMPENSATION
We offer a competitive total compensation package, including base salary, annual performance bonus, and comprehensive benefits. Compensation will reflect experience, capabilities, and the level of ownership and impact associated with the role. Additional details will be discussed during the interview process.
Skills Required
- Experience in accounting or financial operations, ideally including high-volume accounts receivable and accounts payable
- Familiarity with the billing and reconciliation lifecycle and financial reporting requirements
- Proficiency with Excel
- Experience with accounting/financial platforms such as Geneva, QuickBooks, Concur, or comparable tools
- Strong working knowledge of billing and financial concepts and ability to manage multiple priorities in a deadline-driven environment
- Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, business, operations, or related field
- Analytical mindset with ability to evaluate tradeoffs and identify operational inefficiencies
- Strong communication skills and an ownership mentality
- Experience with workflow tools, automation, analytics, or process improvement initiatives
- Relevant professional progress or certification (e.g., CPA) is a plus
What We Do
EARNEST Partners LLC is an employee owned institutional investment management firm. The firm primarily manages assets on behalf of public funds, Taft-Hartley plans, endowments, foundations, charitable organizations, corporations, and state and municipal government entities. The firm invests in the public equity markets across the globe and fixed income markets of the United States. The firm employs a fundamental and a statistical analysis with a bottom-up stock picking approach to make its equity investments. For its fixed income investments, it invests in U.S. Government agency debt, U.S. investment grade debt, mortgage-backed securities, and asset-backed securities. The firm employs a credit and a fundamental analysis to make its fixed income investments. EARNEST Partners was founded in 1998 and is based in Atlanta, Georgia with additional research operations in Brazil and China.
