Manager, Accounting & Payroll Systems

All current City of Sarasota employees must apply to job postings on the internal career site.

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NOTE: The City of Sarasota is an Equal Employment Opportunity, Veteran, E-Verify and Drug Free Workplace employer. Click to view the City's Veterans Recruitment Plan. Click to view a the City's Educational Equivalency Statement.

Department:

Finance Administration

Employee Type:

Regular

Time Type:

Full time

Salary Range:

$43.4849 - $57.6175 Hourly / $90,448.66 - $119,844.47 Annually

Job Posting Period:

May 07, 2026 - May 18, 2026 12:00 A.M.

Job Description:

Overview

To manage and coordinate activities of the Accounting and Payroll staff.

Essential Functions

• Organizes and manages the work of the accounting and payroll personnel in the maintenance of the City's financial records.

• Responsible for preparation and issuance of the City's Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR). Prepares Federal and State Single Audit reporting forms.

• Prepares periodic and special financial statements and reports.

• Coordinates the development and implementation of software applications used for accounting and payroll purposes.

• Supervises preparation of municipal payrolls and issuance of bi-weekly paychecks.

• Verifies work of accounting staff to see that proper flow of work is maintained.

• Audits and reconciles financial records for proper application of accounting principles.

• Assists in determining compliance with finance-related laws, rules, and regulations.

• Ensures that financial reports effectively communicate financial information that is: understandable, reliable, relevant, timely, consistent, and comparable.

• Acts as a knowledgeable resource for employees of other departments relating as to procedures and requirements of the accounting system, as well as recommends and facilitates changes as needed.

• Manages all duties and roles that may require a work schedule that expands beyond normal work hours and into weekends when necessary.

• The intent of this class description is to provide a representative summary of the types of duties and responsibilities that will be required of classifications given this title and shall not be construed as a declaration of the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position.  Incumbent may be required to perform job-related tasks other than those specifically presented in this job description.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university in Accounting,

• Eight (8) years of professional accounting experience, five (5) of which must be in local government accounting,

• Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and/or a Certified Government Finance Officer (CGFO) is required or obtained within 1 year,

• Professional experience shall include expertise in governmental accounting, financial statement preparation, generally accepted accounting principles, personal computers and automated accounting/payroll systems. Experience in the preparation of Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) and Component Unit Financial Reports (CUFR), Public Employee Retirement System Financial Reports (PERS) and other financial reports for internal and external users,

• Experience with the Government Finance Officers Association's Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting program,

• Extensive experience with computerized general ledger, purchasing, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll and fixed assets systems.

Job Based Competencies

• Extensive knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles as applied to governmental accounting, auditing and financial reporting.

• Knowledge of governmental accounting principles and practices including those promulgated by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).

• Knowledge of Internal Revenue Service and other regulatory agencies wage and payroll tax provisions and filing requirements.

• Knowledge of principles, methods and practices of municipal finance methods, procedures and records.

• Ability to analyze complex financial transactions, records and reports.

• Ability to plan, direct, organize, and manage accounting and payroll personnel in a manner conducive to full performance and high morale.

• Ability to establish and maintain an effective working relationship with other employees, departments and the general public.

• Highly organized and team-oriented with the ability to take initiative with the duties and responsibilities of this managerial position.

• Ability to maintain professionalism under pressure.

• Ability to lead a team and develop technical skills of staff while maintaining attention to detail and owning the results of the position and the team.

Responsibility

Under the direction of and responsible to the Department Head or designated representative. General Manager, Finance supervises the accounting and payroll teams.

Physical Requirements

This is primarily sedentary work requiring limited physical effort. Position requires visual acuity for reviewing, checking, preparing, and maintaining written and computer files. Incumbent is required to have sufficient hearing to accurately perceive information at normal spoken word levels. Manual dexterity to operate standard office, data entry, and word processing equipment is required.

Public Contact

Considerable public contact may be considered as a part of the job criteria.

Retirement Benefit

The City of Sarasota made the transition to become a Florida Retirement System (FRS) employer effective December 1, 2021. To learn more about what this benefit may mean for you, please visit MyFrs.com. Please note that if you are hired to work for the City of Sarasota as an FRS employer, you will be asked to complete a form to certify your FRS status, as there may be an impact to any FRS benefit you are already receiving.

If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to Jake Brown our ADA Coordinator. Jake can be reached via email at Jake.Brown@sarasotafl.gov or via phone at 941-263-6299.

For questions pertaining to general employment or job application status, please call 941-263-6476, or email HR@sarasotafl.gov