Senior Project Accountant

Work Location:

2895 Greenspoint Parkway, Ste. 600, Hoffman Estates, IL

Employment Type:

Full-time

If you love the intersection of projects + numbers + people, this is your seat at the table. As a Senior Project Accountant, you’ll be the trusted financial partner to Project Managers—owning the accuracy behind project setup, WIP, billing, reporting, and closeout—while also training and mentoring the next generation of project accounting talent. You’ll bring structure, clarity, and momentum to the project financial lifecycle in a fast-paced environment.

You’ll report to the Director of Project Accounting and play a key role in strengthening process consistency, improving cash flow outcomes, and elevating the team’s capability.

This is more than just a numbers role—it’s your chance to contribute to a collaborative, growth-focused team where your precision and initiative will help drive our success. We offer a supportive work culture, competitive salary and benefits, and real opportunities for professional development.

• Manage the full project accounting lifecycle for a portfolio of projects—from setup through closeout.
• Ensure projects are configured correctly in Deltek: contract terms, billing terms, rate tables, budgets, labor categories, and key project attributes.
• Monitor and maintain financial integrity: budget vs. actuals, labor postings, WIP/unbilled, AR aging support, and project status.
• Prepare and/or review invoices across common billing types (T&M, lump sum, NTE, cost-plus, retainers, etc.).
• Partner with PMs to ensure invoices are accurate, timely, and aligned with contract requirements—including required backup and portal submissions.
• Serve as a point of escalation for complex project accounting questions—digging in, finding root causes, and driving clean resolution.
• Deliver clear reporting and insights to PMs and leadership (WIP, unbilled, project performance, trends, and risks).
• Identify process gaps and recommend improvements that reduce rework, improve accuracy, and support scalability.
• Train and onboard Project Accounting Assistants and Project Accountants on Deltek workflows, billing standards, and best practices.
• Provide coaching, quality reviews, and practical guidance that builds confidence and consistency.
• Contribute to SOPs, checklists, and tools that help the whole function run smoother.

Required

• 5+ years of project accounting experience in the A&E industry (or closely related professional services).
• Hands-on ERP experience with Deltek (Vantagepoint/Vision).
• Strong knowledge of core project accounting concepts: project setup, WIP/unbilled, billing, project reporting, and closeout.
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines with high accuracy.
• Strong communication skills and a service mindset—able to partner effectively with PMs and leadership.
• Attention to Detail:
  Strong ability to manage multiple projects while ensuring accuracy in reporting and compliance.
• Analytical
  
  Skills:
  
  Ability to interpret financial data, provide insights, and collaborate effectively with project teams and clients.

Bonus Skills

• Experience across a variety of A&E contract/billing structures and client invoice portals.
• Advanced Excel skills (pivots, lookups, reconciliations, analysis).
• Experience in improving processes or training programs in a project accounting environment.

You’ll thrive here if you…

• Love turning messy project data into clean, billable, accurate outcomes
• Enjoy being the person people trust when the question is “what’s really going on with this project?”
• Like mentoring others and raising the bar for the team
• Care about details, but also see the bigger picture—cash flow, client experience, and operational health

What you can expect

• A role with real visibility and influence on project performance and billing outcomes
• Strong partnership with project managers and leadership
• Opportunity to shape processes, improve consistency, and help develop the next wave of project accounting talent
• Competitive compensation and benefits (tailored to your experience and location)

At Walker Consultants, we are committed to maintaining fairness and…