Accountant, Consultant

The Corporate Financial Accounting and Reporting team is responsible for the accurate recording, analysis, and reporting of financial information for Blue Shield of California. The Accountant Consultant will report to the Accounting Manager and serve as a trusted extension of the manager, helping translate priorities into execution, lead day-to-day accounting and reporting activities, resolve complex technical accounting matters, and provide review, guidance, and oversight to the team.

This role carries expanded responsibilities and requires strong technical accounting expertise, sound judgment, and the ability to operate with greater independence than a Senior Accountant role.

The Corporate Financial Accounting and Reporting team is responsible for the accurate recording, analysis, and reporting of financial information for Blue Shield of California. The Accountant Consultant will report to the Accounting Manager and serve as a trusted extension of the manager, helping translate priorities into execution, lead day-to-day accounting and reporting activities, resolve complex technical accounting matters, and provide review, guidance, and oversight to the team.

This role carries expanded responsibilities and requires strong technical accounting expertise, sound judgment, and the ability to operate with greater independence than a Senior Accountant role.

In this role, you will operate with a high degree of ownership and accountability, partnering with the Accounting Manager to manage priorities, identify and elevate risks, coordinate deliverables, and ensure high-quality execution across close, reporting, audit, and accounting policy activities. You will use strong analytical and problem-solving skills to evaluate complex accounting issues, apply accounting standards to facts and circumstances, document conclusions, and communicate recommendations to leadership, auditors, and business partners.

You will also help strengthen processes and controls, coach team members, and support continuous improvement across the accounting function.

Our leadership model is about developing great leaders at all levels and creating opportunities for our people to grow – personally, professionally, and financially. We are looking for leaders that are energized by creative and critical thinking, building and sustaining high-performing teams, getting results the right way, and fostering continuous learning.

In this role, you will:

• Serve as the Accounting Manager’s trusted extension in coordinating monthly financial close activities, including maintaining the general ledger, analyzing account variances, monitoring close progress, resolving issues, and communicating results, risks, and escalation items to management
• Review journal entries, balance sheet reconciliations, and supporting documentation; provide coaching and feedback to Senior Accountants; and help ensure work products are accurate, complete, well-supported, audit-ready, and prepared in accordance with accounting policies and deadlines
• Partner with the Accounting Manager and business stakeholders to support monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reporting, including supporting financial statement preparation, drafting audited financial statement disclosures that align with applicable accounting standard requirements, coordinating inputs, reviewing schedules, resolving issues, and ensuring timely completion of deliverables
• Serve as a subject matter expert and first point of escalation for complex accounting matters, financial reporting, financial reporting control systems, and generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), including researching authoritative guidance, evaluating accounting…